Roster Rundown: #91 Sione Pouha
Position: Nose Tackle
Height / Weight: 6’3″ 325 lbs.
Age: 32 / Experience: 7
College: Utah
2011 Contract Status: Unrestricted Free Agent
2011 Analysis: When the Jets drafted Sione Pouha all the way back in 2005, he seemed an afterthought. Now, he’s the last man standing from the class. In what amounts to his third year as a starter, he shone more finally released from the shadow of Kris Jenkins return. While not a stellar interior pass rusher, Pouha was a central part of the Jets ability to stop the run up front. While it gets little credit in Ryan’s more glamorous blitzing system, Pouha’s success basically sets up Ryan and Pettine to do what they like best … get opponents in long down and distance situations to force them to throw. Pouha’s stat lines (58 tackles, 4 stuffs, 1 sack) are never impressive, but his ability to routinely take double teams allows for guys like Wilkerson and DeVito to make the tackles for loss.
2012 Outlook: I fully expect Pouha to sign a contract to return to the Jets. Ellis isn’t yet ready to take over the every-down nose tackle work and Pouha has demonstrated his loyalty to the Jets so far through his career. He’s been a great leader for the Jets, acting as the opposite number to Mark Sanchez’s “Jets West” work on the defensive side of the ball. He is one of the team’s biggest leaders on the defense and to lose him as well as Jim Leonhard in one year might be too hard a blow for this team to absorb.
Random Thought: The one thing that makes me question Pouha’s return is he is a very smart business person away from football. At 32 he has to realize that this will be his best last chance at an NFL payday, so the Jets might not be the one who offers him the biggest contract. Will he leave money on the table to return to the Jets?
96 Responses to Roster Rundown: #91 Sione Pouha
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Love this guy.. a great mentor for Ellis and MTV..
A true leader on a team that is desperate for them!
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1sttime/longtime says:
for the right price yes but if he wants a big pay day no way. jets don’t have the money.
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juunit says:
I think he’ll stay if the money isn’t too different.
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Brendan says:
This picture makes me laugh.
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mataos says: January 18, 2012 at 7:10 pm "I don't buy it" says:
Pay the man. Pouha is a Jet and needs to stay one. I don’t belive we have seen Pouha’s full potential yet, and there ain’t too much mileage on those tires.
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Nick says:
He’s only got a few years before he is on the down side of his career. How can you say he has more potential? He is what he is at this point, to expect much improvemnet at his age would be wishfull thinking.
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Pouha only started to see significant playing time three years ago and until last year never entered the season as the starter. That is why I believe he has has at least 3-4 quality years left.
IMO this was the first year that we’ve seen Pouha’s potential to collapse the pocket. Maybe they are just now starting to work on this element of his game. I think we could see more production in that area next season.
I will never believe the saying, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”
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I fall somewhere in the middle of your two views.
mataos is basically posting my posts from last year (“tread on the tires,” for those that were around). People said they expected Pouha to break down, his age to lead to his play declining, etc.
What I said was that because he had played sparingly early on in his career, he wasn’t 32 years old in “football years”. He also had his Morman mission, saving his body two years of abuse.
Pouha has, by my estimation, two elite seasons left in his gas tank, with a couple more “veteran role player” years (where he would still be an elite run stuffer).
There are certain guys (Tractor Traylor, Ted Washington, Pat Williams to name a few) that can play well into their mid-to-late 30s because of a variety of reasons. I like to think Pouha’s reason is he’s secretly a super hero.
And this past season, I’m not sure that stadium ever got as loud as it did when they were yelling “BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA” after Sione made a play.
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“mataos is basically posting my posts from last year”
I’m not sure you’re aware of how condescending that is BUT it is.-
I didn’t mean it that way. All I meant was I had these arguments almost daily last offseason, in support of Pouha much the way you’re doing now. I was more trying to show that Pouha could have an awesome season (like he just did) and people still won’t give him the benefit of the doubt.
