Link: Any Answers for Lombardi’s Five Questions?
Michael Lombardi asked five questions each AFC East team has going into 2009. Saving the Jets for last, Lombardi is looking for answers on all three sides of the ball. Let’s come up with some answers for him.
NEW YORK JETS
1. Who is going to be the quarterback? Is that a fair question, Yahoo Dave, or am I being too hard?
2. Once we know who the quarterback is, can the Jets find a wide receiver who can make plays and draw double teams? Wide receiver is a huge need — other than Jerricho Cotchery, there’s not much there and very little speed.
3. Can their offensive line stay healthy all year? The Jets have two starters over 30 they need to find some young, talented offensive linemen. They need some depth here.
4. Is the kicking game set? The Jets had issues in 2008 with field-goal kicking and punting and need to find some youth in both areas.
5. Do they have enough speed at linebacker to run the Rex Ryan scheme? Will Vernon Gholston ever make a play at linebacker?
While none of the questions are truly ground-breaking, I can’t outright disagree with too many of them as they are areas that should be addressed. But I’m starting to think I’m alone in placing my confidence in the Jets for making the un-sexy picks at QB and WR.
I don’t care what veterans are available, or who could be had in a trade. I feel good about the guys on our roster, and believe they already have the rapport together to make it work on the field.
It’s especially aggravating with the QB discussion. Frankly, the notion to find an adequate replacement for Favre is an overrated one. The Jets lost games they should’ve won and missed the playoffs with him, too.
Let the unknowns play. If they don’t light it up, then QB becomes priority No. 1. But if one of them does, then he’s young enough to lead for another decade! I’m more than happy playing the “If” game right now.
As for the receivers, when’s the last time the Jets had a guy who commanded a double-team? How many teams have one? Getting one would be fantastic, but in a run-first offense it’s also a luxury.
The youth movement shall reign supreme here. David Clowney ran a 4.37 40, Brad Smith a 4.46, and Chansi Stuckey would’ve done better if not for a lingering foot injury.
The kicking game should be fine. Feeley is fresh off an 85-percentage season, and Reggie Hodges will likely be challenged for his job early and often by any punters roaming around looking for a home. It can’t get much worse than Ben Graham, right?
Truthfully, I find the offensive line question to be the most unnecessary. Depth is one thing, but Woody and Faneca aren’t grandparents. They’re in their early 30s, playing a position where guys can play until after they’re 35. Injuries are a freak thing, so quality depth is good. But I’m willing to roll the dice without spending a first day pick on a lineman.
76 Responses to Link: Any Answers for Lombardi’s Five Questions?
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Jameson says:
I would feel better with a dynamo-punter on board.
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BubbyBrister/shovelpass says:
While i agree that the O=line isn’t altogether broken, I’ve been uneasy for the last three years that we haven’t had any quality backups in toe. And if one takes issue with the age of the O-line, what does that say about our Def. Linemen too? I would’ve made that a top 5 question in place of the kicker nonsense…
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sorry…that’s ‘tow’.
whew! …grammar police narrowly avoided… :-)
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Roman says:
totally agree on the QB – we should go with Ratliff and let him learn as he goes. Let him become the next Brett. We have enough solid threats on offense and after we pick-up Moreno in the draft a running game will be the best in the league with TJ, LW & Moreno. We have a lot of young WRs that can develop and given a chance to play now that Coles is gone.
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Harvlis says:
Angel,
Another good post. I agree with almost everythng you said. The only thing I disagree on is, O-Line depth. Not only should we have a few good back-ups, we should have tred to get better, this year. If any one of our linemen go down, we take a big drop.
At WR, I think Marcus Henry could be a nice red zone target for us. He looked good, last pre-season.
With the right O-Coordinator, and I have stated many times B. Schottenheimer is not that guy, we have enough weapons to do damage. With Richardson leading the way for TJ and Leon, Dustin Keller with one year under his belt, Jerricho and possibly Clowney or Henry at wide-outs, and Stuckey in the slot — we are not bad. I am sure that we will add to that, with a FA receiver/running back or by way of the draft.
