1st week of Free Agency comes to an end

The New York Jets are officially being run like an elite organization, maybe for the first time ever. To be clear... we are NOT an elite organization yet, but we are following the best practices and the overall blueprint for an elite club. I read online somewhere that "John Idzik is challenging the myth that you can't rebuild in New York". That stuck with me.

Because we were 8-8 and our defensive line looked so impressive I think some fans may have lost sight of who we are as a franchise heading into this offseason. We don't have an established franchise QB, a number 1 WR (or a 2), a superstar TE, or any game changers in our secondary. Oh, and 60 percent of our O-line are below average players. When you have major holes on both sides of the ball the last thing you do is start filling them with cast off, over priced free agents. You BUILD THROUGH THE DRAFT!!!!!! (in my best 'you play to win the game' sarcastic Herm Edwards voice).

It's admirable that our lame duck coach finished the season .500, and I'm impressed with our GM for fielding a decent team last year considering what he walked into. That doesn't necessarily mean we win 10 games this year. From the day Idzik arrived every move has been about 2015. Last year we got outstanding production out of Richardson, solid production from Geno, Milliner, and Ivory (acquired with a 4th rounder via trade) and multiple starts from Bohannon and Winters. 6 significant contributors from 6 draft picks.  The Revis trade may be the best in team history. Like I said last year, it's not just maneuvering yourself and collecting draft picks, it's about who you ultimately draft. We traded away an aging, diva CB for the defensive rookie of the year who immediately turned our D-line into our #1 strength. Wilkerson, Harrison and Richardson (The Sons of Anarchy?) were responsible for at least 5 of our 8 wins.

The players who we drafted at 2 key positions (CB, LE) with our first 2 picks will be seasoned vets by 2015. Demario Davis, Couples and Wilkerson will also be savvy vets. These 5 players will be the heart and soul of our team by 2015. This year we will be stocked up with 11-12 picks heading into the draft in early May, and this years haul of talent will get a year under their belts in 2014. In the 2015 draft we pick up the final pieces to the puzzle. That's the perfect time to land some impactful rookies at positions like RB, Kick returner, and pass rusher.

That being said... I am spending a lot of time on last year and the draft, and this thread is about free agency and the 2014 Jets.  My draft threads will be forthcoming.

The big news in the league revolves around teams with aging QB's breaking the bank and throwing money at players who are past their prime in a last ditch effort to win the big one before their QB's ride off into the sunset. And, aimless organizations with cap money simply offering contracts to ANYONE who looks good in a uniform. The Browns, Raiders and Jaguars are spending like drunken sailors. If you need any proof that you can't "Buy" a super bowl look at the 3 franchises I just mentioned.

So far the Jets landed an offensive lineman from Seattle that Idzik obviously knows a lot about. He's projected as starting RT. I know absolutely nothing about him, but Idzik snatched this kid up quickly and he's young, so obviously they must think highly of him.

Our other big signing is a player you may have heard of, Eric Decker. I want to capsulize my feelings on this player. He's got good size, average speed, above average hands and he has been pretty durable. He's a rock solid #2 WR and everything considered he was the #1 WR on the market. He doesn't cost us a draft pick, he's young, and I'm sure Mr Johnson is thrilled that he will sell jerseys. The best part is that his 36 million dollar 5 year deal has only 15 million guaranteed. It's essentially a 3 year 15 million dollar contract. That's perfect.

Revis became available suddenly and he played Belichick like a child. He and his people put up a smoke screen about how much he wanted to come back to the NYJ. Why would that guy want to come here after we shipped him off to FLA last year at this time, and he knows we won't over spend??? All he cares about is money. If we wouldn't give him a big long term deal last year, why would we pay him now? He simply scared the Patriots into giving him 12 million bucks for one year when guys like Wilfork and Brady have taken pay cuts, renegotiated and given crazy hometown discounts.

After all of the years of Billy B letting key veterans like Branch, Seymore, McGinist and Welker walk and refusing to pay them, he breaks the bank for one of the most well known former Jets. The media painted it like the Jets getting beat out for Revis, but our team was clear that they never attempted negotiating with Revis and our GM and owner had "no interest in bringing him back". Meanwhile, the core of their defense and maybe the 2nd most respected player in their locker room, next to Brady, Wilfork immediately demands his release. And ESPN calls it the best free agent signing so far this year. This reminds me of the Ty Law situation from back during the Herm era (wow 2 Herm references in one thread!) in reverse. This time they are overpaying for our sloppy seconds.

There are still some talented players left out there. The Jets and Giants are both meeting with DRC, the corner from Denver. There is no question we land him if we want him. Why would a defensive player want to go to the Giants over playing for Rex? If the Giants land him they were willing to pay much more. Our front office has put very clear monetary values on any and all FA's and they won't over pay... period.

