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.