What team doesn’t have questions to answer?
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Brad says:
i am high on ratliff and fine with KC- Best one win, time to see where they are at. Ainge as the sleeper!
Double team issue- That will be kellers role- teams have to game plan aound him! Clowney deep threat, Maybe tall marcus henry will emerge and split some time with clowney going deep at times! Stuckey slot- and im sure we will draft a WR somewhere in the draft!Someone is going to need to step up, cotchery might have a tough time this year always having the teams best CB on him!
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Kevino says:
Meh…
They’re only questions, and not actual knocks on the team. The key to this is to if the “answer” to these questions are on the roster, or do we have to go out and get more help…
The Jets could stand to get some depth on the lines, and could definitely use another receiver, but other than that, I think we’ll be fine… We can address these issues at the draft. A punter can be found fairly easily…
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jim says:
draft reciever, running back, depth at o-line, line backer and d-line…we’ll find a quarterback in house, and a better punter will come along…the questions are a bit stupid
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starz31 says:
Graham had a huge punt in the Super Bowl, downing the Steelers on the 1 or 2 yard line that led to a safety…just saying.
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JetOrange says:
Bassett
We are in agreement on most points. The QB situation will work out fine. Clowney is the perfect compliment to Cotchery, you have Keller which makes a nice third. Stuckey may alternate with Clowney. If Ellard can get anything out of Smith, he will become an NFL WR guru.
I do not understand it but it takes WR’s a minimum of three years to put it together. Smith does a lot of things well, he blocks ( Watch him in a trips formations ),he can run after a catch,plays specials, and of course those gadget plays. He needs to improve his hands, and get seperation , good luck Henry.Westoff will make sure thew kicking game is fine. The thing that I do worry about is the Offensive Line going 16 games. The Jets went all last year with 7 offensive lineman without a problem. It is true that Faneca and Woody are on the wrong side of 30, but I find a bigger problem is that no replacement for Brick on the roster.
Robert Turner is an excellent Undrafted Free Agent, IMO he can be an adequate backup for both Guard Spots and can do a little RT. Turner would be scary at center, the assumption is Damian Woody moves to center but thats a lot disruption for your Offensive line. Hunter is trying to resurrect his NFL career, was OK at RT, IMO he can’t handle LT, and he ain’t gonna get any better.
I may be the only guy who is looking for a a LT (who can play 4 positions) as early as the second round.
Jamon Meredith OT South Carolina and Tony Kropog out of Tulane are my candidates. This depth problem at Offensive Line is so important, that If Michael Oher slipped to 17 and the Jets pounced on him, as other Jet Fans jumped out of buildings at this perceived horrendous pick, I would just quietly smile. -
I want a 1rst or 2nd round talent at WR…and I would like to at least entertain drafting a RB…we could use depth there IMO…
TJ is good, but he is not getting any younger and what happens if he goes down, Leon can’t carry the whole load, maybe majority, but he would NEED a a change of pace back…and why not get a young RB we can groom. I would not pay him more than Leon though, so 1rst would be too high, but if we’re gonna be a running team, we need more depth at RB. Not every team makes it through a season with only two starting RBs like we did in 08. Although, Moreno is a top talent, and he might be available. -
igs says:
Angel, I think you put a lot of stock in a lot of unproven elements… I don’t have that much faith. I think Rex and T addressed the D in a first class way and I hope they do the same with the offense. Why put all that stock in one side of the ball and leave the other up in the air?
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ken o brien says:
Samari Rolle to be released? Do you think there will be an interest?
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Oher is a natural talent, but we do not need to spend a 1rst round pick for depth at OL…we have more pressing needs. Since OL is deep in this draft, why spend a 1rst rounder there.
