The Tuck Rule...

Infamous... that snowy play on a surreal night in old Foxboro stadium. It was the 2001 AFC divisional playoff game between the Patriots and Raiders. Neither of these teams are friends of the NYJ's, and most NFL fans who don't live in the greater Boston area feel that the Raiders were robbed.

I rarely take sides with Belichick and his partner in crime Tom Brady. However, the correct call was made on that play. The rule sucks, but it exists and there is no way around it. I watched some interviews with Raider players from that game and they all said the same thing... they quit after that fumble was over turned. The Pats still had to score a field goal to tie the game and another in overtime to win. The Raider nation felt cheated. Put your big girl panties on and stop crying!

That being said, watching a recent rebroadcast of that game I was blown away with how dirty the Pats play. Their whole game is built upon cheap shots and late hits. We are also aware that the Patriots were active in video taping their opponents defensive calls in a blatant violation of league rules. There are also rumors that they videotaped the St. Louis Rams practice the day before the Superbowl later that same post season.

All of their wins and championships are tainted and they are proven cheaters. However, the 'Tuck Rule' and that infamous play was reviewed and overturned completely by the book. If you want to attack the evil Belichick empire, there are bigger fish to fry other than that play.

One last point.... Tom Brady is gay, as the picture above clearly illustrates.

Training Camp kicks off...

What do we know so far about the NYJ's after the first day of camp. Rex Ryan's first press conference of the pre-season revealed a few tidbits.

The big news being that #20 and #29 are both in camp and ready to compete. Jones, who is seeking a new contract, is hungry and asking for even more carries in 2009. He is aiming for 300+. Rumors abound regarding our other disgruntled RB Washington. Supposedly his new contract is almost finished and should be announced this weekend. For the record I think it's a mistake. He has shown he is a playmaker, but he still has a lot to prove if he thinks he deserves a 20+ million dollar deal. Young hungry game changing players like Leon can be wicked weapons in this league. He has been known in some circles as the 'poor mans Reggie Bush'... I guess that nickname will be history very soon.

Another revelation from the rotund coach was the competitive fire with which CB Dwight Lowery has been pushing Lito Sheppard for the #2 corner spot. Lowey wasn't a game changer last year, but he played well enough to catch the eye of Ryan even before he joined the green and white. I like the addition of Sheppard, but I also like that Lowery is not rolling over and handing the starting job to the former Eagle.

Ryan spoke very little about the offense except to delicately touch on the sub par QB play and the O-line showing a little rust which is normal at this time of year. Mr. Clemens had better understand that he needs to show a complete command of this playbook and offensive system. This is year number four for him, if he is just slightly better that Sanchez he will be watching games on Sundays instead of playing. I am rooting for Kellen, but I need to see him as head and shoulders above Sanchez considering the huge head start he has on #6.

Ryan seems to have little interest in the offense and obviously he has little to no experience coaching that side of the ball. I have some reservations about this. I know a headcoach doesn't need to be an expert on every aspect of the game and the team, thats why we pay coordinators and position coaches. But he is so detached from the offense that I think it may be a problem as the season progresses. There is also the future and life without Shottenheimer to think about. He won't be here forever.

Football season is officially back!

Sean Payton picks the Jets to make the playoffs...

The head coach of the New Orleans Saints recently participated as a guest writer for Sports Illustrated. He had a bunch of interesting observations including a little endorsement of Rex Ryan:

"If I had to choose one non-playoff team from last season that has a chance to make it into the 2009 postseason it would be the Jets. I think Rex Ryan will do a great job of creating a culture that lends itself to winning. I also love Sanchez as a young quarterback prospect. We will find out soon enough."- Sean Payton

Funny I thought he would have picked........ ummmmmm... the New Orleans Saints =)

Check out the whole article: Sports Illustrated Special Monday Morning QB

Looking at the whole of a team as the sum of it's various squads...

