Decker is coming off a serious injury. It's not at all clear that he'll be the player he was when the season starts in 2017. Perhaps by late 2017 he might round into the player he was, but since the jets are unlikely to make the playoffs that doesn't help them. The jets FO decided that they'd rather get young WR reps and plays rather than giving them to Decker to help him regain his form. If Decker wasn't coming off a serious injury I might be inclined to agree with you, but I think the Jets FO think their young WRs have some real potential and they want to explore it. Remember that they'll still have very good pass catching Rbs (who can be split out as receivers) and Enumwa, even if none of the young WRs or Res rise to the challenge.
I feel like tanking would be like the knicks did this year . Spend money to field a team and realize half way through that they have failed and the team sucks . The players and coaches collectively throw in the towel and owners/gm don't really care because , other than disappointing the fans, they have nothing to gain by scraping out anymore wins thus knocking down their draft pick. Almost like what happened with the jets last year as well . While a rebuild is very similar I agree, I feel that the main difference is that the players and coaches are not giving up on the team. They know it's going to be an uphill battle. That's why the team is starting players who still have to prove themselves. The vets we had were simply not worth the money , as last season proved. Think about it like getting hired to a company at the ground floor but there is plenty a room for growth.
References, sure. Recent teams ,we can start with the Patriots, Packers, Steelers, Cowboys, Falcons, Seahawks. Past teams would be the 49's, the 0-4 Bills, Denver , The 70s Dolphins. All built through the draft with an occasional FA addition. Fortunately, I am not old enough to have watched any AFL games. Well ,not to say I remember them. I'd have been more interested in melting crayons on the radiator or something a toddler would do. I watched the Superbowl win but again, at 6 I don't think I would say I remember it or could really appreciate what I was watching. Just more a father and son memory. I expect an ugly season too, but not as ugly as last season. I can deal with losses if I see progress. If we do see progress, I think the fan base will come around. If Woody does allowed the full process, he will make 10 times the money he may lose for a couple of seasons. If he builds a continuous playoff team, gets a Lombardi trophy, there will be a wait list for season tickets. It's the nature of the beast.
What timeframe are you referencing? Other than the 04 Bills. One thing about most of those teams they have/had a franchise QB. That is where it starts and it's much easier to fill in the gaps when you have one. The Jets haven't had one in decades and that sucks. As much as I hate the Giants they always field a good team, solid coaching, and draft well. I thought that was going to be the blueprint with the Jets when Parcells came in. He brought instant credibility for sure and then hand it off to Bellichek. But somehow Woody screwed it up and with interference from Bob Kraft.
The recent teams are all 2000 to present. The 49's of the 80s , Elway era broncos. The Franchise QB can also be a last piece. Recent example would be Oakland. The Giants have been up and down, weren't Giant fans demanding Coughlin get fired before both Superbowl seasons. The bottom line is you really need a complete, balanced team to compete. I'm a firm believer that a FQB only becomes a FQB with the right franchise around him. Look at Brady , in the 2001 preseason , the year Bledsoe went down, the Patriots were so sure Brady would not amount to anything, the tried to get Jim Harbaugh and Scott Zolak to come out of retirement to replace him. Put Brady on the Brown's, Jets, Jags, Titans, etc and those teams don't have all the Superbowl wins the Patriots have and the GOAT is a bust. There's only one right time to draft a FQB if you don't have one, and that is the first chance you have. But that takes a top pick. If there's none available, you build the rest of the team and keep trying. If you have a solid roster you can trade up if needed. But if your roster sucks, that FQB becomes Andrew Luck. Great QB, nothing to show for it but surgical scars.