Oher does need some more polishing, so he would fit well in a backup role early on…but it would be a poor pick.
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fightinator says:
If the Jets were to take a chance on these young qbs and lose, they would be set back for at least a few years. You can’t win without a quarterback, and Rex didn’t win without one either. If you compare Flacco’s qb rating with the Ravens’ wins last year, the Ravens only one three games while Flacco’s rating was under 80 and won all the games that Flacco was above 80 except for the game versus the Steelers. If I were the Jets, I would definitely pick Sanchez if he were to fall to them, and then I’d pick a receiver and O-Line in the 2nd and 3rd rounds.
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JustAGreenGuy says:
Flacco wasn’t asked to do much and that helped his rating. Things could be a lot worse than drafting Sanchez.
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But is Sanchez as a rookie gonna be better than Clemens a 4 year player or Ratliff in his 2nd year?
Clemens was regarded as one of the top Qbs in his draft, and his value fell only b/c of an injury his senior year. Anybody who has actually watched Clemens will tell you that 2007 is not a fair assessment of what he will provide to us. He played better than Chad that year and neither had an Oline or running game to work with.
Id rather take my chance on a talented 4th year player or a 2nd year player, if he wins in camp, over a rookie who has only 16 college starts and played on a great team.
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Why would we be setback a few years, I don’t understand that. If we lose next year wouldnt we then have a better draft pick next year and then could focus on a QB-deep draft?
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1 – KC or Ratty. We won most of our games in spite of favre early and he lost some for us late.
2 – Sign a veteran to help Cotchery, Stuckey, Clowney and draft some WR’s early.
3 – OL is fine. They did a nice job but depth is needed. We will draft a T/G plus Turner/Hunter can help out in a pinch.
4 – Feely had a nice year and has alway been a pretty good kicker. I hate out punting situation. I hope that this can get fixed early in camp
5 – Pace, BT, VG have enough speed to play in this system. Apparently another guy down on VG. VG will be okay this year. -
Not to mention that if we draft Sanchez, he doesn’t win out in camp, and then whoever does plays well, then what? we just wasted a 1rst round pick.
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Think about the situation the Chargers had with Brees/ Rivers. Having strong QB depth/ trade bait sounds great to me. That being said I’m indifferent to drafting a QB. I think for the first time in the long time our team is solid enough to take a risk pick on a QB and survive while they mature/ flop, but DE and WR are my 1st round targets.
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If a round 1 QB fails we may be setback a few years, but I’ll be happy because we did the thing that makes sense.
The more likely scenario is that he pushes camp competition and we have a eventual pro bowler to lead our offense.
And draft Murphy RD 2 or Barden RD 3.
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How does it make sense? Sanchez is not a sure thing, he could be good/great/bad…who knows? I could say the same thing about Clemens and Ratliff…So, why not take a chance on two guys we already have. I have not seen anything from Sanchez to say he is a better option right now then Clemens. I don’t think anyone trusts Clemens and I don’t know why…he is mobile, has a good arm…has experience in this system…has played behind one hall of famer and also one exceptional leader and decent QB (Favre/pennington).
It took Pennington 3 years to get on the field and it did him well…Clemens is right there as well…And Ratliff also provides a nice darkhorse candidate with talent as well to push Clemens for the spot.
We have more needs for our 1rst round pick then to take a QB.
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EastSide says:
There’s nothing in FA or the draft that will boost us at the QB position over what we already have. We already have two guys who have been in the system for over two years and a guy who might have the potential to compete someday. I mean, even though Stafford is the better prospect for his consistency, Ainge had better stats playing in the same SEC- especially in the “crucial” area of % completion.
