Talking Points: Five Biggest Draft Busts
With a franchise such as the Jets, this kind of topic can become a source of frustration but also release. It’s not a stretch to say that for a time, the Jets were known more for blowing their first-round pick than anything on the field. So here I am searching through my wire feeds and such and I come across a list of the Top 5 Jets draft busts in 
franchise history. What better way to kill time on a Saturday, right?
5. Ron Faurot
4. Johnny Mitchell
3. Roger Vick
2. Blair Thomas
1. Ken O’Brien
I have to say that I do not agree with Ken O’Brien at the top of the list. Yes, compared to Jim Kelly, John Elway and Dan Marino he looks awful, but he was still a solid QB in his time and kept the Jets as competitive as he could. He was my first Jets QB — except for Joe Namath — and I always thought the Jets could have done a lot worse. And hey, he was better than Tony Eason. I mean, the man made 2 Pro Bowls. That’s not a bust.
But I digress, what are YOUR top Jets busts? And please, go as far back as you possibly can. Let’s get talking.
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If I could name some recent draft busts…
DeWayne Robertson – 1st Round
And I think I would put Anthony Schlegel, Mike Nugent and Justin Miller all as draft busts for the round they were picked in. Don’t believe any of them reached their value.
I definitely agree with a few of them. There are a lot of teams that had made mistakes in the first round and passed on a talented player. Most of those players should be on that list but I look at the first 5 picks range an area where you cannot screw up. Johnny Lam Jones, Dwayne Robertson. You could also add Dave Cadigan, Mike Haight, as bad picks just lets hope the Vernon Gholston and Sanchez are not added to that list.
No way on Ken OBrien he was at least an average or better
5. DeWayne Robertson
4. Johnny Mitchell
3. Ron Faurot
2. Blair Thomas
1. Johnny “Lam” Jones
Please Rex, dont let Vernon Gholston be on this list
The more I think about it, Mike Nugget should be at the top of that list. How the hell did the Jets give up a first round pick for that guy? To make it worse, he was drafted at the beginning of the second round, while other teams rountinely find good kickers in late rounds or as free agents. If you draft a kicker that high, he should at least have a strong leg, which gives long field goal chances and doesn’t give the other team a return chance on kickoffs. Nugget didn’t even have a strong leg, he routinely gave the other team good field position of kickoffs.
Ken O’Brien was a damn good QB. No way he should be even near that list.
Kyle Brady, We want(ed) Sapp!
How could anybody say that Ken O’Brien was a bust? The guy still holds NFL records, brought his team to the playoffs, and threw the ball as well as anyone. Granted he is not HoF material, but he was defenetly a solid started in the league when he played. This was obviously written by a Jet hater.
way back??
Carl Barzilaukas. ‘73 or ‘74. look him up.
Not sure of the spelling, but he was DeWayne Robertson before there was DeWayne Robertson.
bryan thomas for the fact the fact the we passed on Ed Reed…
Obrien being on this list is just retarded. Dan Marino never played for the JETS to know what would have happened. Obrien was an efficient QB. His statistics are above average. So then this makes Michael Vick a bust, for Atlanta not taking Tomilson. It’s Dewayne Robertson if anybody recently. Historically overall we draft well.
Blair Thomas has to top the list. I agree that Kenny O’B shouldn’t be on any bust list. He was a decent QB, he just never had any real help, and Joe Walton was his head coach (need I say more?).
Add to the bust list: Russell Carter; and even though he wasn’t a bust, the Jets traded UP to get Jeff Lageman (BIG reach).
This post holds absolutely zero merit if Ken (potatoes) O’Brien is the number one Jets draft bust. Should we have drafted Marino? Yes. But was Kenny O a bust. Absolutely not. He was an extremely accurate QB who was selected to two pro bowls and kept the Jets competitive for many years
When Kenny O retired he was the only Jets quarterback to have ever been ranked the number 1 passer for a season. His career passer rating was ranked in the top ten among retired NFL quarterbacks (wikipedia).
And how bout a trip down memory lane.