I was thinking about the overall structure of a football team and breaking it down to 6 'squads'. Three on offense: Quaterbacks, Offensive line, and Skilled players (WR's and RB's). Three on defense: Linebackers, Defensive line and the Secondary (safetys and corners). I have always looked at teams as made up of these squads and not individual players. Here's how I rank the importance of the squads. If you needed to rebuild a team from the ground up this is how I would prioritize my draft picks, trades and free agent moves.

First off I would build an offensive line with two solid tackles, two mobile guards who can pass block and also be able to pull and get out in front of the runner. Finally a veteran center who can make adjustments at the line and read the blitz. These guys need to be durable and highly intelligent. O-line would be my number one priority and is the foundation of the team. The Jets have a top 10 O-line, no question and we all remember the 2007 season when we went to battle with a swiss cheese line and the results.

Next I would build the secondary. A franchise left tackle, a shutdown corner and a solid QB are my top 3 positions on any team. So, we start the discussion about the secondary with the CB. A dynamic hard hitting safety would be next on the list. 3 solid CB's and at least 3 solid safetys are ideal. Funny before we traded Elam to the Browns we had exactly that.

Next is the QB's... and yes I do mean QB's plural. A solid starter is hard enough to find but a truly complete QB squad has a veteran back up holding the clip board and ready to step in if needed. Tony Romo and his 2009 back up John Kitna is perfect example.

D-line sets the pace and tone of the game. Bookend DE's are a must. A big run stuffer who can demand a double team consistently and a fast pass rusher who can swim past slower offensive tackles and pressure the QB is the formula. The prototype DE duo is Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora from the NYG. A couple of powerful wrecking ball DT's to hold down the middle of the line complete this group. Depth is important throughout the team but especially on this squad where things get pretty violent in the trenches.

The Linebacking corps. is next and this group is built very different depending on what system you run. A 3-4 LB is not necessarily going to work in a cover two system and vice versa. Either way I feel they are the least important squad on the defense. An elite D-line and secondary will make it easy to find LB's who can excel. That being said, any great defense is led by a dominate MLB/ILB.

Finally we have the superstar skilled players. They are in the spotlight and they sell the jerseys, but frankly team after team has proven that a solid well coached O-line can plug in an average quality RB and make him look like Walter Payton. The same can be said for the wideouts. A good QB who is given enough time to read the field by his O-line will deliver the ball and make a WR look like a superstar. In todays NFL one star runner or one star, diva WR doesn't usually equal playoff births and championships. This skilled position squad requires contributions by a number of role players like 'slot receivers' and 'change of pace' backs.

I do not wish to discount the importance of special teams, but in my opinion the ST coach and the scheme he runs is the most important factor in the success of that squad. Players are usually interchangeable.

So, looking at the whole of a team as the sum of it's various squads how do I feel about the 2009 NYJ's? Here's some grades... O-line A-... Secondary B+... QB's F... D-line C-... LB's B-... Skilled players... C. Obviously my outlook for 2009 is not a good one.

We were so aggressive about bringing Favre aboard and he has every intension of continuing to play. Why did our GM give up a draft pick for him and then release him? We had the rights to him and he should be playing for us or we should be compensated if he plays for Minnesota. If we would have retained Brett we could have kept our draft picks and addressed our weaknesses on the D-line and the skilled players. I can't stand Favre and never wanted him here in the first place, but Tannenbaum made the trade so he should have made it work.

I would have told him the day after the season ended that he needed to make a decision on his future before the NFL combine. I would have told him if no decision was made by the deadline that we would move on but that we were going to retain the rights to him and control where he would be playing next.

When we are 6-10 and the player we gave up a draft pick for is leading the Vikings to the post season I hope it becomes clear that our GM is over his head. He got played by New Orleans in the Vilma debacle, he has dumped a lot of draft picks in various ill advised trades and his handling of the Favre fiasco including releasing Pennington instead of trading him for minor compensation with the intensions of keeping him out of the AFC are all I need to see to say it's time to move on.