Moving forward, I have ZERO interest in Finley from Green Bay. Bringing back #31 for the right price is something I'd take a look at,  LeGarrette Blount is on my radar, Kenny Britt because he's a Jersey guy and this is a great time to buy low with him, I'd love to see Cotchery back in green & white on a 1 year deal, the injury prone Andre Brown would be a nice addition to our backfield since we wouldn't need to rely on him as a #1 back, Fred Davis at TE would be great paired up with Cumberland, Kyle Love is a DT who has been up in New England... he'd fit in well for a great price, James Ihedigbo would fit into our secondary well. I'd be surprised if we sign even one of these guys, but they would all help us win games.

The final 2 players I will mention are a bit more controversial. 1st is Mike Vick. He would beat Geno, Sanchez or anyone else we could land at this point for the starting job. Especially in Marty's offense. That's why he will probably land here, however, I'm not sure the Jets want him. I have a weird feeling we end up with Josh Freeman, not sure why, but I think Rex and Tanny were ready to take him if the trade with Cleveland wouldn't have worked out in 2009. I don't like him for us, but I think if he took a 2 year deal (with a ton of incentives)  with the Cardinals and was humble enough to sit behind Palmer, he could eventually be in a position to lead that team and have some serious success as early as 2015.

And finally Richie Incognito. YUP. I think he's a complete scumbag, but the Dolphins already paid the price for his antics. We would land him for the league minimum, Rex will take him under his wing, and Mangold will keep him in check. And, he has every reason to be on his best behavior and lay low. He may actually be improving as a human being because of all the counseling he's been through over the past few months. But most of all he can play. He would actually fill out our O-line quite well. There's very little risk if we also draft a guard to compete with him.

All the experts can go DUCK themselves...

All the experts claim they have figured out Johhny Football. Oh Really??

He's been projected as high as #1 overall and referred to by one anonymous NFL GM as "undraftable". I have never been one to get caught up in the hype of any college QB leading into the draft. I was not thrilled with any of the QB's we have drafted in the past 15 years including Pennington, Sanchez and Smith. Ironically I did like Kellen Clemens in the early 2nd round, who obviously never panned out. I also ended up becoming a big fan of Pennington even though I hated taking him in the 1st. (Sidebar: I'd love to have him back as a part of this organization in some-sort-of coaching capacity, but that's another thread.) I have a hard time thinking of any QB I've truly been excited about from the draft, mainly because you simply can't tell from watching a guy in college how he will translate to the pro's. That being said, having the right guy behind center is the key to winning a championship in this league (especially in 2014).

So how do we find our guy? The Jets have had a philosophy for many years that has survived 2 owners and a bunch of GM's. They've chased the fading veteran. Boomer... O'Donell... Vinnie... even Favre. Now they are talking about brining in Schaub from Houston or Vick from Philly. I do understand the importance of a seasoned veteran in a QB competition, but I would frankly take Sanchez over either one of these washed up dudes. I'd like to refer to them as "formerly great" but that would be a lie. Formerly average QB's in their 30's rarely equal success. Rich Gannon is a one in a million shot.

My ideal scenario this off-season would be restructuring Sanchez (drastic pay cut), obviously keeping Geno and Simms, and drafting Johny Manziel from Texas A&M.  If we use our multitude of draft picks this year (9 in all) and our projected $40 million plus in cap room to make a huge impact on the overall talent level of our offense, one of the aforementioned signal callers can be the guy we need to lead this team into the playoffs. Especially considering the state of the other 3 teams in our division.

All 4 are interesting players with very different skill sets. Simms would be the obvious long shot, Geno would have a leg up on everyone after winning 8 games with Mornhinweg, and Sanchez would also have a steep climb to get back to the #1 spot. This group makes sense financially, we could afford them all, unfortuneately to score Manziel we would have to move up into the top 5. A player taken that high is pretty much an automatic starter. So this whole scenario falls to pieces because of how hot Johnny Football has gotten now that we are only 10 or so weeks from the draft.

I'll write about the other 3 QB's who are already on the roster including why I have changed my tune about keeping #6 for the right price, but this thread is about Johnny. My feelings on this prospect are dynamic and passionate.

What I like: His arm strength, elusiveness, speed of his release, (which have all been criticized by a lot of scouts) and obviously his foot speed/acceleration. His intangibles are by far the most appealing thing about this special player. He's one part Eli Manning, one part Tim Tebow, and one part Doug Flutie in big moments. He's very simply fun to watch because you know he will leave it all on the field every week. He's insanely cocky, but in a way that will rally his teammates because he's a bit undersized.

That leads me to what I don't like: His overall footwork is wildly inconsistent, he has way too much confidence in his arm (he thinks he's Dan Marino... which he certainly is not), his frame is way too small and fragile to survive the beating he will take in the NFL (see RG III and Mr. Vick who I mentioned earlier in this thread). You will not be able to stop this kid from running with the ball, which you wouldn't want to do, but you would want to control it. Russell Wilson is smart and humble and has outstanding offensive coaches up in the Pacific Northwest. We simply don't have the right people to develop Manziel. ;(

I think this special player could win a Super Bowl, but he would need to be in the right system with a solid franchise. Playing for Rex Ryan would be the kiss of death. My other big issue with this kid is that his draft stock is way too inflated. He would ideally be an early 2nd rounder like Kapernick or Geno Smith. I'd even consider his late 1st round if you were really thirsty for him. But he may actually go #1 overall, and that's just way too high of a pick for a player with so many question marks/ durability concerns. Risk/Reward go hand in hand. You have to roll the dice from time to time to jump start your franchise, but this kid could seriously use a year on the bench to learn, which isn't a reality when you are a top 5 pick at QB.