September 21st 1986 Dolphins at Jets: This is one of the NFL’s greatest games. Ken O’Brien would get his revenge from last years amazing passing game in which O’Brien passed for 393 yards in a losing effort to Marino’s 362 yards and 50 yard game winning touchdown pass with less than a minute in regulation. His revenge wasn’t going to be easy as he witnessed Marino throwing for 6 touchdown passes and 448 yards. O’Brien would return fire with 479 yards and 4 touchdowns, all to Wesley Walker. With 5 seconds remaining and the score 38 to 45, Ken O’Brien riffled a 21 yard bullet pass to help tie the game at 45. In overtime on the Jets first drive, O’Brien hit Walker with a 43 yard touchdown pass for the win. It should be noted that the previous two years Dan Marino (1984) and Ken O’Brien (1985) were the highest rated Quarterbacks in the NFL.
How could Potatoes O’brien be on the list and Kyle “Penn St. Frat Boy” Brady not be on the list. No merit. This post is a BUST!
Vinny Interceptaverde
The Jets didn’t give up a first-round pick for Nugent. People tend to forget what they exactly got in that trade. The Jets acquired TE Doug Jolley, and the 47th overall pick and a pair of sixth-round picks. One of those sixth-round picks (#185 overall) was packaged with the Jets fourth-round pick to move up in the fourth-round to get Kerry Rhodes. They used their other sixth-round pick on Cedric Houston
So in the end, the Jets came out of it with Doug Jolley, Kerry Rhodes, Mike Nugent and Cedric Houston.
Granted Jolley never really panned out, it wasn’t an awful trade.
Houston was solid value for a sixth round pick.
Nugent managed to do the job for three years as the kicker, though it was a poor franchise decision to draft a kicker with the second round pick, part of the reason why I put him on the busts list. Just don’t think he quite lived up to the value.
Kerry Rhodes is what he is. And any Jet fan knows what he is.
Kyle Brady by far…. We could and should have had W Sapp. R Vick was pretty awful but I was only 11 when that mess occured
Some late first early 2nd’s hurt in recent drafts also:
D Boose- 1998
A Van Dyke-1996
R Terry – 1997
Saying O’Brien #1 is a mistake. How Kyle Brady is not in the #5 is insane!!
Derrick Strait (OU), Anthony Becht (WV), and Justin Miller top my recent memory of Jet draft busts. I know Robertson was bad for what we did to get him but he did start every game as a rookie and had some decent moments under Herm’s 4-3….. Strait could never crack the starting lineup while Becht as a 1st rounder was never better than an average player….. Miller was supposed to be the CB that Strait couldn’t be and he wasn’t good for anything but returning kicks……….plenty of others but these are a couple that weren’t mentioned before (and yes I saw Miller’s name in a prior post)
You can’t put Ken O’Brien on the list simply because Marino turned out to be a hall of famer. Its ridiculous, if you use that criteria nearly every other pick in the 1st round that year should be the “all time bust” for that team. Just dumb, think Kerry Collins is a decent modern day comparison for O’Brien. Obviously not a hall of famer but not even close to a bust. (2 Pro bowls). I’m disgusted by that ranking.
I like the rest of the list with Blair Thomas number 1 for me. I think you add Becht/Brady with Mitchell to take up the 4/5 slot. I can still remember being sick to my stomach over that Roger Vick pick. A fullback in the first round, Really ???
O’brien a bust?!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aR5KEShrfY4
not with moves like that… He was often the cause for much misery in many households. But “Bust” might be too much.
Plus we got what can be expected from QB out of UC-Davis.
Robertson might be the worst simply because not only was he a high pick, it took two first-rounders to get him. I’d probably say Lam Jones, however, because he was the 2nd overall pick and had one season with 736 yards receiving. He never showed signs of being the man.
Interesting note about O’Brien’s 1985 season when he led the league in interception rate (on the good side), QB rating, and Adjusted Yards Per Pass. He also led the league in times sacked, which could mean one of three things:
1) The offensive line was not very good.
2.) The Jets dropped back to pass more than most teams.
3.) O’Brien had terrible pocket presence.
I didn’t watch the ‘85 Jets for birth reasons, so what do you think the main reason was? I’m inclined to say the O-Line was not great, which would also contribute to the argument against O’Brien being a bust. Even though the argument in itself is a waste time…if 24th picks with a 58% completion percentage, 80 qb rating, and more tds than ints are busts, then most QBs have been busts.
Great topic, good post (even if the list inspiring it is horrible).
