Jerricho Cotchery ‘thrilled to be a part of’ Jets’ new-look offense
With the Jets’ acquisition of Santonio Holmes from Pittsburgh last Sunday, the run-heavy philosophy that drove 2009′s success is officially in question, and Jerricho Cotchery is ecstatic about the possibilities.
After spending Wednesday morning showcasing Reebok’s ZigTech sneaker for the media at the Reebok Sports Club in Lincoln Square, the seventh-year receiver beamed while discussing the offensive possibilities with the Jets’ wealth of weaponry.
Cotchery never wondered if the Jets’ additions — Holmes and former Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson — would negatively impact his role. Instead, he challenged opposing defenses to figure out how to stop an offense that boasts three receivers who have primary-target ability.
“When you have your third guy — your third cornerback playing one of us — what are you really going to do with that?” Cotchery asked. “It’s going to create a lot of problems, a lot of problems for defenses and I’m just thrilled to be a part of it.”
Holmes, the Super Bowl XLIII MVP, is fresh off a 1,248-yard, five-touchdown season in Pittsburgh, and Braylon Edwards earned Pro Bowl honors with the Browns in 2007 following a career-best 1,289-yard season with 16 touchdowns. Cotchery also nabbed a career-high 1,130 yards in 2007 through 15 games.
“We didn’t even bring up the other weapons as far as the tight ends and running backs,” Cotchery said. “So just talking about the receivers, now you’re looking at, ‘What are we gonna do?’”
Although Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork wasn’t too concerned with the possibilities, telling reporters Tuesday that the Jets’ acquisitions look good “on paper,” it will be interesting to see how defenses change their approach against a team that won’t rely so heavily on the run going forward.
With three wide outs for Sanchez to target, and Tomlinson projected to be most effective as a receiver out of the backfield, it’s not unreasonable to suggest a philosophical shift in offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer’s gameplans next season.
It was no secret that Gang Green intended to hammer the ball with former running back Thomas Jones leading the charge, but Cotchery now sees the Jets as a “well-rounded group on offense” that’s ripe for second-year quarterback Mark Sanchez if he builds on his progress from late last season.
“He came into his own in the AFC Championship game,” Cotchery said of Sanchez’s 257-yard, two-touchdown performance against the Indianapolis Colts last January. “We’re just looking forward to more of that this coming year.”
And Cotchery, who’s well experienced with quarterbacks ranging from Brooks Bollinger to Brett Favre, has the utmost confidence in Sanchez to take the necessary steps toward improving and bringing the rest of the team along with him.
“We just clicked. We know what each other is thinking, and that’s the key,” Cotchery said, describing his relationship with Sanchez. “That’s the key, so we’re going to try and get that same chemistry with everyone else on the offense, and once we do that — look out.”
Feel free to follow me on Twitter @fittedhatlow.
69 Responses to Jerricho Cotchery ‘thrilled to be a part of’ Jets’ new-look offense
-
JetObsessed28 says:
Isn’t Cotchery awesome? On the field and off, nothing but class.. gotta love it.
-
C Low says:
Cotch is a Pro’s Pro.
-
tom says:
this is why i love cotch..always thinking the right way and saying the right things! such a team player and one of my favorite jets!
-
JetMetVet says:
In my opinion, this should take all of that pressure off of Cotch… Allows Cotch to be Cotch.
-
Jon P says:
awesome piece, and great comments. if there’s a jets fan in the world who doesn’t love cotchery i’d love to know why
-
vajet says:
gotta agree with everyone’s comments so far.
it’s great to see JC embracing his new teammates and continuing to emphasize how this effects the team, and not himself.
what does everyone think about our 3 wide sets tho? i’d still imagine with 3 receivers on the field they’d have braylon as the #1, cotch as a sidelinen posssession receiver as #2, and bluntonio in the slot READY TO BURNNNNNNNNNNN =D
-
Cotchery has become my 2010 version of how I felt about S Ellis since the 2004 season.
Prior to 2004 I was a huge J Abraham fan and neglected how good of a player S Ellis was….after J Abe’s no show in the playoffs and Ellis playing his ass off I totally changed the way I felt about Ellis. He can do no wrong in my eyes.
I always liked Cotchery but year after year I wanted to Jet to upgrade the WR’s while not really realizing just how great Cotchery was…..
Cotchery has slowly become my favorite player…..but Sanchez and Greene are closing fast…..lol
-
WW85 says:
Cotch is such a stud. HOLMES, BE, JECHO & KELLER? How is any team going to stop us??????
-
Ben Nevis says:
Contrast JCo’s response to that of the Clown.
Cotch is pumped that Bluntonio improves the TEAM. Clowney is whining about how this might affect HIMSELf.