Either way I will be rooting for this young man and watching him. My fingers are crossed that he will land in the right place and stay healthy. The 2 places I'd love to see him land would be Denver or New Orleans. He could sit a while and then step up in 2015 or even 2016. That would give this kid a real chance to develop into a force like Aaron Rodgers. Dallas would be a nice sleeper to chace him, but they gave Romo that horrendous contract that handcuffs them as an organization for a while. Frankly any team in the top 5 of this years draft may take him, and he won't make it out of the top 5...  but if any team could really use him, and has a realistic shot at moving up it would be Minnesota. If Houston and St. Louis don't bite, I think Minnesota could move up from the 8th spot to the 3rd by flipping draft picks with Jacksonville. That would launch that franchise into being a contender with one draft pick. Defending Johnny and Adrian Peterson, with Patterson and his elite speed on the outside would be a daunting task for any defense. Just an idea.

The Matt Millen effect...

Mr Millen ran the Detroit Lions into the ground over a number of years during the beginning of the millennium. He is a head strong, tough as nails guy who convinced the ownership of the Lions that he was the second coming of Jesus Christ. They simply turned over the whole operation to him. He went on to draft 3 WR's with high 1st round picks. I'm not going to name them or list their stats or any of that shit. We all know the Lions were horrendous during the Millen era, and one major mistake he made was drafting with a one dimensional strategy.

The Jets have used a ton of draft picks on defensive players during the Ryan era. This is a league that is driven by offense. And at the very least I think you have to use balance when drafting, especially in the 1st couple rounds.

Pre-Ryan era we took Revis and Harris with our 1st 2 picks in 2007. Gholston with a very high pick in 2008. Ryan arrives in 2009 and we obviously took a QB with the #5 overall pick. But after that... Wilson (2010), Wilkerson/ Ellis first two (2011), Coples (2012), Milliner/ Richardson both top 15 picks (2013). Since 2007 we have had 2 different HC's and 2 different GM's. But there has been the same pattern of focusing on defense. Sadly our defense is not elite and still has major holes heading into the 2014 offseason.

The reason I am pointing this out is because we just simply can not continue to draft defense early. My fear is that Clowney and a bunch of other potential impactful pass rushers will be available with the 18th overall pick, and we need help at LB and with our overall pass rush. It will be tempting for Idzik, especially with Rex in his ear, to pull the trigger and try to give Coples a book end pass rushing OLB to complete our front 7. But on principle alone we need to create balance. The amount of WR's and TE's who will be available at 18 and who can have a huge impact on our offense is crazy. We need to focus our 1st four picks on offense. As the months progress I will analyze who to draft and who to stay away from, but the overall philosophy this offseason should be filling our 2 major holes on defense with free agents. Those 2 holes are Pass rushing OLB and FS BTW.

I have a very interesting idea for how to complete Rex's defense. Terrell Suggs will most likely be a cap causality in Baltimore. His history with Rex and our bounty of cap money makes the Jets the logical landing spot for him, if Newsome can't find a way to keep him. Suggs, combined with Coples and our outstanding defensive linemen would be a nightmare for QB's across the league. Harris and Davis at ILB are a solid way to complete our front 7. That leaves us the hole at FS.

My thinking is this... If we brought back Reed, signed Suggs and dropped Harris (which frees up 5 million in cap room) why oh why would Ray Lewis not seriously consider coming back for a year, reuniting with his comrades and helping his former coach finish what he started here in New York?

In an interview on MSG I once heard Ryan say that if he could pick only one person to be in a fox hole with he would chose Ray Lewis. And he didn't have to think for one second. That's the guy you need to win a super bowl. I know he's old, I know that ESPN is paying him a ton of cash and he seems to like TV. But every week this guy is on the air complaining about how defenses in this league are soft, how the rules aren't fair, and he looks like he wants to jump off the set and into a uniform.

I'm sure his conditioning is stellar and with a guy like Davis as the other ILB you could even limit Lewis's snaps. Reed, Suggs and Lewis as individuals are all old defensive players in a young man's game. But united, I think you get one magical year out of them. Our defense is very young overall, these 3 veterans would be the perfect addition to our locker room and they know what it takes to win it all. If we are going to be stuck with Rex Ryan why not use his influence to our advantage? I'd play Allen at SS, move reed to FS and the defense is complete. We spend a portion of our FA money on these three former Ravens and focus the rest of the cash and at least 5 or 6 of our draft picks on offense.