To add to what was said above, drafting Dave Cadigan (a guard!) with the 8th pick and Mike Haight (a tackle) with the 22nd pick within a couple of years of each other and then seeing them start just 23 games between them in their first three seasons set the team back years (especially when the Roger Vick – a fullback! – pick came in between).
Lam Jones and Blair Thomas had their moments, but considering where they were taken have to top the list.
Miller would have been up there if not for his KR prowess. Otherwise he was pretty much useless.
Faurot deserves a mention, even though his short-lived career was due to injuries. Barzilauskas is before my time, but being the sixth pick and only lasting 4 years must put him up there, although I can’t comment on how good he was or the reasons for his decline.
Guys like Carter and Mitchell also underperformed but had their moments.
Kyle Brady was a decent pro, but just a horrible waste of a pick that early when he’s little more than a blocker. Ditto Becht. Taking a 2nd round kicker was even more dumb.
It’s too soon for Gholston, but if he never amounts to anything, he legitimately could top the list because even though Lam Jones and Blair Thomas were huge let-downs, they did have some good games.
MJ’s list above is pretty good, although I think there are others more deserving than Robertson who played hard and had some good moments as a four year starter, even though he nowhere near lived up to being the fourth pick.
Here’s a similar topic and discussion from just over a year ago:
http://www.thejetsblog.com/2008/04/23/one-fans-list-the-ten-biggest-jet-draft-fiascoes/
EE – I might sound like a big Robertson apologist, but the two picks they gave up where during a horrible draft. They were linked with Boss Bailey (as big of a bust as most people mentioned on this thread) at 13. The actual 13th and 22nd picks? Michael Haynes and Rex Grossman. There were more misses than hits in that first round and most of the guys who turned out better than Robertson (and there probably isn’t more than ten) were in areas where the Jets did not have a need at the time.
On Obie, I’d say the offensive line wasn’t great (although it may have been even worse later on in his career), but the high sack number was probably mainly due to the fact he was (a) really slow and (b) used to “eat the ball” a lot.
Well I won’t lie, ken was before my time but my question is…how is it fair to say he was a bust because of what Marino accomplished? I mean I understand his accomplishments and that he was picked later but if we take all he accomplished and put a Jets jersey on him, there’s still no super bowl ring…
Kind of like the Adam Dunn of QB’s?
No one with a knowledge of Jet history could leave Johnny “Lam” Jones, the second overall pick in the draft, off that list. He and Blair Thomas are in a bust class by themselves.
As to O’Brien, he always suffered from the Marino comparison. Was he a good pick? No. The worst? No.
Browning Nagle, anyone? Certainly a far bigger bust than Ken O’Brien. And, I agree that O’Brien was quite a good QB. He’s just always going to be in Marino’s shadow.
Well, he was capable of going deep…
TJBfan makes a good point. Perhaps the top 6 Jets busts should be the six guys selected ahead of Tom Brady?!?! I guess when it’s one QB over another and the guy you ended up with doesn’t live up to the other one (who was avoided for legitimate reasons…low IQ and drugs rumors) but is still pretty good, that pales in comparison to reaching for a guy nobody would have taken until much later (Haight, Vick, Nugent), taking a guy at a certain position and ignoring a need area when there’s a stud available at that position (BT over Reed, Brady over Sapp), but then we’re getting into how bad the pick was not how much of a bust the player was.
But on the “how much of a bust the player was” criteria, O’Brien went to multiple Pro Bowls, took the Jets to the postseason several times and was only a late first round pick. Plus life as a Jets fan wouldn’t be complete without having beaten up on Marino so many times and witnessed his failure to win the big game.
Exactly, OR, he may have been selected a little later on, but he did next to nothing after his promising debut.
Kyle Brady has to be on that list.
O’Brien as No. 1 is just plain silly.
vernon gholston better step up or hes gonna be on this list
O’Brien wasn’t a bust. If you rank the top Jets QB’s in history he is in the top 5. Granted, that’s not saying much, but how can he be a bust. Was he a mistake? Yes, they should’ve drafted Marino, and most people thought that right out of the gate. But with that being said 51-45 hitting Walker as time expires in regulation and then again in ot. What a great memory and what great duel’s he had with Marino.