Give Clemens first team reps come camp. If he’s unimpressive, give Ratliff his shot. If we can pick up some O-line depth late in the draft to ensure solid pass protection and run blocking then our QB will not have to do very much at all. Think Favre in the Tennessee game. -
Sanchez is a better prospect than both of them. Deal with it. They may have experience, but there is a reason the franchise has sullied on KC and Ratliff is a risk. Sanchez should go top ten if he falls he must be considered. Nobody is a sure thing. The argued between Leaf and Manning as to who would have the better career. Although your concerns are valid. Sanchez played his best in big games, has good arm strength, and is a great leader. I’ll take Chad 2 with a good arm any day at 17.
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finaly… a voice of reason.
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But I do trust our coach…so if he thinks its best to take Sanchez over a WR or RB…I might actually have to bite my tongue and see how it plays out. I just dont like it IMO. But I’m not an NFL coach.
I just think people have soured on Clemens for no reason…he was considered a top QB in his draft, and only dropped b/c of an injury…and he played on a lesser team than USC.
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USC’s O wasn’t the Lienart/Bush/White/Smith/ Jarrett offense it was a few years ago. I don’t dislike Clemens or Ratliff(even though Ratliff resembles a rabbit, his teeth), but they haven’t done anything to merit too much faith. We vastly overrate both of them. The most impressive thing either has done was how much Ratliff learned while on the practice squad.
Plus QBs sell Jerseys.
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a voice of reason lol…thats a great post igs…why dont you offer some substantial rebuttals to my reasonable ideas…
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Clemens Bio : “Clemens played college football at the University of Oregon. He assumed the role of starting QB in all 13 games in 2003 and responded by throwing for more TD passes and yards than any sophomore in school history, surpassing Dan Fouts who had (16 TD, 2,390 yards (2,190 m), in 1970). He posted three rushing TD, three passing TD and a career-best 437 passing yards in a road victory over Washington State as a junior. He was a senior during the 2005 season, and was pursuing several school records until he broke his ankle while playing a game at Arizona. He would miss the remaining three games of the season. Still, he finished 2005 with 2,406 passing yards, 19 TDs, only 4 interceptions, and a 152.87 passer efficiency rating. He finished his Oregon career with 7,555 passing yards.”
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Starz- He is perfectly capable, but I’m bored so I will if you like.
Btw if you look at the day 49 post Bent mentions where most predicted KC to get drafted and it wasn’t teh second.
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JustAGreenGuy, here’s are the reasons I am uncomfortable with drafting Sanchez.
- He thrives on rolling out and passing on the run. I’ve seen him rocket balls thirty yards through the air on this type of play. He’s a decent but not exceptional pocket passer. Can our O-Line make left shifts to accommodate for his strength? NFL defenses can run end contains and keep him in the box as well.
- While he makes good decisions in general, he is prone to making head scratching throws at least once a game. Usually these result in turnovers.
- He plays up to big games but plays down to small ones. Last season’s best games? Ohio State and Penn State. Worst games statistically? Arizona, Arizona State and Notre Dame. -
AlexandriaVAJetsFan says:
We don’t need Dirty Sanchez leading this team. He’s not even on Leinart’s level and Leinart is a benchwarmer with no hope of seeing the field anytime soon. If being a first round pick was all there was to being a successful NFL QB then Ryan Leaf would be a Pro Bowler instead of a loser.
We need to build the team around the QB so that when Rex Ryan does decide who the next Jets QB is, he’ll have a strong supporting cast around him to make plays and take the pressure off him while he learns.
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The more potential star quarterbacks you have, the greater the chance that one of them will actually turn out to be a star. Is it not worth drafting Sanchez when he could be a stud at qb for the next 10 years? And if Clemens or Ratliff do turn out to be great qbs, then the Jets can just trade Sanchez and get a good pick back for him. The Jets have to get themselves all the potential talent at qb that they can. Regarding WRs, the draft is full of them, and we can draft them at our selection in the 2nd round, or put together our 2nd and 3rd round picks to move up to get a good WR.
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His pocket presence is a concern, but for me his # of starts is bigger. I think both can be solved with a year or two on the bench.