We would be building for the future and set to win today as well.

Another year of mediocrity ahead??

Rex Ryan will return as the head coach of the New York Jets in 2014. My nightmare has come true. I have tried to wait for the Ryan era to end, and to see a complete organizational change before commenting on this team again. I don't plan on boycotting any longer. Considering how much of a man crush Woody Johnson has on Rex, I may be waiting until my grand son is playing QB for the Jets before he's fired. So, I'll just try to focus on what I feel the Jets need to do to win games.

I'll make one final observation on this and then move on ... accepting that Rex is our coach:

The 4-6 1985 Bears would probably not win a Super Bowl these days. The rules are sooo skewed to benefit the offensive side of the ball that a defense with 11 probowlers and the best defensive mind in the league coaching them is useless without a big time QB and some game changers at WR and RB.

Lets look at the playoff picture. Manning, Brady, Dalton, Luck, Alex Smith and Rivers. The NFC: Wilson, Newton, Brees, Rodgers, Kapernick and Foles. That's who made the playoffs, I'm not mentioning their team names, it's these 12 men who made it happen, surrounded by offensive weapons and coaches.

Look at KC alone. 2-14 last year and 11 wins this year. They got a offensive minded coach and traded for a franchise QB. Essentially the same squad. 2 changes and they may win the SB this year. They have an excellent defense... but they had that last year as well. Smith and Reid are all the difference. Even guys like Rivera in Carolina and Fox in Denver who are defensive guys, have focused on their offenses and accepted that times have changed in the NFL. Defense is now a luxury in pro football. Rex doesn't think that way.

Chip Kelly is a good example of the new breed of guys who will win championships in years to come. He developed and master minded a wide open fast paced offensive system that took the college football world by storm. He took over the Eagles and wouldn't name a starting QB until the end of the pre-season. He choose Vick, but he was injured, and Foles has flourished.

I think that losing the QB competition during camp has contributed to his success this season. When he got a chance to start he never looked back. Rex is all about crowning a guy ASAP because he thinks it creates stability. Geno Smith has done nothing to earn the right to be our starting QB going into camp. But I suspect he will be. I also suspect there will be little to no competition for him. That's a losing plan. Offense is an afterthought for any Ryan, especially Rex.

What I would have done is rolled the dice on Johnny Manziel in this years draft. Taking Geno last year was an OK decision. He will cost us less than 1 million against the cap each of the next 3 years and he has some nice upside. He can sit on the bench behind a guy like Manziel or a higher priced veteran in a way that a top 5 draft pick at QB couldn't. But I do understand that Manziel to the Jets won't happen. =(

I love the idea of hiring the offensive coordinator of the Seahawks Darrell Bevell, giving him Smith, Manziel and the best veteran available to battle it out in camp. I'd also spend 80% of that 49 million in cap money that we will have this offseason and at least 6 or our 9 draft picks on overhauling the offense. That would have been my plan. I guess it's time for plan B.

Plan B:

Fat boy stays. I have always liked the guy, but to win the big one you need the smartest guy in the room, a CEO style, culture establishing, well rounded X's and O's guy and a born leader. I don't think rex fits the bill, but he's our guy. Mr Ryan has been indulged by 2 GM's in the draft landing a bunch of 1st round blue chip defensive players. Wilson, Wilkerson, Couples, Milliner, Richardson. It's time to focus on offense.

Lets not get ahead of ourselves. Before free agents or the draft I would start with who stays and who goes.

I'd dump Sanchez, Holmes, Wilson, Reed, Winslow, Pace, Landry,  and Goodson. I would like to dump Stephen Hill and Cromartie as well, but Hill is still cheap and Cromartie will restructure his contract and there is hope that this was just an off season for him. So dumping either would be premature in 2014.

I keep:

... Powell and Ivory together. Love this duo. You have the grinder and the pass catching play maker. I'd search for a more well rounded RB in the draft. Maybe a 2nd or 3rd rounder. A guy who needs some development is fine. We can ride Ivory and Powell in 2014. But landing a solid future #1 back is important this offseason.

Kerly and Nelson should also hang around. They both could be huge for us if we had a solid #1 wide receiver and a top TE. They are the types of guys who win you games, but their not #1 WR's and they need single coverage. Cumberland and Sudfeld  are ok for depth but we need a game changing TE. A guy like Witten or Gates is what we need to find. There are some great prospects in the draft and we also need to look at FA's. Guys like Julius Thomas from Denver are out there. We need a go to player at this position.

Mike Oher from Baltimore will be available and we need to throw $$$ at him. Teams like the Ravens who have a huge portion of their cap money tied up in a QB provide a bounty of outstanding players who they can't afford. With our cap space we need to plunder these key players. I am OK with giving Winters the starting job in 2014, and D'Brick, Mangold and Colon are solid. Adding Oher at RT would easily give us a top 5 O-line again. The O-line is the foundation.