As far as being sacked, he did at times hold onto the ball to long, and by the middle of ‘86 it looked like he could hear the footsteps of the D-line. That was his downfall, getting sacked or just hit too much. He was never quite the same after that and neither were the Jets.
O’Brien on the top of the list is crazy. Guy was a good QB and one of the better in Jets history. He gets beat on because he wasn’t Marino. You may as well put Keyshawn Johnson on the list because he never was anything near the level of a number 1 overall pick and Marvin Harrison and TO were in that same draft. My worst list would be:
5 Johnny Mitchell
4 Ron Faurot
3 Lam Jones
2 Roger Vick
1 Blair Thomas
Whoever did that list is still in diapers and needs a brain transplant.
For the statistically impaired, for QBs who played at least 60 games, Obrien had the lowest interception percentage, second highest yardage and number of TDs and third best yards per completion and completion percentage ALL TIME for our team. On most teams, we would say star!
Draft busts have to take account the position in the draft. Nugent makes me angry still but he was just a second round pick. Busts like Johnny Lam Jones and Blair Thomas have to be bigger busts since they were the second players taken overall. How about Chris Ward at #4. Or Carl Barsilauskus at 6, Russell Carter at 10 or Johnny Mitchell or Ron Faurot at 10.
I empathize with those who want to put VG or DeWayne on the list. But if DeWayne had been a UDFA, we would all be singing his praises since he actually played and excelled occasionally and the book is still out on VG.
Also, playing zero games has to put Lam Jones on top of Blair for bust. Even Glenn Foley has more catches than Lam Jones.
It is unfair to put Johnny Mitchell on the list since he played for four years and averaged over 13 yards per reception.
Even Cadigan and Barsilauskus managed to suck up roster spots for a number of years.
So clearly:
1) Johnny Lam
2 Blair the hands
3) Ron Faurot
Then pick your own misery.
harlan
Uh, Browning Nagle anyone?
Glenn Foley?
Agree about Barzo.
What about Richard Caster?
Lam Jones, definitely.
Ken O’Brien was nearly a GREAT QB. About 5 years into his career he led all NFL QBs in history in QB rating. Yes, that’s correct, #1 in history! Sadly, he got hit so many times that later in his career he developed happy feet.
To label him a bust is the height of absurdity.
For me #1 has to be Johnny “Lam” Jones. What a waste.
I was at the draft screaming for Sapp (drug rumors) when we selected Brady and it just killed me. I remember saying to another fan that the Jets front office was “character crazy” and would never take Sapp. I was devastated to be proven correct.
Hands down….Blair Thomas!
BT was projected be a good player and was obviously, just the opposite. JLJ was a track start that was a huge risk to pick with high hopes of paying off. So, the biggest bust is Blair Thomas.
Kenny O was solid and had a productive career, which automatically disqualifies him from this competition.
However, if you have a wish we would have picked someone else who turned out to be a HOFer, then yes, you can add him to that discussion. But, the thing people don’t realize is that Marino was widely rumored to be a big time drug user at Pitt and that is why his senior season numbers fell off and he slid. You can’t blame the Jets front office for not being able to project him cleaning up his act after signing an NFL contract.
The draft is a crap shoot. All teams have a history of clunkers. Only thing is, we happen to lead the league in clunkers.
The last few years, we have done a good job. This year, I think, will be special. Sanchez reminds me a little of Pennington. He seems intelligent, hungry, and poised. Schonn Greene and Matt Slauson should both add to an already playoff-ready team.
Oh, for you Gholston bashers. This year, he is going to show all of you that he will be a Jet force for years to come.
Go Jets.
Cmon get real Ken O Brien!? The guy was solid!!! He never even had an offensive line…granted he was no marino or elway…But realisticly he was probably the 5th best quarterback in jets history!!!!!
Thanks Bent. They are certainly different discussions as you say, “bad pick” vs “bad player” but both are very interesting.
I’ll save the bad pick talk for another time, but when it comes to talking about a bust….we have to consider what makes a good first round pick.
In my opinion, your first round player is supposed to be a starter and contributer to your team for years to come. A high pick should be a “face of the franchise” type player and expectations are higher.
From 1990 – 2009 only Blair Thomas and Johnny Mitchell didnt last more than 5 years in the NFL. D-Rob is closing in on that since hes coming on 6 years but still unemployed for the 09 season.
