Stats: Lead Rushers through 11 Weeks
Posted on November 17th, 2008 by Bassett
Here’s a quick look at the leading rusher in games the Jets played through Week 11 of the 2007 season (left) and the 2008 season (right).
Obviously, a lot has to do with two factors. The improvement on the defensive line along with the improvement on the offensive line. But it’s pretty wild to note how often Jets rushers are leading the game versus last year.
This really is the year for the Jets to shine, now we might win the division, but we have to worry about next year since 2002 we had this , one year we are good the next we are bad , its been like this ,
02 10-6 ( not sure )
03 6-10
04 10-6
05 4-12
06 10 -6
07 4- 12
08 7-3 ( so far )
if we don’t make the SB this year we really need to make sure the next year we don’t fall asleep and assume we are gonna do fine
I know we should think about this season right now , but is this joy going to last up until next year , are we really built for a dynasty , can we be like the guys next door , who for the past 3 years made the playoffs and are going to for sure lock up the division this year , this is why the Jets are the little brother , because we are not consistent . I really hope it changes now that we added alot of talent to our team . I mean come on our running game has not been this good since Curtis Martin , and we did not have this many sacks since the sack exchange
I believe moving away from Pennington will go a long way toward changing our inconsistency. His injuries really hamstrung us in the past. That said, what Favre does next year will be just as important. We can still be a playoff team without him, but just like the OL was the area that needed the most attention this year, next year Tangini will have to solidify the QB position for the near future. Will Ratliff burst on the scene? Clemens is still #2, will he surprise and be better after sitting a year behind Favre? Is it possible our starting QB next year is Cassel? Even if Favre stays another year, the FO will need to have a solid plan in place. If Favre stays the draft becomes very interesting. Looks to be some solid QB’s coming out next year.
Dynasties have depth. O line and quality defensive depth. If T. Cody comes out this year we need to make sure we walk away with him. Having Jenkins teach an NT prospect for a year or two before he goes will go a long way for this team.
nyckage – We were 9-7 in ‘02.
Whether or not this team can be consistently good depends on how well we draft in the next year or two. Obviously the QB position needs to be addressed as soon as the season ends. Even if Favre sticks around for next season, we would need to start grooming a starter for ‘10. We also need to get younger on the D-Line, bigger in the WR corps, bolster the secondary and add depth on the O-Line in case Faneca and Woody start to deteriorate.
Though I was ecstatic to see the Jets finally being aggressive and spending money in free agency, this team owes just as much of its success this season to the strength of the Tangini draft classes. That trend needs to continue to fight off the “here today, gone tomorrow” recent history of the Jets.
A lot of that flip-flopping from good to bad can often be attributed to the strength of schedule, but this was supposed to be an easy year. With all 6 of the divisional games being tough this year and the Titans and Cardinals better than advertised, I’m not sure that’s the case.
Sure the rest of the NFC West is poor and the AFC West contains two bad teams and two inconsistent ones, but the rest of our division gets to play them too (and not having to go out west four times next year will be an instant advantage over this year – although we won’t have any home games against teams that have made the cross country trip either).
So much for the easy schedule when the two uncommon games are:
Jets – Titans, Bengals
Miami – Baltimore, Houston
Bills – Jax, Cleveland
Pats – Colts, Steelers
The Jets don’t have much of an advantage over anyone in terms of a supposedly easy schedule, so if they go (say) 10-6 this year and then slide back to (say) 4-12, the strength of schedule is not likely to be the reason.
There you go again, Pete57, bringing up the Chad talk again. heh-heh
Seriously, I’m not looking forward to waiting until July to find out if Brett wants to play again next year. The Jets won’t know in April if they should draft a QB of the future…which is what has Green Bay experienced the last 4 years.
BubbyBrister -
Why on earth should our decision whether or not to draft a QB of the future hinge on what Favre decides to do next season? Favre won’t be around for more than one season (most likely) and we need someone to be READY TO GO when he does finally decide to hang it up.
We should draft a quarterback (unless Tangini really loves Ratliff) regardless this April.
I think the Jets QBs will be fine. I’d be looking for BPA, just like last year.
We have to draft a QB this year , whether Favre retires or not , if Favre does retire then we let Ratliff and KC battle for the job and we let them play until one of them start to suck then we start the new guy , and if Favre doesn’t retire then he gets to learn from one of the greatest QB’s ever , then the year after that we should let him and Ratliff battle it out I seriously think next year is going to be KC’s last year in NY
I like TJ, he’s a tough interior runner, but he doesn’t have that extra gear; I think he leaves a lot of potential yards on the table, especially when he “turns the corner.” I like Leon in the Kevin Faulk/Bruce Harper/Dave Meggett role, but for longer term success, a bona fide game breaker of an RB would help. VG actually being a productive NFL player and Lowery building upon a very good rookie season (Jet fans, Revis’s rookie season was atypical…most CBs need a year or 2 in the NFL…IMO, Lowery is ahead of schedule) would help. The Jets also need an heir apparent at QB…my $$$ is on Ratliff, but sitting a season and learning from Favre has to help Clemens, especially watching how Favre uses his TE. Whoever becomes the next QB has to be prepared to ride Keller, who is just scratching the surface. But, if I had my wish list, it would be a 1st round RB and because the current trend in the NFL is that RBs are a dime a dozen, there’s a good chance that a quality back will be around in the last third of the first round. Imagine if Tannebaum had been successful in getting Turner? I think teams still game plan against Favre, not the running game. When you have a breakaway RB like Turner, the defense has to game plan to stop the run. Elway was able to elongate his career with TD, if the Jets had that kind of RB, Brett could play for 2 more years or a rookie QB would start out with a great, young backfield, J. Co, Keller, and a good mix of youth and age on the OL…a great start.