I like Demario Davis at ILB and think he may push Harris for the #1 spot next year. He was a an outstanding draft pick 2 years ago. Couples was OK at OLB, but he is lazy. He had some game changing plays, but I question his hunger. There will be free agents out there who can help impact our pass rush. I wouldn't draft any defensive player with our 1st 4 picks.

Milliner finally showed some flashes at the end of the season. I am not the type of guy who makes excuses for top 10 draft picks, but he was injured in OTA's and camp and Rex's defense does ask a lot of a corner. It takes time to learn the pro game. Feeling good about him in 2014. I already mentioned Cromartie. I really like Antonio Allen and I hate the fact that Reed took his job. let's get this guy back on the field as a starter next year. That leaves us some serious holes in our secondary. If I would consider a defensive player in the first 4 rounds this year it would be a game changing safety to play alongside Allen.

Love that Nick Folk has developed into a top kicker and that is something we have needed for years. I have hated Folk from the day he came here, but he has turned a corner.

That leaves the best squad on this team. The Son's of Anarchy: Richardson, Wilkerson and Harrison (Big Snacks). Wilkerson is a rare player. He's rock solid on and off the field. He changes games and sets the standard for the defense. He's our new Revis, and I would take him over that scumb bag any day of the week. Players like Couples who need a push from time to time will follow him. Idzik needs to wrap him up for life and pay him. We have depth on our line and I hope to see all of them back in 2014.

I'm thrilled to start looking at the free agents who will be available considering the money we have to spend as well as the 9 draft picks. This offseason is the center piece to the next 3 years for us as a franchise. With money being spent properly and the right draft picks even a guy like Rex might be able to win us the big one.

One year later...

It's been one year since my last post. I decided I wouldn't post anything or take the NY Jets seriously until Rex Ryan is gone. I feel exactly the same today as I did 53 weeks ago. I thought I would check in and break from my blogging hunger strike for a state-of-the-union.

As an organization we are simply spinning our wheels by sticking with people like Rex Ryan, Terry Bradway and the rest of this coaching staff and scouting department. Woody Johnson's half-measures have held the Jets back for over a decade. We "demoted" our general manager to head of scouting (Bradway), then fired our head coach (Mangini) but kept the GM and OC, then fired the GM (Tanenbaum) but kept the head coach... but lost both of his coordinators. SMH

It's time to clean house and that's exactly what I said last year at this time. I really like our new GM John Idzik. He's an ivy league guy who comes from a football family. To run a team you need a GM who is always the smartest guy in the room and who has been around the game for his whole life. With Idzik we have that. He was served a steaming shit sandwich when he took over this past offseason. A bunch of overpriced, under-motivated handcuff cap disasters (no need to list the names, we all know who they are). A team that had hit an all-time low respect wise. A coach who had one foot in the grave. No QB, no #1 WR, no #1 RB, holes on the O-line and no threat at TE. So basically no offense and no cap money to sign any game changing FA's. And the defense was a C+ squad at best.

Wow, it looked like we were heading for a 2 or 3 win season. And nobody could have blamed our new GM. Instead Idzik signed Marty Morehinweg as OC, brought in Willie Colon to shore up the RG position, Kellen Winslow at TE, traded for Chris Ivory, drafted Brian Winters at LG, traded Revis for a 1st rounder and used the pick to draft Sheldon Richardson to start opposite Wilkerson and at the same time freeing up Couples to move to ROLB. He also drafted Dee Milliner who has unlimited upside, took Geno Smith in the 2nd round who won 5 of his 1st 9 games as a rookie starter and scored a FB in the 7th round who has started every game this season.

He also added players like WR David Nelson, return specialist Josh Cribbs and future HOF'er Ed Reed during the season as injuries piled up. We were able to beat teams like Atlanta, New England, and New Orleans and were 5-4 heading into the bye. Idzik deserves the credit for what has gone well. He inherited Ryan and obviously made sure he used him in the capacity in which he should be used... as a defensive coordinator. Ryan runs our defense and calls the plays. As a result the defense has been very impactful. No one can deny the RR is one of the best defensive minds in the game. He has almost zero involvement with the offense.

This is not ideal, but because Woody refused to make wholesale changes Idzik has had no choice but to work with what he has. Since the bye we have dropped 2 straight, blow out losses from two very poor AFC teams and now we are below .500 heading into the last 5 games of the season. Our rookie signal caller has thrown 1 TD and 10 INT's over the past 5 weeks.

This is where you need a HC, and instead we are asking our glorified DC to decide what to do here. Geno Smith has shown some promise this year. He can make plays with his feet, he has a powerful arm and good deep accuracy, he (much to my surprise) is excellent with the press and media, always saying the right thing, and he has the natural persona of a leader. He's very level headed and has led his team back from 4th quarter deficits in all of his 5 wins this year.