No condescension intended.
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Right on man.
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What’s up doc?
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That was pretty funny.
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cb says:
it’s not possible. pouha must be resigned.
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CharlieD from Bethpage says:
I completly agree with you! The Jets need to sign this guy! He is a good character player and excellent leader. He has slowly become a “fan favorite”. He is the Only dependable NT we have. Go Jets
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levi says:
I would love him to come back but he will want a good chunk of money. I dont think anybody leaves money on the table these days. Especially to come back to a team thats a mess right now.
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JoeMustGo says:
The blow to team morale from letting another leader go (esp. one who’s not at the end of his career) would be almost as damaging as the loss of his talents.
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Boozer up the Middle says:
This is one of those tricky times where it appears that “Chemistry and/or leadership” (whatever those terms mean) should be taken into account when setting an acceptable price. I hoep the Jets err on the side of keeping Pouha as his position is so key to what they try to do on D and he seems to be important in the locker room. Plus, as mataos points out, he started his NFL career late so he should have more years left than implied by his age.
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tish says:
He isn’t young, he doesn’t put up flashy numbers, and he is rock solid and a part of an existing D that will not radically change. It is illogical that some team will blow him away with an offer. The Jets need to pay him market value for what he does and not be cheap. This one should be fairly simple.
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Mazz says:
I believe that Rex can make a defense work with anyone (well mostly). Therefore I understand that his leadership is valued but you cannot seemingly handcuff the team so they are unable to add talent and depth where needed. Don’t lose your shirt over this guy. The jets have a chance to back to the playoffs if they can make quality decisions during the offseason. Need the OL aired up and Rex needs to devise a way to defend the TE seeing how those were the biggest gaps from this season.
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bozzie says:
This guy fits the Captain criteria, not the oxygen theif that Rex made! Sign him!
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Or they can Franchise tag him which gives him money but doesn’t kill us for future years.
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Sione should be the number one priority in-house UFA signing for the Jets this off-season. Period.
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agreed!
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OH YEah baby….come on over Mr. Manning….
“There’s a reason Eli and [Giants offensive coordinator Kevin] Gilbride have been together for so long, because Gilbride has called good plays and Eli has played well. Me and Tom Moore earned the right to stay together. It’s a compliment to Eli and Gilbride. If you call good plays and it’s working, they shouldn’t want to fire you,” Manning said.
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Where’s the whole interview link please?
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What am I some internet reporter/geek, go google Peyton Manning if need be.
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Why is it so hard to recall where you read something that you copy and pasted a quote from?
Awfully defensive for someone who’s not making things up. Is that you Manish?
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Oh, was this before or after Manning ran Moore out of town because he wanted to call his own plays?
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Whatever, he said it to a NY times reporter, so he was definately trying to make a point.
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JetObsessed28 says:
It’s sad that Jet fans are calling for Peyton..
Sad, because when you think Peyton Manning, you think of his superstar years..
Those days are over.. Remember when Namath went to the Rams..
That’s what the Jets would be getting.. a broken down superstar in his final professional death twitch.
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JetsFan4Life says:
Moreover, and while by no means assured, give Mark a solid O line along with at least one more top end receiver with whom he develops chemistry (and Cornholio can chellax), then there’s no reason Sanchize’s best years’ aren’t going to be ahead of him, and he will be our franchise’s future with all the naysayers singing his praises.
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Mazz says:
Manning is better than Sanchez lets make that clear as day. Its not even close to a good comparison. Peyton Manning would be an extreme upgrade for the offense.
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The reason the comparison isn’t so cut-and-dry is because you don’t know if you’re getting THE Peyton Manning, or some weaker version of him.
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Correct. If it was THE Peyton Manning there would be NO conversation to be had.
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Correct.
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yeah, 2 years ago.. before the neck/nerve issues..