Gotta love Cotchery, on the field and off.
-
juunit says:
Man I REALLY hope they start throwing to Cotchery more often this season. The guy is an amazing receiver and has never been taken to his full potential. We’ve watched him make catches like he did in the playoffs for years now, but still even in the playoffs he only had a few receptions. He definitely has better hands than Edwards.
-
Ed says:
Cotch is going to have a big year as teams struggle to contain Edwards and Holms.
-
Johnny Reefer says:
my homie jco
god it needs to be football season already.
-
Brendan says:
Cotch is going to light uppppppppp nickelbacks this year. Seriously. He beasts safeties and linebackers regularly, I feel bad for whatever sub-6 foot sub 200-pound DB tries to bring down Cotch Rocket this year.
-
RevisNButthead says:
Class act.
-
BurbankJetFan says:
Cotchery is an A1 class act. Never has been a doubt. What this new receiving trio threat does is open up for Cotch to be the least of opposing defense’s priority, which in turn opens him up to having a career year…Also, my friends, you may see some of his classiness rub off on some of these new Jets players.
-
wayne80 says:
Stand up guy
-
Marvel says:
His catch where he was like bent backwards but wasn’t down then got up & kept going is one of my favorite Jet plays of all time .. I think he had another crazy catch that season but I can’t remember it ..
-
*wow that’s a bad descripton .. Lol .. I think it was against the Pats like 3 years ago ..
-
jets17 says:
Cotchery is a CLASS ACT player!!! hes has the best charactor of any pro athlete.. hes a team guy!
Cotchery to explode in 2010? would love to see him play the slot.. He runs the best routes and is the most skilled reciever we have,
I like santonio and BE on the outsides letting them be the big play guys and cotchery catching thoose important first down passes… best hands, best routes, great concentration, disaplined, harkworker, .. whats not to love
-
From Tim Graham at ESPN’s AFC East blog:
“DESPITE MARSHALL DEAL, JETS TEAM TO BEAT”
________________________________________
With two major trades in a three-day span and all of the other maneuverings within the AFC East over the past month, the “NFL Live” gang pondered what the division standings will look like at the end of the season.
Despite the Miami Dolphins’ acquisition of Brandon Marshall on Wednesday, ESPN analysts Mark Schlereth and Tim Hasselbeck each labeled the New York Jets favorites. . . .
Schlereth: “I look at it from a standpoint of, to me, who has the best chance from a roster standpoint to control the line of scrimmage? I look at that and say ‘the New York Jets.’ Up front, they have a great offensive line. We know they can run the ball. That’s what they lived on last year. Defensively, they’re strong up front. Do they need another pass rusher? Yes, but the blitzing schemes of Rex Ryan, to me, sets them apart — but just by a very, very slim margin when you’re talking Tom Brady and what the Miami Dolphins have done.”
Hasselbeck: “I agree with you on the Jets. The big part is the guys up front, but also what they were able to do on the defensive side of the ball, then bringing in someone like [Antonio] Cromartie, who will complement [Darrelle] Revis. You also have to look at the rest of the division. Wes Welker is most likely going to miss the start to the season. Tom Brady isn’t necessarily the same guy when Wes Welker isn’t in the lineup. Randy Moss, at times, looked old this past season. You look at the defensive side of the ball, and it’s very hard to forget that game against the Baltimore Ravens in the playoffs. You look at it that way, and you still consider all the moves the Miami Dolphins made, I still think the Jets would be the team to beat in the AFC East.”
________________________________________ -
Here’s the link to the ESPN piece:
http://espn.go.com/blog/afceast/post/_/id/12677/despite-marshall-deal-jets-team-to-beat
-
Everyone jumping on the Jets bandwagon is always frightening for me.
-
Snakeman says:
Cotchery is my favorite player. I find his subdued personality to be incredibly refreshing and endearing. And he’s a very reliable and talented football player.
-
Bent says: Marvel – You mean this play?
“Cotchery caught Chad Pennington’s pass downfield and then was immediately knocked unconscious by a devastating helmet-to-helmet collison. The Patriots then handcuffed Cotchery, swallowed the key, put him into a sack and locked the sack into a chest, which they then threw into the Hudson river. Cotchery somehow managed to regain consciousness, escape the chest, sack and handcuffs (all the while staying in bounds) and then managed to keep his knee and elbow from touching the turf by a combination of limbo-dancing, leaning over Michael Jackson-style at a gravity defying angle, balancing his entire body weight on his little toe and simultaneously disclocating three of his limbs and then, after a kip-up, had the presence of mind to outrun three defensive backs to the endzone, while the officials (to their credit) did not whistle the play dead. Not bad.”