This previous draft is starting to make a lot more sense. Especially after the trade of Calvin Pryor along with the release of veterans in Revis, Mangold, Harris & Decker. Meaning that a new window of opportunity has been created and it's right there for the takings in regards to new blood leadership roles. Not only was Jamal Adams considered as a top 3 player alongside of Myles Garrett & Leonard Fournette but he's also been known as one of the most natural born leaders within the entire Nation. Not only did Macc replace Pryor with an SEC hopeful out of LSU in Jama Adams during the 1st round but also drafted a highly recruited natural born leader at the same time. Same goes for Marcus Maye. Another SEC kid. A Florida Gator. Down here in Florida everyone has raved about his athletic ability, physical play, speed at the position, great tackling ability and especially his vocal leadership qualities. Adams and Maye have been known as two natural born leaders and now both are on the verge of replacing Pryor and Gilchrist @ SS & FS during a time in which our locker room just lost a multitude of veterans. This could all amount to the perfect storm. If the game of football is chess and not checkers and if Maccagnan as G.M thought about these 2017 offseason moves, and thought about them moves ahead well then we now have a front office playing chess and not checkers. Genius if you ask me. And I'm sure at the time there were Jet fans back in 2000 who hated going D-Line 1-2 back-to-back with our 1st two picks in Shaun Ellis & John Abraham but drafting two SEC Safety's out of LSU & FLorida 1-2 back-to-back could end up becoming two blessings with leadership qualities as we enter a youth movement with leadership opportunity up for the taking. Mo Wilkerson. Leo Williams. Jamal Adams. Marcus Maye. Man. This defense is already full of young potential leaders both on and off the field under Macc. In closing there is also leadership opportunity for both of Darron Lee and Sheldon Richardson too. That's if they really want it. It's there for them. And (one) arrest and a night club scene doesn't change the fact that if Lee & Richardson want to lead amongst and alongside of Wilk, Leo, Adams and Maye... The window of opportunity is right here right now. This is big. If our defensive ability can (help) improve our offenses potential due to muliple practices & training camps against one another? And if anything if our offense can just learn from our defense while walking away with leadership traits and stick together as young kid no matter good or bad? Man. The sky could be the limit if these kids gel together because to lose together is to learn how to win together.
we're not going to "tank" ... we're going to compete each and every game. those young kids are gonna shoot for the moon from week 1-16... now in reality they won't win many games.. but they are aiming to get better and better each day. Call it learning on the job. I think it's going to be fun to watch since there's no expectations.
Nice post bro, exactly how I'm feeling. So excited to watch this core grow together. Man if Lee can take a big leap up this year with his playmaking in the middle of the field like he did at OSU this could be special. And when I was reading this I thought you were gonna leave my guy Sheldon out of the mix.. I want him to prove his haters and critics wrong so bad.. people literally hate this kid and want such a high talent off the roster because they don't like a situation he gotten into, oh well get over it! he's a great player and has a very high motor.. judge him by how he responds to the adversity not by what he's done! I want him to show up and show out! get that money $heldon.
If it's true that both of Jamal Adams out of LSU & Marcus Maye out of Florida are both natural born leaders with true leadership qualities both on the playing field as well as within the locker room? And if after losing true longtime veteran leaders in D'Brickishaw Ferguson, David Harris & Nick Mangold over the past two offseasons? Well then our 1st two 2017 draft selections out of the SEC in Jamal Adams & Marcus Maye just got better over night.
well it's not really the same coaching staff is it? He made wholesale changes last year so your sarcasm while justified is frankly wrong. Agree I am dubious at best about TB but as far as Rogers goes to me he is a WPO* and should have been fired.
He swapped out 3 coaches Gailey (who I hated from the start), LB and QB coach. It really doesn't matter if Bowles is in charge. Bowles is not a disciplinarian, lacks leadership abilities, not good at preparing his team weekly and horrible at making in game adjustments. Other than that he's probably a nice guy. The Jets have had nothing but defensive coaches for the last 17 years. I hope the next one is offensive minded.
The age of the projected starters is probably the brightest thing we can think of for the season lol. Let's hope they all develop well though.
You think? Good thing he had good players around him when he was leading things as a player in the secondary for a SB Championship.