Every QB will make a couple head scratchers. I think that can be developed too. He is exceptional for his lack of starts and has the dedication and make up of a Franchise QB.
His arm strength isn’t legendary, which I would like and I’d hope that the rest of the team could pick him up against weaker opponents. It is a team game after all. I don’t have a love affair with the guy. (Thats with Colt Mccoy.) I just think the franchise is in a good position to take the risk and wouldn’t fault them for doing so.
Alexandria- Lienart is a bench warmer to a future HOF. So was Steve Young.
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No one vastly overrates Clemens and Ratliff.
If the right situation came along, I am sure that management would pull the trigger but, I think they don’t want old retreads or possible injury cases. They are looking for a guy who can be a fixture around here for awhile. The cap is a factor, as well.
No matter what anyone thinks, Sanchez is a total questionmark. As we already have three of them, why would we want a fourth. We are going to feature the running game, this year. Let’s see if we have a QB and, if we don’t, next years draft will have the real QB’s.
Those of you who are rating Kellen Clemens based on his partial year of regular season games — please remember, he was behind one of the worst lines in the league. In addition, Schottenheimer was horrible. I think Clemens is a player and, since Ratliff looked better than him all pre-season, it should be a very interesting year. And, I still think Ainge might be a player.
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Who is a real QB Harvlis?
Tebow can’t look past his first WR, Mccoy has a questionable arm, and if we have a chance at Bradford either he sucked or we did in 09.
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Star, I’ve been saying all along so I’m not gonna get into it so I was glad when JAGG said it. Sanchez doesn’t have a single weakness in his game other than experience. He did NOT have an all-star offense around him and the only knock is lack of experience. If he falls you have to take him. ANd it’s highly likely that he fall since san fran resigned smith. bla bla bla, ive said it all a million times.
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“if we have a chance at Bradford either he sucked or we did in 09.”
haha
I think Alexandria is just upset about SC’s 52-7 massacre of the Cavaliers during last season’s opener. -
You guys talking about Flacco just didnt watch him play but are going on stats and hearsay.Kid throws one of the prettiest balls you’ll ever see. I believe in Sanchez and Freemon,Stafords a ? without knowing how good the guys are we have, why would you pass up on a guy.it make little to no sense,what do we do if we draft a WR and our QBs turn out to be crap.If come the next draft and were not in position to get a good QB then we looks like fools of the league and so continue the same old jets saga.
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Zartan- (Dreadnoks 4 life! btw) Flacco can throw I just don’t see how he is worth the hype. I could be wrong, but he has a lot of growing to do and now they will have 19 games worth of tape on him.
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Igs, if you’ve said many times, then my bad…I’m just saying I’m not that down on Clemens or Ratliff
I understand the more options the better at qb…I just don’t know enough about Sanchez to want to pick him over our options now. I think he would be a project anyways…Clemens has experience both in College, in the NFl, and on the bench in the NFL….Ratliff is a darkhorse, nobody knows what will happen with him….I just know I haven’t see enough of Clemens to say he wont be successful in the NFL.
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I’ve seen Clemens, what I mean, is he hasn’t shown me he wont be successful.
I just think we have more needs on offense than to draft a QB 1rst round. If Sanchez is there, Maclin is gone, and we dont watn DHB 1rst round or a RB…then I wouldnt rule it out.
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Starz,
People say I put too much stock in scouting reports, but I’ve read so many the past 2 months and they all say the same thing about Sanchez, no weakness, not enough experience, and a wobbly throw sometimes.I mean I feel like eventually you gotta take a chance at the QB. And if it doesn’t work out it doesn’t work out. Sometimes you get Leaf and sometimes you get a Manning. But I don’t beleive that Leafs are born. I beleive they are created by teams that mishandle athletes. It would be up to the Jets whether Sanchez busts.
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I’m not knocking Clemens or Ratty. I’m saying that I don’t have enough faith in them to pass on a round 1 QB if he falls that’s all.