A guy who has nerve damage causing weakness in his throwing arm, that hasn’t yet healed, has an unknown time table to heal, and an unknown prognosis is NOT better than Sanchez.
You must be thinking of Peyton’s MVP years..
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Batwings says:
And what makes you think he will win us a superbowl.
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You seem convinced that Manning would.
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Omari says:
I think Pouha should be retained if not I think Rex/Pettine would use more 4man fronts with Devito and Ropati. Taking on double teams is an art.
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To me this is the most intriguing and important roster decision the Jets have to make (because I don’t believe the chances that Manning comes to the Jets is very good at all).
First of all, he hasn’t made much money during his career because he was a very late bloomer. So I do not think he leaves much money on the table at all to stay in NY. It would be moronic for him to do that, because this is his last (and only) big contract.
He is top 5 (or even top 3) at his position, at a position that is very hard to find. And last year he played at an elite level. But the question is, how much will other teams pay for a guy who will be 33 and a half when the season starts? This is where the Jets are fortunate. 33 and a half is very old for an NFL player, even one in the trenches.
Whether the Jets retain Pouha will be based on whether there is a big market (and payday) for an elite 3-4 NT who will be 33 and a half when the season starts. To me, it is a very interesting dynamic given his elite talent and age.
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mattm says:
Again with the elite?
Canvas just the other coaches in this division. None of them would trade their NT for Pouha. Not NE, not Buffalo, and not Miami.
And that means more than PFF stats. Sorry.
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Bent says: Well, he’s an unrestricted free agent, so of course they wouldn’t trade for him!
In any case, maybe they wouldn’t but not because Pouha isn’t better than Soliai, Wilfork or Williams, but because those guys are either younger or they wouldn’t want to eat the dead money cap hit. Could I picture the Pats offering Pouha 5m a year and then dumping Wilfork to save money? Yes, I totally could, but they couldn’t afford to take an 11m cap hit. Williams is probably better than Pouha when healthy, but if he barely plays all year, then who wouldn’t prefer to have Pouha? Soliai just isn’t as good, but he is younger. However, he’s also a free agent so who knows what Miami will do there.
As promised, I looked up how often he was graded positively and negatively on PFF in comparison to Ngata.
Ngata – negative 4% of the time, positive 9%
Pouha – negative 4% of the time, positive 13%-
Now that, is pretty staggering.
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Bent says:
I’d rationalize it by saying that Pouha had a much lower percentage of pass rush snaps (56% to 38%), which would likely increase the number of plays that weren’t graded positively, but at least the numbers are comparable.
However, he also had a bigger impact overall despite only having about two-thirds of the number of snaps Ngata did.
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They wouldn’t trade for him last year or next year. How’s that? And if there was no cap, they wouldn’t trade for him either. That alone makes him NOT elite.
And if you think any coach in the league would trade Ngata for Pouha, well, they wouldn’t. How many pressures did Pouha have? How many for Ngata?
I cannot believe you’re trying to even make this case. You could give every HC in the NFL their choice and no coaches would choose Pouha.
There’s a great chance the Jets won’t even pay what the fins paid for Soliai last year. Would the fins have paid Pouha that salary last year? Of course not.
And that’s just THIS division. I give Pouha his due and he is a great person, but you guys are WAY over the top on him.
The fact is if Pouha priced himself out of this market and the Jets signed Soliai, they wouldn’t be weakened.
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Bent says:
I’m not trying to make a case that Pouha is bettter than Ngata. No way. In fact, I don’t even think they should be compared because Ngata is a DE, not a NT.
However, the numbers, since you asked for them:
Pouha 11 pressures, Ngata 14. Where Ngata separates himself is in terms of hits and sacks where he had 12, whereas Pouha had just one. Still, in terms of QB disruptions, Ngata’s 26 in 528 pass rush attempts is just over one every 20 attempts…Pouha averages exactly one every 20 attempts.
Again, I’m not making that comparison. Pouha is better against the run, Ngata is better as a pass rusher and there’s a higher premium on that.