As the offseason draws to a close...

I have been pretty clear about my disappointment with the moves the Jets have made this offseason. I have also made it clear that I see us as 8-8 or worse and not a playoff contender. However, the offseason has not been all bad.

I like Rex as a coach and the assistants he has brought with him from Baltimore. Pettine and Thurman are the real deal and should have a big impact on our defense. I like Bart Scott's fire and Lito Sheppard will compliment Revis and Lowery very well. I'm also glad that Coles was given his walking papers. From the moment we released Mangini and through the early signings of Scott and Sheppard I was a thrilled fan. Then things went bad.

I disagree with the overall direction of the team after the first week of free agency. I have already made it crystal clear that our defensive line and wide receiver departments are grossly understaffed. We have done nothing to address these holes in our armor. We became focused on the QB position from the moment we officially released Favre and I feel the Sanchez draft trade was a mistake. He's here and I hope I am wrong about this, but I was in favor of signing Jeff Garcia as an insurance policy and letting he and Clemens/Ratliff battle it out in camp. Not only do I think Brett Ratliff has a lot of potential, but I am also a big fan of Abrahm Elam. Apparently Eric Mangini is also a fan of these players because he made sure they were included in the blockbuster trade that landed us Mark Sanchez via the Browns #5 overall pick. 

Obviously Mangini was willing to deal with his former boss and he wasted no time trading and dumping players that he didn't want when he became to head coach in Cleveland. Braylon Edwards was unhappy and was coming off a lack luster season. We could have scored him with a package of Thomas Jones and Sean Ellis. We could have dumped two old, past their prime players and addressed a major hole on our team. 

We could have stayed at #17 in the first round and picked up Chris 'Benie' Wells and took a DE like Fili Moala from USC in the 2nd round. We could have still scored Shonn Greene in the 3rd. Wells, Washington and Greene would have been a nasty dynamic backfield. Edwards, Cotchery, Keller and Stuckey would have been an excellent WR corps. We could have addressed our D-line with our other draft picks if we wouldn't have traded them all away. Great teams are built through the draft.

As for the QB position, Kellen and Ratliff could have fought it out. I'm sure one of those guys is a future starter in this league and Garcia could have took the reigns if  they weren't up the job.

With an upgrade at the WR position, a quality competition between a veteran and a couple of youngsters at the QB spot and some fresh D-lineman from the draft all combined with our established strengths we would have been a playoff team. By mortgaging our entire draft and future on an unproven signal caller with 16 college starts we begin the rebuilding process again. 

Mr. Johnson is going to pay a lot of money in 2009 for a team that won't be playing any games in January or February of 2010. 

63 million???

Wowzers! Terrell Suggs signs a 63 million dollar extension and becomes the highest paid LB in NFL history. The way the contract is structured he will collect 40 million in the first 24 months. 

It's hard to gauge the value of professional athletes. I look at it in as simple a way as possible. He is not the best LB in the NFL, he is not the best defensive player on his team, and he is not the leader of his defense... he's not even the number two guy (Reed and Lewis are the top two guys in Baltimore).  So why would Ozzie Newsome pay Suggs that kind of money? I can't see him contributing enough to be worth that much of the salary cap and I would be surprised if he plays hard after that first 2 years is up.

Players like Suggs, Hanesworth, and a number of other big names have signed front loaded deals. Thomas Jones is an example of a player who collected the lions share of his 4 year contract in the first two years. Now in year three he his dissatisfied and wants to renegotiate. This new trend in the NFL is going to continue to cause hold outs and friction between players and the teams they play for. 

Matt Cassel also signed a 63 million dollar deal. It may seem absurd to give a player who hasn't started a full season that kind of money, but franchise QB's are in the highest demand and shortest supply in the NFL these days. 63 million actually sounds like a fair deal. What a world we live in!

Just a quick observation about Chad...