Then theres Becht and Brady, two high pick TE who never really made a big impact on any team. Not bad players per say but def not first round worthy. In 2005 when Becht joined the Bucs, they started a TE rookie out of the 3rd round…enough said.
So my list from 1990 – 2009
5. D-Rob
4. Kyle Brady
3. Anthony Becht
2. Johnny Mitchell
1. Blair Thomas
Harlan, if D-Rob was a UDFA we would be singing praises but he was the 4th round pick in the draft. I expect more out of player selected that highly because he sure as hell wasnt getting paid UDFA money….
Also I put Mitchell on the list for the same reason you say its unfair to put him on it. A first round player is expected to be a solid contributer for more than 4 years…
Everyone even bringing up Gholstons name is just being ridiculous, last year was his rookie year, give him two more years before you can even talk about him being on a list like this.
oscarfactor,
Nagle was a second-rounder and Favre had just been selected ahead of him. He wasn’t good, but again, it was a second rounder and I don;t think tehre were any good QBs left at that point. Glenn Foley – wasn’t he a second day pick – how can that be considered a bust? And Rich Caster was good! How can you think of calling him a bust?
I’m only 29, so my list only goes back to the late 80’s, but i’d choose:
1. Blair Thomas
2. D-rob
3. Kyle Brady
4. Dave Cadigan
5. Vernon Gholston. That’s right – i’m confident he’ll be higher on the list eventually, but for now he goes no lower than #5.
Browning Nagle by far!
1. Lam Jones–the Jets traded 2 first round picks to get him at #2.
2. Blair Thomas–1st overall pick, and that was not questioned at the time.
3. Johnny Mitchell–because talent oozed out of his pores, but his 5-cent head was his undoing.
4.-8. In no particular order–Mike Haight, Glenn Dennison, Ron Faurot, Dave Cadigan, and Russell Carter
And that’s just the first round picks I can think of. K. Brady at least blocked for Curtis Martin effectively, so he managed to avoid my list.
Kenny O does not deserve to be on that list. He had a bad line protecting him. He got sacked a lot but it wasnt always his fault. Hell the guy made the college football hall of fame so you cant even fault the Jets for taking him – hindsight is always 20/20.
Blair Thomas should be number one in my opinion. Kyle Brady is def a top ten bust.
I dont think Johnny deserves to be in the top 5 busts either.
just saying what has been said before, O’Brien was as good a qb as most of his contemporaries.
kyle brady
Nugent is a pretty horrible pick. I dont think we can call b. thomas a bust just cause reed was avaliable. Hes nowhere near a bust.
Mole, since you know who Caster was I’m assuming you are an older fan like myself.
Caster dropped more passes than TO has. Worst late game WR I’ve ever seen and that is saying a lot.
Nagle and Foley were drafted as the next great Jets QB – so not being a first round pick doesn’t play in this. The only thing that saves them from Jets infamy is that they both played around the same time Neil O’Donnell did – and the money the Jets paid him was obscene, by far a more horrible move than a couple of bust college QBs.
Sorry but Corey your list is crap, Ken O’Brien was a good QB. Blair Thomas heads the list and Kyle Brady takes over in the top 5. Also at number 7 and rising fast is Vernon (Laughing all the way to the Bank)Gholston. He will never overtake Thomas but he could be top 3. No heart =Bust.
I laughed so hard when I saw O’Brien there at 1, it totally blew the credibility of the post. LMAO
Also I agree with having a special top 10 position for Nugent, that whole trade for Jolley getting a K with first pick still irks me to this day.
James – I agree that the list is bad, but it’s not Corey’s list! It was Terence O’Neill from Bleacher Report’s list.
Corey even said he doesn’t agree with Obie at number one.
however everyone is talking about…that parent which isnt your mother…the male one…i havent written the card yet
Ken O’brien was a great QB……….
5. Lee White – 1968
4. Carl Barzilauskas – 1974
3. Blair Thomas – 1990
2. Richard Todd – 1976
1. Johnny “humps the lamb” Jones – 1980
This is the word.
