Ryan has the Jets believin'

It's nice to see a Cinderella team still kickin' going into the NFL conference championship games next Sunday.

While the NFC title game will feature the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds (New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikinings), the AFC matchup will pit the top-seeded powerhouse Indianapolis Colts against the fifth-seeded underdog New York Jets.

First-year head coach Rex Ryan proved that leadership matters. He took over a sputtering Jet team that now has one of the best defenses in the league and players who seem to match the confidence that Ryan exudes. This shouldn't be too surprising for those old enough to remember his dad, Buddy Ryan, a long-time NFL defensive guru who knew how to get players to play with passion and intelligence. Buddy is often credited with the fearsome 1985 Chicago Bears defense that led that team to a Super Bowl win after a 15-1 regular season. While he was sometimes hard on his players, the animated Buddy enjoyed the loyalty of his troops like few other coaches in NFL history. Rex has a slightly different approach and a more positive sideline demeanor than his dad did, but seems to have the same level of respect from his players and assistant coaches.

Congratulations to Ryan and the Jets on getting this far and keeping an underdog presence alive in the tournament. I didn't think the Jets could stop the high-powered San Diego Chargers today, but they did and if they can get after Indianapolis quarterback, Peyton Manning, next week, they might actually return to the Super Bowl for the first time since Joe Namath beat the then Baltimore Colts in 1969. That legendary upset was in Miami, site of this year's Super Bowl. So perhaps fate is on the side of the Cinderella J-E-T-S.