BUT, starting with the Cinicinatti game it became obvious the he was struggling. We beat New Orleans but Geno had little to do with it. Vs. Buffalo and the Ravens we put a leash on #7 and he has still managed to turn the ball over and has made our offense a complete non-issue for opposing teams. He was wildly inconsistent all year, and by halftime of the Bills game it was an obvious decision to pull him and give Simms the start for the 2nd half. I think 31 other HC's would have tried to salvage that game against a division rival who is also starting a rookie. Instead Ryan let Geno go out and throw 4 INT's and also lose a fumble before putting Simms in when the game was out of reach.

In the post game presser Ryan announces that Geno is the starter next week. Without discussing it with the GM or the OC he just comes out, opens his fat pie hole and vomits his unwavering support for a player that has scored a solid grade of 'F' over a 5 game span. This sends a horrible message to everyone in the organization and hurts Smith's development instead of helping him. Ryan doesn't understand basic big picture issues. The #1 mission of the NY Jets is finding a franchise QB. We have 2 young QB's on the roster to evaluate this year. We have seen everything that Geno has to offer as a rookie and not only is he doing NOTHING to help us win the staff has shown no confidence in letting him throw the ball. As soon as we are down by 10 the game is over and our opponents know it. There is nothing to be gained by playing him the last 5 games.

A decision should have been made mid game vs. Buffalo to make a change and see if Simms can #1) give our offense a spark so we can try to keep winning and make a run at the post season, and #2) Evaluate what we have in the young Simms and try to see what our plan will be going into the offseason regarding the all important QB spot. Guys like Tony Romo, Russell Wilson and the great Tom Brady were not bluechip draft picks, they are guys who got a chance to come in off the bench and became the face of their respective franchises.  Ryan is not a chess guy, he's all checkers. This is where it becomes obvious that an NFL team needs a CEO style head coach and not a coordinator who plays his HC role like he plays his roles in Adam Sandler movies.

Ryan will keep Smith in until we are 5-8 and out of the playoff hunt. This will be the 3rd consecutive year he has lost his team in the 2nd half of the season and the worst part is we won't get a fair look at Simms until the whole team has given up and Holmes is having temper tantrums in the huddle, sideline, locker room, and press conferences. So going into the offseason we will have a completely shell shocked Geno Smith and a huge question mark in Simms. We will most likely finish 7-9, mid 1st round pick and another pointless season in the books.

When this season ends Woody needs to give 100% control to Idzik. First thing he would do is fire Ryan, I guarantee. Next move would be to dump Bradway and bring in his own front office. That's a good start.

What I would do in 2014 is this:

Make a huge $$$ run at John Gruden. Idzik was in the Bucs front office when Gruden led the Bucs to the Super Bowl. Winning a championship together is a huge bond. Gruden is a CEO style coach who knows how to create a winning culture. This situation is so similar to the one Gruden walked into at Tampa. A dominate defense and a good (not great) O-line designed to run the ball. When he arrived in Tampa he was replacing a coach who was loved in the locker room and he challenged the defense to start creating turnovers and scoring. He could turn things around and has a big enough personality to erase Rex Ryan from the NY sports world forever.

I'd fire anyone that wasn't brought in by Idzik in the front office and coaching staff. If you land Gruden I would retain Morehenwig because you would have 2 of the top west coast offensive minds in the world running that squad. Marty is so good at what he does, Gruden could be a full time head coach.

Defensively I'd bring in Monty Kiffin. He will probably be let go by Dallas considering his defense is the worst in the league this year. He tried to overhaul Dallas's 3-4 defense and convert it to a Tampa 2. However, they didn't have the proper personnel and they were more cap strapped than us this past offseason. Kiffin had no chance in Dallas. I'd reunite him with Gruden and I'd build a Tampa 2 around a D-line of Richardson and Couples at DE and Harrison and Wilkerson at NT and DT. That front 4 would be crazy. Harris and Davis at LB would be a good fit, and Milliner and Wilson would probably excel in a Tampa 2 secondary. Furthermore, we will have as much as 40 million in cap room this offseason so filling in the defense with a few FA's that fit the new defensive scheme will be very doable.

As for players, we can start with QB. Smith will cost us less than 1 million a year for the next 3 seasons. That's normal back up money. That gives time to develop this player. But, we need to make a move for a veteran who can help us win now and keep Geno for the future. I would not draft a QB. 3 veterans will probably be available. I think the Bears let Cutler walk and Vick will also be available as a FA. I wouldn't touch either of these guys with a 10 foot pole. The 3rd QB who will probably be available is Big Ben from Pittsburgh... via trade. I'd give up our 1st rounder this year that will probably fall between 14-18 for an established SB champ with a some gas left in the tank. The Steelers won't publicly shop Big Ben, but they have had many issues with him over the years, they know he's past his prime and they have a huge rebuilding project in western Pennsylvania. Their defense needs a rebuild, their offense is lacking playmakers and Ben is costing them big $$$ and will be heading into the last year of his contract. This is the time to move him and gain cap room and draft picks.

If we landed Ben, I would explore keeping Holmes and reuniting them. Otherwise the 1st player I cut is Holmes, and not just to save cap room. Hate him with a passion... but he can do things that very few humans can do. With one minute left, down by 4 points, with your season on the line, Holmes suddenly becomes a top 5 WR in this league.