Joe b. – We have 4 QBs already. To think the Jets will draft a QB high and have to pay him bigtime money and not worry about Favre playing does not make sense to me.
BubbyBrister/shovelpass
Whats the highest pick do you think we are going to get , I mean come on we might make the playoffs this year , so lets say we lose in the 1st round we will probably get a 20th pick , what big time money , and what makes you think we are going to keep 4 QB’s , most likely KC or Ainge is getting released , I think it’s Ainge , KC is still to me Valuable in ways and Ratliff is worthy a roster spot for another year and I’m pretty sure this is Favre’s last year
The good news is that I don’t think we have even seen the best out of the OL and TJ as of yet, let alone the inclusion of more running plays for Leon in the game plan.
When we start getting into the December games and having to grind out the clock in the winds of the meadowlands in order to win the game, the ground game will really be fun to watch and post even more impressive numbers.
The Chad/Brett discussion is a mute point. I loved Chad, but he could never win the type of game Brett won Thursday night and that is the main reason why I loved the trade for Favre in the summer. In those moments of those two drives, when you need to rifle the ball in order to give the receiver the ability to catch it and get even a little YAC, you need the arm strength. This is where Chad always came up short, or should I say the receiver did, because Chad had to wait for the receiver to be open, then get the ball to him and by then, the D was able to react, hold the receiver to the shorter gain, or break up the pass. That slight split second difference of gunning it to the receiver helps get a yard or two after a catch…like the 3rd and 15 where Keller picked up 16. If Chad makes that throw, Keller had to stop, turn around and jump for it and the DB makes the play stopping him a yard or two short. That is the difference of having a rifle versus a pop-gun arm. Running the Wildcat may be helping Miami win games, but when they need their QB to throw a dart to pick up a key first down on the road, in the cold, with the wind in his face, I am sure as can be that Chad will come up short.
Unbelievable. We have the AFC’s leading rusher and people want to draft a running back in the first round. TJ is awesome, the “he can’t run outside the tackles” knock is way overplayed and has been proven wrong. Sometimes I think TJ could run for 2,000 yards and Jet fans would still find some reason to knock him.
He’s tough, quick, smart and never fumbles. What else could you want in a back?
Joe-
I’d like him to be six years younger … :)
well , we have a team built to be good for the next year at the very least , but what also we have to take in account is the schedule and the growth of Mangini, I know the guy is very young in terms of coaching , but he is growing pretty well, but what we need is a franchise QB , the reason why the Pats and colts and the Giants make the playoffs every year because they have a franchise QB ( and disregard the whole matt Cassal deal for now ) we need to draft a QB , take the Falcons for example I can tell the will make the playoffs atleast 4 times in the next 6 years because of Matt Ryan
i guess t. edwards will find out what people will think of him after throwing 7 (and counting) ints in 3 games
Joe B.- Exactly how has TJ proven wrong the fact that he really is not the type of RB that can get outside? He’s a tough interior runner, but watch when he gets to the second-level. He just doesn’t out run any DB. Why does everyone take criticism as the worst thing on earth? I appreciate TJ for what he does, but I also see the OL open huge holes and TJ have lots of running room. TJ may be leading the AFC in rushing, but he’s tied for 27th in the AFC for longest run from scrimmage at 31 yards. Not to mention, as Bassett noted, he’s 30 years old. So, as a Jets fan concerned about the long-term success of the team, forgive me for thinking that RB is a position that can be upgraded and solidified for the future.
I guess there’s no way of definitively proving it since it’s all visual, but I think that knock on TJ is just parroted by people who don’t really watch all of the NFL’s backs. Against the Rams, TJ seemed to be a lock for 15 yards any time he got to the outside. So what if he doesn’t break 60-yarders? I’d love to see the stats on 10-15 yard runs, because TJ seems to have had a million of them.
Curtis Martin didn’t specialize in long runs. In fact, in his best year (2004, when he ran for 1,697 yards at 31 years old), Curtis’ longest run was 25 yards. Did that really matter?
TJ’s age is also overplayed by detractors. He’s only carried the ball 250+ times in three seasons, and only has 1,819 carries for his career. For comparison, at this point in Curtis’ career, he had around 2,500 carries. TJ still has plenty of miles on his legs. I’d prefer to draft a QB, DL or WR with our first round pick if we don’t make the Super Bowl (kinda nice to have that be a possibility).
Joe B great point with the Curtis Martin comparision, sometimes tough physical back can wear a defense down and open up other things for other skill guys.
Im huge TJ fan and I think we should give him a break after last year, he’s probably just worried about falling foward past the line of scrimage.
All kidding aside I would like to see him beat a DB, but the guy has been a monster for us this year
Thus far:
Kris Jenkins: 30 tackles, 24 solo, 6 assists, 4 sacks
Dewayne Robertson: 15 tackles, 12 solo, 3 assists, 0 sacks
In addition, the BIG JINX continues to take on two offensive lineman which allows others to apply pressure or shoot the gap and make the tackle.
Stats don’t do justice to the impact KJ has had.
Robertson posted the following stats in 2007 in the same 3-4 NT role:
57 tackles, 36 solo, 21 assists, 4 sacks
Jenkins final stats if he continues at the same place will not look much better, but clearly he has been far superior, which admittedly has surprised me (although the two can’t be compared exactly because the Jets also made a change to their scheme this year with KJ mostly two-gapping where D-Rob didn’t much).
I dont care about schemes, yo yos, whistles or anything like that…
Dewayne Roberston is a human gutterball and fails in comparsion to KJ any day