You saying teams wouldn’t trade X for Y or that Soliai is just as good as Pouha is just your opinion, doesn’t really prove anything. And the fact that’s just one division is just because the AFC East happens to be particularly strong at that position.
All I know is that I was blown away by Pouha’s performance basically week in, week out last year. Yes, that’s almost entirely based on run defense, but he is getting better against the pass too. I don’t expect anyone to agree with me that he’s as disruptive as Jenkins, but I stand by my opinion. You don’t have to.
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reality jet fan says:
Everyone so ready to give peyton big money why not throw money at mario williams
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I can’t see Williams getting away from Houston.
But if he does, I still think he’d be way too expensive.
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but if your going to spend it spend it on him not a maybe healthy manning
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Well, I don’t think the team will be able to afford Manning, either. I probably should have said that as well.
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Rusty sanchez says:
It might be hard to sign him and arian foster I think they are both free agents
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Restricted free agent, though. They still hold his rights, so they have some flexibility.
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Bent says:
The only way they afford Manning is by dumping Sanchez. Dumping Sanchez to be able to afford Williams would leave the Jets with no QB!
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boozer says:
My proudest moment of Sione was when he had that one line in that Pepsi Max commercial.
It brought a tear to my eye. -
jvsvn says:
I think he will definitely return. That is, unless the Jets feel that Ellis will be able to step up. The Jets have really shown that they are not sentimental with aging players. If they think that Sione is starting to accumulate injuries and that Ellis needs to get on the field to reach his potential then #91 might be a goner. I don’t think that’s the case. Especially since D-Line is a rotation position. In Rex’s D, there are snaps for Sione, Ellis, and everybody else, so I expect him back. I don’t think there will be a team that will give him much money more than the Jets. Because of his age and his inability to rush the passer, he’s going to be a 2 down rotational player no matter where he goes. Unless there’s some flukey situation, it’s hard to see any team valuing him more than the Jets.
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I can see NE paying him top dollar
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To back up Wilfork?
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Brendan, would have liked something out of ellis this year its like he red shirted
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It would have been great, but his lack of play didn’t hurt the unit. They had guys in front of him (Pouha, DeVito, Potty, Wilkshake, Dixon) who proved very capable and good players.
This year he has to show more, obviously. Hopefully we get a few more performances like he had in the Miami games (where he was a legitimate disruptive force in limited snaps) this year.
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Brendan isnt it amazing how matty ice is treated like a god and he has 0 playoff wins? He even has a nickname
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It is, considering he has a HOF TE, two #1 receivers, a solid slot, and an elite RB.
If Sanchez had Atlanta’s skill position players and failed? The media would be calling him the new Brooks Bollinger.
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Absolutetly!!!!
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What are you talking about? Everyone pretty much thinks he stinks. His nickname is considered a joke, as he never lives up to it. I think he’s universally thought of as a guy who plays poorly in playoff games.
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If he wants more then 4mill a year let him go!!!someone will step up. We have other need to fill on the team.
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JayGo says:
Love Pouha
Been going back and forth on this Super Bowl as to what is a better result for the Jets not that it matters alot. I think NE winning is probably better to get them a drop comfortable coming into next year (I thought they had a chip on their shoulder losing to the Jets last January) and it would shut up the Giants fans a little. Hard to root for the Pats. Hard to root for the Giants. Ugh . . .
No desire for Manning here. Great player, but on the downside of his career and any injury or fall off in performance would be a multi-year financial and personnel disaster. I think we’re close enough that we needn’t take the risk.
I follow all the talk with the need for a safety, wide receiver, running back, etc. in the draft, but I will be extremely disappointed if we don’t get a stud Right Tackel. The draft is deep at RT so this is the time and place to do it. Fits with Sperano too. Need to plug the weak link on the line and take it from there.
Good day
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Even though I love Harris…..Pouha was the best player on our defense not named Revis.