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Liam says:
Its official Rams just cut Torry Holt
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Brian311 says:
i am very comfortable with our offense. the media portrays our lack of a #1 WR who commands double teams as a “crisis”. how many of these WRs even exist in the league to begin with? the dont make many L Fitzs, randy mosses, etc. it is not a necessity to have a 6-5 gamebreaker at WR to win. look at the titans, perfect example. even the steelers – while their receivers are better than the jets, they dont have any premier stars at WR.
whoever is available at #17 will not be a difference maker next year IMO. perhaps in the future, but all the 1st round prospects, besides crabtree, are probably projects and will take time.
i am interest in seeing what a rotation of JC, stuckey, clowney, keller and leon washington can do. with the right scheme / formation, they should find success. thats on schotty. he need to get these guys in a position to make plays
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if we pick up holt we can go another direction in the draft,we still have young wr to develop
clowney
stucky
henry
smithi would than look to take the de jackson at pick 17
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sackexchange says:
the only problem with clemens dont get me wrong i like him but he did become gun shy in the pocket when he was a starter, granted it was behind a crapy line the fact is it still happened which mean it can happen again….i think no QB this year in the draft
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OZMAN says:
still don’t know why there’s no love for Kellen.. almost rallied the troops against the Baltimore D in his debut (if McCarreins makes that catch that hits him in the hands, it goes to OT) and he beat the Steelers in limited duties.. the offensive line was garbage- pennington couldn’t move the ball either (and he turned out to still have something left in the tank, eh?)
and with mangini gone, and rex ryan ready to instill some emotion and urgency into this team, i’m as optimistic about this team as i’ve been in years
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oh and as a uconn alum, if we can get donald brown in the 2nd round, we gotta pull the trigger.. kid’s gonna be a stud-
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Pettigrew if he is there double TE while pounding the ball and Pettigrew Keller when we do deside to pass that would leave tough match-up for base defenses
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God no – please not another 1st round TE
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LET’S GO JETS.. LAND IT IN THE HUDSON
what would sully do?
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Steve in Philly says:
Flacco could just go down in history as last year’s David Gerrard or Derek Anderson. Who knows- he’s a caretaker quarterback on a team that wins mostly via defense. Why did Kyle Boller get benched? Too many mistakes. You don’t need a super stud qb to win a lot of games (Kerry Collins anyone?). I’m sure we’ll have the best game manager out of the qbs we have in there starting this season. We’re mirroring Baltimore in a lot of ways lately and let I remind you what qb they had when they won the super bowl? I buy into it. I’m a sucker maybe but I buy into it. Let Rex do his job and let’s save the qb discussion next year.
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This is an era of football where it’s not just okay to have a shut down defense. There are just some teams that you have to be able to outpoint to win. 99 Rams, 2001 Cheifs, 2007 Patriots. Imagine if the Giants went into the superbowl with that great defense and couldn’t put up those 17 points.
Aside from that, being multidimensional allows you to stay on the field and your defense off. Right now, we do not have a single threat outside of the box. That’s a big problem as proven by our slide in the last 5 games of the season (when it counted most). We should be very concerned.
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Role? WHat about Lowery? No more of this thousand DB thing please?
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SackDance99 says:
I’d take Flacco over Clemens or Ratliff. He had probably one of the 10 best NFL rookie seasons ever, he is the only rookie QB to win 2 rounds in the playoffs and has a real big arm combined with accuracy. So, he’s not Derek Anderson, who has major accuracy problems, or Garrard, whose “breakout” season sort of masked the fact that he made more plays with his legs than his arm and he lacks ideal height. Also, give Flacco credit for not letting that big arm go to his head…he played very controlled football, like Big Ben did his rookie season. As he matures, more pages of the playbook will be opened up for him. He’s a stud.