No way Ken O’Brien goes up there. Lam Jones, Blair Thomas and Roger Vick are the top 3. Maybe Mike Haight goes in there. And Johnny Mitchell.
you peolpe must be high….the biggest jet bust…well the leed in …we were, I should say ron wolf was prepaired to select a certant Qb…what was his name ..hint he played here last year, but the gm running the atlanta falcons knew the jets covered farve & told the jets they would select him(even thought they had just picked jeff george), unless the jets surrendered their second round pic..The jets balked, atlanta took farve & we got curt barber…who might have played one or two downs in the nfl..Sorry folks curt barber cost us brett farve….So he is the biggest bust
o-factor,
Let me rephrase what I wrote: When determining the top 5 draft busts in Jets history, I just can’t see putting those three anywhere near there. Nagle would come the closest, but everyone in the league passed over Foley several times. I have a soft spot for Caster, as it was the first Jets jersey I ever wore as a kid.
my bad, sorry Corey
Thanks Bent for clarafication, O’Brien was a favorite of mine
Whoever wrote this list is a complete s**t head.
Obrien???? are you kidding me???
if he play’d for any other team he would of been a SUPER STAR! put anyone behind no OLine and show me what they can do.
good thing for us and Marino he did not get drafted by the Jets he never would of made it pass 2 wks with his bad knees.
don’t you know football ? and if you don’t why are you writing on the Jets Blog .
Kenny O’ was great! its the Jets team that Sucked! i thing you owe him and us fans an appology.
DR,
O’Brien came to the Jets when they had a great OL. The core of Sweeney, Fields, Alexander and Powell was great. A little weak at LT, with Ward and then McElroy, but it was one of the best OLs in Jets history (and Schuer was a great all-purpose TE). Let’s not make O’Brien more than he was. He WAS NOT a bust, but he had some serious failings. He held on to the ball way too long. I remember yelling at the TV “THROW IT AWAY’ so often my Mom would come in and ask if O’Brien was getting sacked again. Also, to say he was immobile is an understatement.
My top 5 busts (in no particular order):
Barzilauskas, Vick, Lam Jones, Faurot and Blair Thomas. No Johnny Mitchell because he wasn’t a “bust.” A “bust” is a high draft pick that can’t cut it in the NFL. Johnny Mitchell could’ve been one of the great pass-catching TEs of all-time. Instead, nobody knew he was insane. Hard to say that makes him a “bust.” I just wish he was on meds or something and could have just stayed on the team.
being great and being the greatest in Jets history are 2 different things!!!! there is a thing as holding the ball too long but 2 sec is not too long, look at Brady he has time to do his Taxes back there something a Jets fan never felt before.
Ive been to every game during the Obrien era and i promise you our OLine was the PITS!!!!
Shuler was Great but he was a TE. and Johnny Mitchell i agree he could of been one of the greatest but just like O’brien he was drafted by the Jets its enough to kill anyone’s career.
DR,
We disagree, I watched every game during the 80s and watched replays of classic games. The Jets’ OL of that era was great. The Jets running game with McNeil, Hector and Paige just steamrolled teams. O’Brien had enough time to allow Wesley to have some of the greatest seasons. In the ‘85 and ‘86 seasons, which is when O’Brien was at his peak, Walker averaged over 20 yards per catch. That doesn’t happen unless the OL is protecting the QB. Sorry, I can’t let your opinion go unrebutted. The Jets OL during the Field, Powell, Sweeney, Alexander era was great. And, Brady moves around in the pocket because of his incredible awareness as good as any QB in NFL history. I would count 5, 6, 7 seconds and O’Brien would stand back there like he was set in cement. I liked K. O’B, but let’s not whitewash his shortcomings.
Sackdance99
Like you said we disagree, I also watched replays and believe it or not I have so many games we taped ourselves. and i would have loved to count 5,6,7, seconds i was not able to get passed the 2sec mark. loved Hector he should hve had a chance to get the ball more. our Offense consisted on running the ball and … running the ball. Joe Walton was busy picking his nose always too confused to know when he should maybe throw the ball for a change. and than we got Jeff Crisswell i can still hear the Ref every play Offsides # 69 EVERY PLAY!!!!!. rediculous!
Ken O’Brien was no bust. He was a solid QB on some awful Jet teams. He played 124 games and had a completion percentage of 58.8. He played 8 years and as I recall we only had two winning seasons (1985 & 86). For most of his career, he played behind some god awful OLs, being sacked 338 times. If memory serves, he was sacked a mind boggling 70 times in his worst season. I have long thought that if we had drafted Marino instead of O’Brien, Marino would not be in the HOF today. IMO he was not as physically tough as KOB and would have had a very hard time dealing with what OB dealt with.