Agreed just need an outside rusher with some speed to get around the edge and the defense I think has enough potential to be great. I'm really looking forward to Maye playing though. I know next to nothing about the guy. Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
Guys, don't sleep on Mauldin, 3rd year guy with good coaching, I have liked him a lot and I believe he will be a much better player this year. How Jets linebacker has remade himself after a lost season By Brian Costello There are days when Lorenzo Mauldin misses lasagna. As part of his offseason diet, the Jets’ outside linebacker swore off pasta along with other carbs to try to lose weight. The diet worked. He is down to 260 pounds from 268, and he hopes to lose a few more pounds before the season. Now, he has to see if the lost pounds equals more production. “Last year I gained some weight and it kind of went downhill for me there because I slowed up and I wasn’t the guy that I was supposed to be, the guy that I was in my rookie year,” Mauldin said. “I feel faster now. I’ve got my speed back. I feel 100 percent with my ankle. I feel like I’m flying around out there.” Mauldin, a 2015 third-round pick, gained weight entering last season in hopes it would help him against the run. Instead, it slowed him down rushing the passer. He dropped from four sacks as a rookie to 2.5 last year, a disappointing sophomore season. “Last year I felt like I didn’t put too much in for the team,” he said. “I felt like I was neglecting the fact of how good I could be. That’s probably the worst season I’ve ever had, with 2 ½ sacks. It just felt bad to me.” That led to him cutting down on carbs and fried foods this offseason. Mauldin, who likes to cook, said he has focused on cooking leaner meats and introducing more grains in his diet. “His endurance is better from that standpoint,” Jets coach Todd Bowles said of Mauldin’s weight loss. “We have to get in pads to see whether he still has his strength.” MauldinBill Kostroun The Jets were hoping for big things from Mauldin in 2016. They expected him to make the leap from designated pass rusher to every-down linebacker. Instead, he began the year again as a pass rusher only and saw his playing time dip. He played just six snaps in Week 4 against the Seahawks. “The coaches, of course, trusted in some of the other players to play that position,” Mauldin said. “I thought it was a good idea because I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to do. I felt sluggish. That was my big thing this year, to come in and let the coaches know I’m ready to play. I’m going back to my rookie year, but better.” After some injuries to other players, Mauldin’s playing time increased in the middle of last season and he showed some strides. Then, he sprained his ankle in a Week 12 loss to the Patriots. He re-injured the ankle in practice later in the season and did not play again in 2016. “All I can do now is look back at that and use it as motivation,” Mauldin said. “I want to stay healthy, stay fit and out of the trainer’s room.” During OTA practices, Mauldin has looked good. He has shown his old burst off the edge and looked more sure of himself dropping into coverage, something that will be big for him to remain on the field. “I believe I’m a complete linebacker now,” Mauldin said. “My biggest thing was learning coverages, understanding what offenses are doing. That’s my biggest thing in OTAs, understanding what I need to do when it comes to coverage, knowing what the offense is going to do before they do it, getting keys on different reads and understanding what’s going on. I feel like I’m complete now. The rush came easy because that’s what I do. Now, dropping into coverage and helping the secondary, I feel like that’s a big step for me.” Mauldin said he is excited to work with new outside linebackers coach Kevin Greene, a Hall of Famer. He said Greene already has shown him some different pass-rushing techniques. In year three, Mauldin looks leaner. The question now is: Does that mean he’s better?
We'll see. There's a lot of unknowns now and this direction they've taken has helped pique my interest. It's make or break for Mauldin, it's his third year and it's time to see what he is. I'm a little skeptical, but hopefully it comes together for him after some growth and adjustment. It would be nice to see.
That was a great read. It takes a man to put his pride aside and admit his mistakes and speak about his flaws. You have to be honest with yourself before you can self improve. I like this kid Mauldin a lot. Great kid. Good head on his shoulder. Working harder than ever this offseason. These are the types of things i like to read about younger players heading into their 3rd season.
I thought the increased weight hurt him last year, hopefully he stays mean and strong and with Greene mentoring him, he will take it to next level.