Obviously Sanchez is cut which brings huge cap savings to the Jets. As a sidebar, I think Denver or Dallas would be great places for him to land. But I don't really care =)

I'd try to keep this O-line together. Colon is close to hitting the wall but I think he has one good year left. Plus he knows Ben and how he moves in the pocket. Winters is looking good and Howard has established himself as a solid RT.

I'd hold onto Nelson, Kerley, Hill, Cumberland, Winslow, Ivory and Powell.

There are some interesting FA WR's coming up in 2014, and we will have the money to spend. I'd make a move for Kenny Britt and Jeremy Macklin. Britt is a Jersey guy, and maybe coming home could settle him down. Britt, Hill, Macklin and Kerley could be a formidable receiving corps. Hill has been a huge disappointment, but he needs some other legitimate threats out there to open things up for him. Haven't given up on him yet.

Defensively we need one or two good/fast young tampa 2 LB's (if we make the switch) and a game changing safety to play alongside Antonio Allen.

As for the draft, if we dump our 1st rounder on Roethisberger I wouldn't take a WR, QB or pass rusher with our 2nd rounder. I would try to find some elite talent at RB, TE or Safety with that pick. My 1st three picks would cover those positions. How often do you find a young Super Bowl champion coach and a champion QB available to spark your franchise?

Big Ben wouldn't be my long term solution. But Gruden had such success with Gannon at the end of his career, I think he would help us win while we build a talented squad to possibly hand off to Geno in 2 to 3 years.

Blow it up WOODY!!!!

Blow it UP!!!!

Mike Tannenbaum has been the GM of this team for over 6 seasons. He has had some success. He assembled a team that made 2 AFC Championship appearances. That's nothing to turn your nose up to. This is a franchise that has had very little post season success. I think he is smart and talented. That being said the NFL is about winning and any GM is probably going to get one or maybe two strikes regarding Head Coach choices... and then they are out. We have seen some major blunders from Mr. T, 1st round busts, trading away draft picks like tic-tac's for low character players, big flashy moves that produce headlines but not wins. I like his guts, but he simply got to cocky.

Everyone thinks Rex Ryan is the proprietor and cultivator of bravado in the Jets organization. He's a puppy compared to the big dawg in the big chair. Mr. T earned his spot, worked his way up and made some excellent moves in his first few years. He re-built the O-line, scored some nice mid-round players like Neon Leon and Brad Smith, and scored with building a foundation with guys like Revis, Harris and Mangold. He went after solid veteran FA's like Thomas Jones and also created an environment where some of the players he inherited started to shine like Rhodes and Cotchery. If you forget about the move to sign Favre and letting Pennington walk to the Dolphins his first 3 years were very solid.

He made a mistake signing Mangini before he was truly ready to be a HC. But he built a solid unit and also a solid coaching staff after firing Eric. Our 2009/2010 coaching staff was amazing. The only big issue was signing Mangini's replacement as a HC when he is wired to only be a coordinator. Rex Ryan was passed over in Baltimore when he was the air apparent. In one of my first posts on this blog I asked the question... why???

Ozzy Newsome ran the risk of a mutiny from his players by passing on Rex, but he did it anyway. It's because he simply can't do the job. This is when Mr. T's ego started to explode. He had a strategy.. build a sick defense and solid offense with an O-line built to run the ball. Then draft your QB as the final step. It allows a rookie a chance to win from the get go. That's what happened. Unfortunately the huge mistake at HC started to pull the team down. Ryan allowed the locker room to get out of control and also pressured some horrible draft picks. The wheels fell off mid 2011 and it's only got worse as the months have progressed.

Sanchez is a lost cause, we are handcuffed to Holmes for at least 2 more years, we have zero backfield threat, the right side of our O-line is a mess, ZERO pass rush, and the oldest, clunkiest LB corps in the league. This is a major reclamation project and the team is in worse shape then when Mr. T took over. By the end of this season it will be 3 out of 5 years without a playoff birth including 2 in a row. Sparano and the offensive coaches are useless, and if you dump Rex his group of defensive coaches need to go too.

It's easier to say who should stay then who should go.

• You can build around D'Brick, Slauson, and Mangold on the O-line. You need a new RG and RT.   
• You can build around Kerly and Hill. But you need 2-3 receivers including a big name #1 via trade or free agency. 
• Keller needs to go and we have no major threat at the TE spot. Cumberland can hang around another year but you need 2 TE's.
• Powell, McNight, Greene... all garbage. This whole squad needs to be re-built. We need a game changer here. No idea where we find one. You need 3 RB's. 
• Our defensive line is OK in my eyes. we have 5-6 solid guys. Wilkerson ad Couples can be very disruptive, but they are useless with a bunch of 30 something LB's running around creating no pass rush at all. 
• We need to surround Harris and Davis with a couple of savvy veterans and a couple of high motor OLB's from the draft. I like McIntyre the big white kid and I guess Maybin can hang around for the right price. But we need 1 solid pass rushing OLB via trade or free agency and 2 big bucks from the draft. 
• I Love our saftey's! Bell and Laundry have been a breath of fresh air. Watching Leonhard and Smith get beat for 3 years was a nightmare. These 2 free agent pick ups were an A+ move by the front office. 
• We need to dump Wilson and give Cromartie a solid book end corner moving forward. We need at least 2 CB's. 