O’Brien’s OL was great for 1/2 his career with his Jets and, IMO, wasn’t poor until 1990. Again, Walker could’ve never gotten deep downfield if the OL wasn’t giving O’B lots of protection. I would count 5, 6, 7…”THROW THE BALL” all the time. And, since it was the era of the VCR and I was in college, my Mom would record every game. Then, when I was out of college, I would, too. O’Brien held the ball for too long. I agree, it also was Joe Walton’s fault. There had to be something with his offense that caused the QBs to hold the ball for too long, because after he was gone, O’B’s sack % went way down (the 2 lowest seasons in his career) under Coslet. But, his OL and running game in ‘90 and ‘91 weren’t good.
Iggy,
Actually, O’B was sacked 62 times IN 1985, HIS BEST SEASON!!! In ‘85 and ‘86, two of the his (and the Jets’) best seasons of the 80s, he was sacked, respectively, 62 and 40 times. It was ‘85 that I remember as the infuriating season. It always seemed like O’B was waiting for Walker to open up deep. And, the Jets rushed for over 2,000 yards!!! Bad OL?!? C’mon. O’B held on to the ball too long.
It was a combination of things-O’Brien did hold the ball too long, but the OL allowed way too many sacks. It is possible to be very good at run blocking while being mediocre at pass blocking. On opening day one year, the Raiders sacked him ten times! By comparison, Dan Marino was sacked 270 times in 16 seasons. O’Brien: 338 in 8. You can’t tell me that all those sacks were due to him holding the ball too long. The OL is responsible for a lot of them.
Last point on O’B. In his 7 Jets seasons, the Jets rushed for over 2,100 yards 4 times. For context, the Jets have eclipsed the 2,000 yard rushing mark only twice this decade. He had a potent running game, a great TE, and a succession of great WRs (Walker, Toon, Moore). I like K. O’B, but he had his issues.
Iggy,
Like I said before, I think Joe Walton bears some responsibility because under Coslet, O’B’s sack rate went way down. Marino?!? He had the 2nd quickest release that I’ve ever seen. K. O’B wasn’t in that league. Compare him to a guy like Neil Lomax. Their sack rates were comparable. Lomax’s was actually worse. Theisman’s sack rate was virtually the same, and the Hogs might’ve been the best OL of all time. Phil Simms had a higher sack rate, as did Plunkett. So, different era, different sack percentages.
Sackdance99
Kenny o’s only issue is the NY JETS OLINE and Coach.
how can they not have a great rushing yard mark . its ALL they did.
Iggy,
You said it! you obviously been watching the same games i have.
my wish for Ken is to have been drafted by another Team and show what he could of done. oh well we wont be getting that chance as long as Brett Favre keeps coming back LOL….
Kenn
Bottom line: Ken O’Brien was a pretty good QB on a succession of lousy teams. He did not have a Marino type career (not many did). But he was certainly no draft bust. That is absurd, especially in light of all the inexplicable draft choices made by this team over the years.
Picks 1 through 5 and even up to 10 are considered franchise players and screwing up those picks set you back. Screwing up in the following rounds does not help. Kenny O was a decent QB, not great but decent. Blackledge was horrible and the 7th pick and Eason stats were not even close to Kenny’s although his team made it to the SB. There are so many QB’s that are drafted and didn’t work out and they went number 1. Couch, Carr, Smith, Leaf (2) who is in jail, Steve Walsh supplemental(when you already have Aikman and the list could go on and on. Meanwhile Montana went in the 3rd rd and Brady went in the 6th and Kurt Warner wasn’t even drafted. I can still remember looking into the sky and seeing a plane fly over the stadium with a banner reading “if a bird had waltons brain it would fly backwards” or when Walton would pick his nose. Oh the memories.
DR – the person who wrote this list doesn’t write for thejetsblog, it was linked to the original article on bleacher report.
Sack – I agree with you about the OL, but Powell was traded at the end of 1985 (only Obie’s first full season) and the line was not quite as good thereafter, wouldn’t you agree?
