By Lyle Fitzsimmons, Contributing NFL Editor -- (Sports Network) - It was so much different last year.

Just 12 months ago, the New York Jets were in the early stages of a seven-day high, celebrating their season's defining moment - a 40-13 rout of the Miami Dolphins in the South Florida sun.

Of course, when you're in the midst of a 4-12 debacle, the bar for celebration is set pretty low.

Fast forward 12 months forward to same old Jets - who enter a Week 14 matchup at San Francisco this Sunday with the wobbly gait of an uncertain child.

Sure, this year's team is 8-4 and a game up on the AFC East pack with four to play, but a few months of palling around with the conference elite changes the expectations a bit.

An ugly 17-point home loss to Denver has sent critical fingers pointing in all directions around Jet Nation, with pundits in a death race to see who'll be quickest and most eloquent in pronouncing the 2008 version of Gang Green just another in a line of failed imitations to 1969.

All just a week after the words "Subway" and "Super Bowl" were leaving those same keyboards.

New York Daily News beat writer Rich Cimini was alarmist-in-chief Thursday morning, wondering aloud if Brett Favre's subpar performance in the arctic drizzle against the Broncos was indicative of a 39-year-old no longer able to compete in adverse conditions.

The ex-Packer was 23-of-43 for 247 yards and an interception in the 34-17 drubbing.

"Favre's tires might be intact, but the Jets are coming off a blowout in which he played horribly in cold and rainy conditions against the Broncos. It was his first bad game in more than a month, but it makes you wonder if it's the start of another late-season swoon.

"In his last three Decembers, Favre has compiled a dismal passer rating of 63.5, with 11 touchdowns and 23 interceptions. The former Packer icon did less passing and more handing off last December, and his efficiency improved (85.5, six and five).

"He was brilliant in a playoff win over the Seahawks, on a day in which Lambeau Field resembled a snow globe, but it all ended with his overtime interception against the Giants."

It remains to be seen how much reality the 49ers will be able to interject.

The NFL's crown jewel of the '80s is in the midst of another anonymous season 20 years later, coming in at 4-8 even after two wins in their last three games under a streaking, ahem... Mike Singletary.

San Francisco did show some gumption against one of the Jets' division foes last week, however, hitting the road to Orchard Park for a 10-3 defeat of the homestanding - and free-falling - Buffalo Bills.

It was the team's first win in five road games and actually kept a faint heartbeat alive in the NFC West playoff race, where it trails Arizona by three games with four games remaining.

If the Cardinals win any of their final four games, they clinch the division.

"It gives us confidence," Singletary said. "These guys are working hard. They're trying to do all the things that we're asking them to do. When you stay together and work together and fight together and win together, it's something that's very, very rewarding."

SERIES HISTORY

The 49ers are 8-2 all-time against the Jets, but had a five-game winning streak in the series snapped with a 22-14 loss at the Meadowlands when the teams last met, in 2004. San Francisco won the previous meeting, a 19-17 decision on the road in 2001, and were 36-30 overtime winners when the clubs last met in the Bay Area in 1998. The Jets are 1-3 in series road games all- time, with their only win at Candlestick Park coming in 1983.

The Jets' Eric Mangini and 49ers' Singletary will be meeting each other, as well as their counterpart's respective team, for the first time as head coaches.

WHEN THE JETS HAVE THE BALL

In spite of last week's stumble, New York has won five of six and seeks its fourth straight win on the road. Favre is unbeaten in his regular-season career against the 49ers - 7-0 - with an 88.8 passer rating, and, in two 2008 games against the NFC, he has seven TDs and a 129.4 passer rating. Including the postseason, Favre's teams are 97-8 when he posts a 100-plus rating. On the ground, Thomas Jones leads the AFC with 1,088 rush yards and is averaging 121.7 yards per game over his last four outings. He has 12 TDs in the past eight games and aims for a seventh consecutive game with a score. Since 2007, the Jets are 9-1 when he scores at least once. In his last meeting with San Francisco, while with the Bears in 2006, he gained 111 yards on 23 carries with a TD. Jones' 11 rush touchdowns are second in the AFC.