I’m not sold on Sanchez as the better prospect over Freeman. Yes, Sanchez is more polished, but I’d take Freeman’s size, arm strength and durability over Sanchez’s polish. At the 17th pick, a QB wouldn’t be a bad choice.
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BTW, the Jets attended Josh Freeman’s Pro Day workout:
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Sack
Well what’s the drop off from Sanchez to Freeman?
Accuracy, footwork, questionable leadership and confidence (intangibles), questionable pro-style offensive experience.
Freeman is a waaay bigger question mark than Sanchez. To pas on Sanchez if he falls and then draft Freeman would be foolhardy.
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Freeman24 says:
1. Why draft another young QB (unless you love him) when you haven’t given the 2 on your roster a legitimate shot. It makes zero sense, you have to trust in your investments at some point. That being said they should be offering their number 1 for Cutler, he’s a special talent and Ryan will make him a man.
2. WR is a spot I’m not feeling good about at all. Teams need a threat that causes teams to “account” for. Look at the Giants without Plax, just ordinary. We need to draft one on day 1 and if the new guy, Stuckey and Clowney all turn out to be good then we’ll be a pretty dynamic offense.
3. Our starters played every game last year on O’Line, the only person who can speak to the quality of our current depth is Callahan. I personally believe you should draft lineman evert year
4. Youth in the kicking game? Is that a joke? Seems like every year an old timer is at the top of the league in points. Westhoff needs to find us a punter and I don’t care if he’s 50
5. This to me was the best question and I think the answer is yes assuming VG is used correctly this year (as a primary pass rusher). I trust Ryan will develop our depth here. Murrell is fast for sure. -
jim says:
Clemens will never win us a playoff game, Ratliff showed lots of promise right off the bat, he’s got a big future.. unless you want to trade for Jay Cutler, which I wouldn’t mind at all… sign Torry Holt for the right amount of money and take Tyson Jackson or Jarron Gilbert in the first round, I like Gilbert… Ellis and Coleman are aging and our pass rush wasn’t as weak as the year before last season, but we need depth here and a versatile guy like Gilbert for the future unless we want to move Gholston to DE (which I’m fine with as well). Learn a lesson from the Giants and look at the Ravens, Haloti Ngata and Trevor Pryce… that’s a big part of how they got it done.
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Steven says:
I really don’t understand how nobody is giving clemens any credit. He played for a us when we were in a miserable season and actually won us the 3 of the 4 games we won that year and would have won 4 if Justin McCariens could catch not one but two balls that were throw in the endzone to him when we were playing Baltimore who was very good that season at Balitmore. I know that, Clemens, threw some awful picks and wasn’t the brightest light, but the team for all matters gave up on that season when pennington went down (again) and they already had a bismal mark. He has good arm speed, good mechanics, but is alittle raw. I am hoping he has been working on everything these past couple years which I hear he has been. He is one of the first players to be at the training facility even in the off months as he is this year. Now im not saying that he should get the job I think Ratliff has a lot of potentional, but he had ONE good preason and he was playing against mostly 3rd stringers. Now, I dont want to take anything away from him, but lets not crown him the starter until he starts a regular season game and show’s us what he can do. I do, however, feel that one of them will be adequate for us since we will be a primarily running team.
I do not want to “waste” our 17th pick on Sanchez who im not sold on. I think with our pick we should go with Maclin, Harvin, or Tyson Jackson. If Jackson is avaiable it would be hard to pass on him. He is supposed to be a perfect fit for 3-4 and a complete run stopper. With him and Jenkins on the line not to many teams can run on us. Also, who would free up Ellis to make plays, as well as, letting our linebackers make much more playmaking plays since Jackson and Jenkins would require double teams. With that said, I would not be upset if they went with a player like Harvin. Harvin is a reggie bush type player in that we can use him in the wildcat, he could run a little, he is extremely fast, but im not sure if he would ever require double-teams.