Like I said earlier, O’Brien held on to the ball way…. tooooo long. He was great in ‘85 and over the first half of ‘86. They had some injuries the second half of ‘86 and it seemed like O’Brien from that point on heard the footsteps approaching and was never the same again. As far as Tom Brady, he has eyes behind his head.
The writer must not remember that QB class of ‘83. No way OB was a bust. There were 6 QB’s taken in the 1st round and Marino was the 6th because of the drug rumors. Everyone mentions Kelly (who started in the USFL for the Houston Gamblers if my memory serves me correctly), Marino, and, of course, Elway. However, one person above mentioned Tony Eason (by the Pats) and how about Todd Blackledge (I believe 9th by the Chiefs). OB was definitely better than those two. So OB was the 4th best out of the 6 and the 3 ahead of him are all in the HOF. There was one year when the Jets were 10-1 and OB was doing was a QB is supposed to do. WIN GAMES. Then Klecko got hurt and they lost 5 in a row to go to 10-6, but those first 11 games that year have to be up there with the best football any Jet team had in any era. I won’t list a top 5 because all the REAL busts were brought up already.
Bent,
Powell may have been traded, but Sweeney moved to LT and McElroy switched over to RT. It was still a good OL, with Fields, Alexander and Sweeney (and McElroy was much better on the right). There’s no doubt that the OL declined, but IMO O’B’s sack rate had little to do with the OL and more with the offense and his tendency to hold the ball too long. As he matured, his sack % went down and under Coslet, like I said, his sack % was at it’s lowest. Moreover, it was Bill Walsh who revolutionized the passing game. Through the 80s the whole passing game was viewed differently in the NFL. Teams passed mostly when they had to, the defense knew and it was harder to pass…DBs held, used stick um, etc. That’s why I cited sack % for other 80’s QBs. O’B’s sack rate was comparable. That he was sacked as much as other QBs (especially Theisman), means in my book that the OL was protecting him as well as other teams protected their QBs. The OL was good, but O’B held the ball too long and took too many needless sacks, which was also Walton’s fault. Walton coached the Jets for 7 years, only Weeb coached more Jets seasons. Weeb’s in the HOF. Joe, who left the Jets when he was 54, never coached in the NFL again. Thanks, Mr. Hess.
Thanks, Sack! I only started watching in 1986, so I appreciate your insight here.
A sizeable bust also was John Huarte in 1965.
Here you had college football’s main Golden Boy — Notre Dame QB when ND ruled the world, Heisman Trophy winner and all-around ABC Saturday Football favorite. Sure bet to be THE next QB stud to rule over pro football.
He slides to the 6th round in the NFL draft on rumors he may go with the AFL for the money. He slides to the 2nd round in the AFL draft because of thoughts that he, especially as the main draft stud, would land in the NFL. But Sonny Werblin grabbed Huarte, and signed him to big cash, which startled everyone since he’d just made a big to-do about tapping Namath (who, admittedly, not many aside from major college football geeks had ever heard of). For most of America, and for casual-to-moderate football fans in 1965, Huarte was THE MAN. Even here in NY, we couldn’t figure out how in heaven’s name Werblin had taken that Alabama kid with the big ears over “the greatest player in the game today.”
We weren’t far into camp before we started to see why. It became clear that Werblin was hedging his bets with Huarte, as well as setting up a 1 and 1A competition bound to garner wall-to-wall coverage for his struggling team. But Namath clearly was beating Huarte’s head in all through camp, emerging as the clear #1. Huarte was never the same after. Lasting until 1972 as a backup with a line of: G-24; Comp-19; Att-48; Yds-230; TD-1; INT-5; Rush-12; Yds-52; QB Rating-22.4 while bouncing from the Jets to the Pats in the AFL, over to the NFL for the Eagles, then after the merger to the Chiefs and Bears, then gone.
From Darling to Doorman — John Huarte ranks high for All-Time Busts, not just Jets busts.
But the worst bust in All Jets History, I feel, is:
Carl Barzilauskas – 1974
All of the other clear busts mentioned above were football players who simply could not cut it in the NFL.
To have watched Carl Barzilauskas play, ever so briefly, was to see someone who simply wasn’t a football player. A big lug who was completely clueless. Whoever decided to draft him made Tanny look like Paul Brown.