Elsewhere, change-of-pace running back Leon Washington has four TDs in his past three games - two rushing, one receiving and one on a kick return. Through the air, wideout Laveranues Coles had nine receptions for 119 yards in his last meeting with the Niners. In his own past four games, rookie tight end Dustin Keller - the 30th selection in the 2008 draft - has 27 catches for 313 yards and a touchdown. Also, Keller has 20 first-down receptions in those four games.

The Niners have been leaky all season on defense, allowing 30 or more points six times in 12 games and surrendering more than 20 in three of the other six. They've allowed 347.9 yards per game overall - strikingly similar to the 346.4 yards the Jets have averaged on offense - and a miserable minus-13 in turnover ratio.

Among the positives, linebacker Takeo Spikes's three interceptions tie him for the league lead at that position. Both he and fellow linebacker Patrick Willis had a forced fumble last week in Buffalo. Cornerback Nate Clements had a 58- yard interception return in his last meeting with the Jets, while he was a member of the Bills in 2006. He's started 116 straight games, the second- longest streak among active players at that position. Elsewhere, defensive end Justin Smith had 1.5 sacks last week.

WHEN THE NINERS HAVE THE BALL

It's been big play or no play for much of the season in San Francisco, where the Niners have 53 plays of 20 or more yards - the second-most in the NFL. Quarterback Shaun Hill notched a 96.5 passer rating against the Bills, marking the sixth time in eight games where he's hit 95 or better. Hill is 4-2 as a starter. Running back Frank Gore is one of two players this season to either hold or share a team lead in both rushing (926) and receptions (39), and, since the start of 2006, his 4,998 scrimmage yards are best in the NFC. This season, he is fourth in the league with 1,280 yards (926 rushing, 254 receiving) from scrimmage.

Through the air, veteran ex-Ram Isaac Bruce is still a threat in a new city and his 14,734 lifetime yards are tops among active receivers. He had five catches for 86 yards and a touchdown in his last meeting with the Jets - while with the Rams in 2005 - and seeks a third straight game with at least one touchdown catch. On the season, he's caught 39 passes for 625 yards and six scores.

On the defensive end, the Jets were knocked forcefully from their pedestal last week when Denver's Peyton Hillis went for more than 100 yards on the ground. And, perhaps ominously, New York is allowing 331.3 yards per game, a potentially inviting number for a Niners team that's racked up just 304.4 offensive yards each week on its own.

Among the superlatives, first-year Jet linebacker Calvin Pace needs two sacks to surpass the career-high of 6.5 he established last year while with the Arizona Cardinals. Defensive end Shaun Ellis leads the team in QB takedowns with seven. Elsewhere, rookie cornerback Dwight Lowery recorded his first career interception when he picked off Denver's Jay Cutler. Second-year cornerback Darrelle Revis is first on the team and tied for third in the AFC with four interceptions.

FANTASY FOCUS

If you've got them, this week calls for starts for Favre, Jones and Keller from the Jets offense. Favre should recover against a Niners pass defense that surrenders in the neighborhood of 240 yards per game, while Jones is on a roll and shouldn't sit until the roll ends. Keller, meanwhile, has at least six catches in four straight games and has taken over as the QB's No. 1 target. For San Francisco, Gore is a legitimate choice to at least attempt to do what Hillis did to the Jets last week. And, with the momentum he's built, if you've got Hill, play him. On defense, neither of the teams screams out as a must- play this week.

OVERALL ANALYSIS

Another week, another big test for Eric Mangini and his preparation skills. A subpar opponent would normally portend a victory for the favorites, but the Jets failed a major exam last week and were also unceremoniously dumped when they last headed west - against the awful Raiders in mid-October. A defeat of the Niners maintains the division edge and restores some of the swagger, while a loss would raise the "same old Jets" cacophony to peak 2008 levels. Looks like a Gang Green win from here.

Sports Network Predicted outcome: Jets, 31, 49ers 21