There is a guy who wears #24 that may seem like he would be the perfect fit for that aforementioned book end spot at corner. Granted that he is the best of the best, BUT he will be coming off a major injury and will want crazy cash to re-sign here after next season. If you look at the needs I detailed above you will see the need to sign a bunch of free agents and that won't be possible with the contact Revis will demand. You will also see the sheer number of holes we need to fill. In review: RG, RT, 2-3 WR's, 2 TE's, an entire backfield, 3 OLB's,  2 CB's........ Oh,and a franchise QB!

Out of that group we need at least 6-7 solid starters. That's a crazy number and it probably won't be possible in one offseason. It will also require more than 7 draft picks per year. If we sit back and just take what ever players fall to us in the draft it will take a decade to fix this thing. The Jets need the right person in charge and they need to be aggressive like Jimmy Johnson was in Dallas. Trade Revis for picks and make it happen in the draft. It's not just about the getting a bunch of picks it's about who you draft.

This is the definition of a rebuilding team. That equals 2-3 years before we see the playoffs again. I don't know who the GM or HC should be, but you need a dynamic duo to do this right.

Under the ultimate microscope...

I have never experienced such a media frenzy around any NFL team like what we have seen in NY Jet land this summer. TV analysts and newspaper reporters are openly rooting for the Jets to crash land early and often in 2012. President Obama has chimed in, the Giants owner hates Rex and Tebow and the NY Post has posted a characture of the Jets in a clown car on their infamous back page.

Wow, this is a lot of hype. The funny part is that if the Jets score a few TD's and beat the Bills Sunday night the whole tone of the media will quickly start to change. If they beat Pittsburgh Week 2 ESPN will be crowning them as the upset pick of the year. Thats how quickly everything can turn around. On the other hand... if they tank this week and get destroyed at home... and if Sparano can't find a way to get his squad in the endzone all hell is going to break loose.

I remember the first 3 years Eli and Coughlin worked together and the abuse they endured. The reality is that they were on their way out and the G-men were ready to blow that whole thing up. A funny thing happened... after a tough start to the 2007 season they went on a run and won it all. That's what Rex and Mark are facing and that's the nature of NY football. The question is this: does Sanchez want it the way Eli did? He just doesn't seem hungry and he is way too happy to have Tebow in town. I think he wants out of NYC.

By the end of week 4 we will all know if the Jets have a chance this season or if they will live up to the characture the NY Post made up for them. If they are less then .500 I think too much of the boat will be under water to keep it a float until the end of the season.

If they do crash and burn what's next?

Tebow will play for a few weeks and I think he will get destroyed. McElroy will most likely start our last 4 games. When the season ends Woody has some big things to decide. I'm sure that if we turn into a running team led by Tebow by mid-season Holmes will make sure to create an enviorment where the Jets will be forced to release him in 2013. He will be gone and we will have a big contract to absorb into our very tight salary cap. A bunch of our old Frankenstein LB's will be gone as well. The whole LB corps. will have to be rebuilt as well as the WR corps. I am curious if Tannenbaum will be making those choices or if we will have a new GM.

Normally I would say that we should stick with Rex and bring in a new GM. I think Rex will always field a sick defense and I frankly agree that he is the best defensive mind in football like his father was a few generations ago. BUT, since we will be rebuilding two major parts of our team, one on offense and one on defense, as well as finding a new QB it only makes sense to start fresh with a new coach as well. Also, no GM is going to want to inherit Rex Ryan. Sorry.

I know Bill Polian will be the guy everyone calls for but he is old and has little time left. If he took the job you would have to take his son as part of the package and he will be the GM within 2-3 years. The Polians picked Caldwell as the coach in Indy after Dungy retired and I frankly am not a fan of those teams they built around Peyton over the years. I really think this would be a huge mistake.

I like Ron Hughes the head of college scouting for the Steelers. He was on his way to a GM spot in Detroit in the mid-90's when Matt Millen showed up with his brilliant 1st round WR strategy and Hughes headed off to the Burgh.

I also like Eric DeCosta the assistant GM of the Ravens. He would be an interesting choice because he is the one guy that may have a desire to keep Rex, Pettine, Thurman and our other former Raven coaches. Either way these NFL executives both come from elite programs and are primarily in charge of college scouting. This is how a championship team is built. From the ground up.

As for a coach I would love an experienced big name like Bill Cowher. He and Hughes would be a nice combo, and Wisenhunt would most likely be available this offseason after he is fired from Arizona. Russ Grimm would also be a nice addition to the coaching staff.