-
belvey631 says:
Cotchery was clutch on 3rd downs last season. I’d like to know how many 3rd down passes he caught for a 1st down. His yards and td’s last year doesn’t reflect how many important catches he’s made to keep drives going.
-
Cotch had a 70 yarder against the Pats in the playoff game that year. Bent, is that the play that little excerpt is referring to?
-
belvey,
Cotch had 16 first downs on third down plays. He had 44 in total.
-
Phil T. says:
This is why I wear my Cotch jersey with pride. Such a difference from clowney’s attitude. I just don’t see how they keep him now since he contributes nothin to ST.
-
JustaGreenGuy says:
Bent- hahahhaha That was great. For some reason I remembered that play differently.
-
Dima says:
Reliable and classy. Wayne Chrebet anyone?
-
EastSide says:
Cotchery might have one of the best first-down toe-drags in the league. Marvin Lewis is still throwing challenge flags to this day because of Cotch.
-
thanks Brendan
Having Cotchery in the slot will be like having Chrebet there. You can always count on them to make the tough catches that really count.
-
Yeah, if Chrebet was big, physical and black.
-
Now that I think of it, Holmes pretty much got the SB MVP because of that amazing game winning TD reception where he managed to stay in bounds.
Cotchery and Holmes are gonna make it real hard on some field and side judges this year!
-
hahahah Brendan
-
Brendan
Maybe they’re brothers from another mother..lol
-
Its funny…. I know Cotch is 6’0 200 lbs but when he plays but he plays so much bigger
-
Drew,
I think the “trucking DB’s, LB’s, flooring DL…basically crushing all things in his way” thing may be the reason for that.
-
nyj09 says:
Just a class act and a true Jet- gotta love this guy. I think Cotch is best suited for the slot also, those quick slants and posts which he excels at as well as the matchup problems he can present with decent size against a nickel or the speed that he can use to outrun linebackers over the middle. Holmes i want to see used as a combo of that and a burner while Braylon i just want to see catch the balls thrown to him LOL
-
firstdown77 says:
The Jets haven’t had such a great receiving core (on paper) since we had LC and santana moss in their prime. Maybe even better than the receiving core from that year.
-
Bent — sounds better than how I remembered it .. Lol .. But yea that play was classic ..
-
There’s no way Coth is 6 feet .. The guy looks 6’2 .. I think someone made a mistake & never fixed it ..
-
Dylan says:
Cotchery is one of the most humble and classy individuals in the NFL. The guy NEVER complains about anything. I think thats one of the reasons he always gets overlooked as a player. People expect great WRs to be drama queens, but Cotch is the ultimate professional.
-
Bent says:
Brendan – No, it was in the home opener in 2006, as the Jets rallied from 24-0 down but still lost 24-17. The playoffs TD was just a catch on the outside and he outran everyone to the endzone as the safety was out of position.
Cotchery measured 6 feet and one half inch in his socks at the combine in 2004.
Holmes was 9-131 in the Superbowl…he didn’t just get the award for that play.
-
Ahhhhh yes. I knew he had two big plays against the Pats that year. Now I remember them clearly.
-
AKA Jack says:
firstdown-
I’d say on paper, we haven’t had as good a receiving corp, on paper anyway, since Maynard, Sauer and Turner. In 1969 those 3 guys averaged 20, 16.5 and 20 yard per reception for a total of almost 1900 yards and scored 17 touchdowns in a 12 game season in a much less pass happy era. Toss in Pete Lammons at TE and his 400 yards and 2 touchdowns and that was the high water mark for this team at the receiver position. The talent we now have at the receiver positons is almost unprecedented for this team.
God I’m old.
-
AKA Jack,
Yes, you are. But we love hearing about the good ol’ days too! Makes you appreciate how good we have it now!
-
Led says:
Guys like Cotch (and the o-line, Richardson, Ellis, Scott, Leonard, etc.) make all the “character” talk so silly. The Jets have a core of incredibly high character guys, for which we should give Mangini some credit. Like the Pats a few years ago, you can bring in guys who might otherwise be trouble because the culture of the team will bring out the best in them.
-
Dan in OK says:
I guess im not alone in saying that cotchery is my favorite Jet. I was sure a lot of people liked him but I thought I was in the minority. On a side note, I dont want to hear “Cotchery” and “trade” in the same sentence ever again as we saw in some of the posts relating to Holmes. It just wouldn’t be the same without him.
-
I don’t think we ever had a better receiving group. Well except WALKER & TOON of course. If BE holds onto the ball, this group will be better, considering we have 4 major weapons, BE, SH, JC, DK.
-
SCJetsGirl77 says:
I love the Cotch. Class act all the way.