As for as our offensive line, I feel that we should always draft a offensive lineman in the first three rounds. You never have enough and you never know who can turn into a star. Also, if Andre Smith who was a top 5 pick before the bowl game is available at 17 I think that would be a no brainer. The guy has undeniable talent and he would be one of the best right tackles in football if not the best. The guy is a mauler and would pave the way for Jones and Washington for years to come. Woody did a good job but he would be better suited as a backup since he has experience at all positions on the line.
The special teams play I am far from worried about. Not becuase I don’t think its important, i think it is VERY important but i think that Westhoff is the best special teams coach in the league and with Leonard and Washington returning thats set. Feeley had a decent year and kickers and punters are always avaiable so its not critical if we need to sign one if someone starts playing bad.
Lastly, as far as do we have enough speed at the linebacker position? PLEASE, one I feel VG is going to really make a significant impact as a situational pass rusher ESPECIALLY if Tyson Jackson is drafted. But anyway Pace, Thomas have more then enough speed on the edge and we have all seen what Bart and Harris can do. Is it the fastest group? No, but do they have enough speed? Absolutely. This could be one of the most talented linebacking group of players in the league, especially, if Vernon can live up to his 6th selection.
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It’s not so much that Clemens doesn’t get credit. But with the lack of trust by the org, his draft #, and his past performance, I just wouldn’t give him enough credit to pass n Sanchez if he falls.
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Tyson Jackson or Sanchez are my picks.if you guys are going to argue that we have QBs on the team even though their ?? then im going to say that we dont need a WR in the first rd because we have stuckey and clowney.
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Steven,
Excellent post, buddy. I agree with everything you said. Where have you been. We need knowledgeable fans, such as yourself, on this blog. Keep posting.
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Dean Barbella says:
1. Kellen Clemens will be our quarterback. He’s more than qualified, posessing the same size (6’2″ 220 Lbs) as Brett Favre. Also, has the arm strength and accuracy to make every throw in (even in December); yet, is much younger. He’s carried a clipboard for three year’s, so unlike Favre, he know’s Schotty’s playbook. Actually played 8-games and won without running game, offensive line or weapons.
He was a steel in the ’06 draft. He only fell to 2nd round because of injury his senior year. He was a Top-5 NCAA QB: Pass Completions, Accuracy and Games Played – Stud!
2. Jets will solve their wide receiver needs through the draft. Hopefully, Percy Harvin will fall to us at 17. Otherwise, Hakeem Nicks, Darrius Heyward-Bey or Kenny Britt.
3. Can their offensive line stay healthy all year? The Jets have two starters over 30 they need to find some young, talented offensive linemen. They need some depth here.
4. Is the kicking game is fine and so is Feely.
5. Not only do Jets have enough speed at linebacker to run Sexy Rexy’s 46 scheme, but Bart Scott & David Harris will be going to the Pro Bowl. Vernon Gholston’s is entering his second season at new OLB position. Rex will either help Gholston adjust to the OLB position or adjust the defense arround his proven DE skills.
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Osaigai says:
Please people, enough of this Sanchez as our pick stuff. If he is as good as some of you seem to think he is, guess what . . . he won’t be there when we pick at 17. If he is there when it is our selection, it just proves that he is just not that good as there are other teams picking before us that could really use a franchise QB. Personally, after seeing him play quite a bit, I am totally unimpressed and don’t think he is worth the 17th pick.
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kixworld says:
for this day and age linemen are taller again clemens is 6’2 and to roll to throw and again sanchez smaller you are the lower you throw and guess what you got picks just look up romo i love the Rat go for big pysical wr with our 17or drop for one of the big boys
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geffner says:
if the jets want cutler theyre goona have to give up a 2nd and possibly a 3rd plus the broncos are gonna want leon…is it worth it????
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Steven says:
Thanks Harvlis, appreciate it.
An offensive line’s health isn’t neccessarily age-related. We should have better depth going into the season in case a freak accident happens.