If they ever make a movie about Chad Pennington, Steve Carell would be perfect to play him. Carell, with a dirty blonde wig, is the spitting image of Chad. The question is who would play Herm Edwards in the movie???? I guess he's a good enough actor, he could play himself. 

Quick fact about Chad...  his name is actually James. Chad is his middle name. James Chadwick Pennington. That is the nerdiest, dorkiest name I have ever heard. That being said, the guy is one hell of a warrior on the field. 

I am a BIG fan of Chad and his character. He was the type of player you could root for. At one time we had Chad, Curtis and Wayne on the same squad. That was a special group. He will always be a player I remember fondly and my second favorite Jets QB ( #12 forever baby!). 

I still feel in my heart that he will somehow win a Superbowl before he retires the old rotator cuff for good. I won't jump on the front office for dumping him, and I must say he would fit our 09' Jets very well. He can manage a ball control offense as good as anyone.

I can't be a hypocrite though, I was glad to see him move on. He has major limitations, and frankly I was tired of watching that same brand of football every week. I wasn't glad to get Favre, but I did feel we needed to move on as an organization. We gave Chad six years as a starter to make it happen, at some point you need change. 

I will continue to root for James... I mean Chad. I hope he gets his ring because he has the heart of a champion... I just hope it's not with Miami!

Anquan Boldin... once in a lifetime.

There were a number of interesting WR's on the market this off-season, via trade or as full blown free agents. Names like Owens, Burress, Holt, Edwards (Cleveland), and Mr. Boldin from the Arizona Cardinals were all available... one way or another. 

How we still have a HUGE, MAJOR, GAPING HOLE at the wideout spot is beyond me. A GM like Tannenbaum, who is entering his fourth season as the head man and has one playoff birth and ZERO playoff wins, seems to be overly comfortable with the lengthly process of developing a young unproven QB and WR corps. Especially considering the team he runs is from NYC. 

If I had to rank the top 5 WR's in the NFL today Anquan Boldin would make the list with no doubt. He may very well be the number one player on that list. He does everything at an elite level. He has amazing football speed, runs precision routes, is always open, has a powerful body and is tough to bring down. I am sure the price would have been high, but with the solid backfield and O-line that we already have and a receiving corps. consisting of Boldin, Cotchery and Keller we would be able to establish, without a shadow of a doubt, if Clemens or Sanchez is the real deal. 

We may never see an opportunity like this again. It's like Jerry Rice being available for a trade in the prime of his career. I would have paid any price, including next years first round draft pick and a key player like Thomas Jones. Braylon Edwards would have also been an attractive pick up, but because of his potential and the fact the price would have been lower. Boldin isn't about potential, he's the man right now. 

If we end up in fourth place in the AFC East when it's all said and done this season we may have to ask some questions as fans... and my number one inquiry will be... why did we chase Favre with reckless abandon in 08' and not even sniff at Boldin in 09'?

Calvin Pace suspended for the first 4 games...

Calvin Pace has made a mistake that may very well cost the NYJ a playoff birth. When breaking down the schedule I predicted us as going 8-8... best case scenario: Our 2009 Schedule

The first four games are Houston, N.E., Tenn., and New Orleans. Every NFL team needs as strong a pass rush as possible every week. But, when we are facing the top two QB's in the league (Brady/ Breeze) in your first four weeks the last thing we need is our best pass rushing LB out of commission. Injuries and suspensions can happen at any time. This is why I have stressed our weak D-line and lack of pass rush all through out this off-season. 

I am not overly upset or disappointed by Pace. He was suspended for testing positive for a banned substance. The substance came from a legal over the counter supplement. He took responsibility and apologized to the fans and his teammates. Case closed as far as I am concerned. 

Mike Tannenbaum is who I am disappointed with. He has left this team with two major holes... WR and D-line (TE is a major issue too, but these other two problems out weigh TE by a lot). The passing game is going to struggle and our lack of a pass rush is going to make our brilliant defensive mined  head coach look like a fool.  

Mr. T's glass house is already crashing down around him.