-
That week patriots game had the two best receiving TD’s of the season- i was at that game. LC also caught that ball over the middle and turned into a 60 yard TD or something- he avoided at least 5 patriots players.
Cotchery actually had three great catches- wasnt that the year the jets won in NE on the rainy muddy field? Cotch caught a TD in the endzone and the game ended on a shaun ellis sack?
-
BigJets says:
Found this video with some Clutch Catches by Jerricho and Dustin
-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNFB-fvvs7M
Found this video with some Clutch Catches by Jerricho and Dustin
-
Bent says:
That Coles play was actually only 46 yards, but it was awesome. Cotch also had the helmet catch in 2008 and another TD against then in that game where he broke a tackle and stretched for the line. He’s had some great plays against the Pats over the years.
-
James in TN says:
Cotch is our no.1 WR
Braylon and Santonio is a toss up for 2nd and 3rd WR.
Keller makes a legit option 4
then with LT out of the backfield that’s 5
Mark Sanchez’s biggest problem will be who to throw to. I love that problem. Our D and an improving O is a great place to be with the exception of the elephant in the room……………………………………………………………………
Brian Schottenheimer.
You can’t score if the gameplan is all to hell.
Let’s cut him now while we still can.
Callahan for OC, let’s make this Offense perfect.
Why try to score in spite of Schotty? Let’s build on Coach Callahan’s success.
Go Jets
-
Harvlis says:
You know I am with you, James. There are no excuses for Schotty, this season. If he can’t put together a balanced game plan, that crushes most opponents, with this line-up — he must go, and quickly.
I love Cotchery, like most of the fans on this blog. He is now an experienced veteran who has proven that he has a great all-around game. I pity the third CB that has to cover him. If we keep Clowney and throw four recievers out there — good luck.
With the pick-up of Holmes, Sanchez has to be losing his mind. We can double up on Marshall, when we play the Fins. What are they going to do with us? We have to punish them, this season. Payback is a….
-
Dan in OK,
When there was talk a few weeks ago about Cotchery & draft picks possibly being traded for Brandon Marshall, I almost had a seizure. I love this team, and I know we are supposed to root for the uniform and not the player, but I would have strongly reconsidered by allegiance to the franchise if that trade had happened. I always talk Cotch up to my friends and co-workers, and they can’t see his value, because they’ll only look at what a player nets in fantasy points.
-
SCJetsGirl 77-
“I love the Cotch.” Real slick.. I like it… When you’re up in San Fran, give me a call.
-
g. JETson says:
UGH!! Why did my stomach just churn and bubble at the mention of Shotty?! In fairness to him, he called a good game down the stretch and in the playoffs. He finally bought into K.I.S.S.<(Keep It Simple Stupid). My fear is with all these new toys he will try to get to smart and fancy. He has to remember that although there is Pro bowl talent all over the field, his schemes can't out pace the growth of his second year QB. Hey, 'Chise definitely blossomed during the playoff run, but we don't need him killing himself over turnovers that wouldn't happen if Shotty didn't forget he doesn't have Brady or Peyton at the helm.
PLEASSSSE GOD!! DON'T LET SCHOTTY RUIN THIS!!
-
I know there are many in the media who think that B Marshall is unstoppable, but guys…chill. The sky is not falling and we are not doubling him. Revis anybody? We didn’t double:
Moss, Owens, Ocho, Wanye, Johnson, Colston, Holt, Sims- walker, or V Jackson. How did that turn out for us? -
Donjemo says:
Please let Cotchery be our version of Wes Welker. Let the two burners take the CB’s downfield and let’s mismatch JCO with a linebacker.
-
Team JCo says:
I honestly thought we were going to have a tough time when we lost Coles, but Jerricho won me over, big time. All this guy does is make clutch plays. He is my fav Jet and our #1 WR. Most underrated WR in the league.
-
Princess says:
Great piece!
-
WoodyWoodChuck says:
Holmes and Edwards scissor-hands can’t sniff my cotch.
-
Eddie DiGio says:
Guarentee if Holmes and Edwards both behave this year and play well, which I really believe they BOTH will, JCo steps and offers to restructure his deal if the Jets want to keep all 3 of them…its just the stand up guy he is…Id also bet my life that JCo will never complain ONCE for the ball…just catch everything he touches
JCo reminds me of Chrebet with moves like a RB…a little more scoot than Wayne had
I honestly feel that if JCo played with Brady or Manning, he’d be just as good as Welker…just my opinion
-
I don’t know how realistic it is to ask a guy who is going to make less than $4 mil in his highest paid season under his current deal. I mean, the guy is a legitimate starter, a 1A-type of receiver, and already underpaid.
Cotch is still my favorite Jet.