Also has Matty Ice won a big game not in a dome since he’s been in the league?
Smart, weak armed QB that has yet to win playoff games even when he’s had the better team. I’m so tired of people overrating him.-
sean says:
I m not sure he has even woman big game in the dome
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Won a
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neauone says:
Williams had one of the worse injuries to the knee. I’m not sure I would want to throw millions around without at least some kind of escape clause in the event he sustains the same injury. Santonio should have had a clause in his contract that said if he became any kind of an issue on the team, or in the private sector the Jets could have voided his contract or at least cut it in half.
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Brendan i write alot on nutty stuff. But i watched that pats game last year and even the pitt loss and he was the best player on the field . They cant lose this kid.And they have to get his confidence back.
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Fix the line, get another WR, a blocking TE and maybe another RB body.
The biggest help to Sanchez won’t be a player, though, it’ll be Sparano.
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I watched his college career he can throw downfield they dont need to treat him like chad
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I agree. He throws a nice, tight, catcheable deep ball. They just never let him cut it loose last year.
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The question is did they not let him cut it loose or did Sanchez rush his progressions and check it down a lot?
At the games I saw Holmes run routes that were basically ignored for a check down.
Kid needs his confidence back and I think the throws will come again. Hopefully that comes with Sparano.
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“At the games I saw Holmes run routes that were basically ignored for a check down”
Yup.
I think it was a combination of the line being poor, giving Sanchez the yips and speeding up his internal clock, and Schotty’s playcalls.
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Johnny Reefer says:
wow….best convo of the offseason so far.
Nothing i disagree with here.
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It’s pretty much a must that the Jets retian Pouha even at 32…besides being an elite 3-4 DT I can’t trust that Ellis is an clear replacement yet.
Outside of Big Mo replacing Shaun Ellis and to a much lesser degree Kerley taking over for D Mason the Jets have miscalculated their draft prospects the last two years.
It seems like it takes two years (or in Ducasse’s case never) for these guys to become a part of the rotation which has forced the Jets to use $ bringing back players they might have let walk.
Another year of missing in the draft and or FA will cripple the roster.
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The Jets also draft “stash picks” to put behind established starters. Most other teams draft to give players significant playing time right away.
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will says:
Where were the “stash picks” for the OL?
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Vlad, Slauson was a stash pick who is now starting.
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Wow, don’t agree with that, either. Ducasse was picked to start immediately at LG. It was a really dumb pick, but TBomb said it repeatedly after the draft. He was supposed to be the replacement for Faneca.
Re: stashing, I guess you could say any OL picked after the 4th round would be “stashed.” but it turned out that after a year of sitting he was thrown into the battle for LG. He was picked because of Callahan.
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Again IMO
- Draft pass rusher”s” and a WR/RB
- Sign a vet WR and S though FA
- Bring in a blocking TE that isn’t an idiot
- Get a reliable vet RT that knows understands Sparano’s system. Not a kid from the draft. -
Jeti Master says:
I Googled Pouha to see in what round he was drafted. It was 3rd round of 2005 NFL draft.
Some tidbits from that draft: Bray Bray was the #3 pick over all. Alex Smith was #1 and Aaron Rogers #24.
Brodney Poole was #24.
Jets had no first round pick. They had two second round picks. At #47 they took Mike Nugent, perhaps the most arrogant and stupid choice in the history of a franchise that has a history of arrogance and stupidity. At #57 they took Justin Miller. At #74 in the third round the Giants took Justin Tuck. Ouch.
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Oh, thanks for the lovely stroll down memory lane.
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Corrtion: Poole was #34 overall.
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*It’s bad to misspell “correction” when you’re trying to make a correction.
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revisisland says:
tag him
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That would be overpaying him. They can’t afford him in that case.
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Raven dc nw colts coach
It’s a joke that he’s not in the Pro Bowl. Hopefully we can get him on a flexible deal. He’s a beast.