Its early in the season but so far the guy has played great. He's had a lot of big pass breakups so far. Its amazing how when a guy is used the right way how much better he performs. I use to think this guy was useless. He's turning into a solid backup.
the thing i like is that he seems to be playing like a real asshole, battling for balls and being hardnosed.
Yeah Coleman did OK considering he was our nickel the whole game and I cant recall him getting burnt once. So good job stepping up Drew, but come back soon Lito and Strick
Eric Smith in the 3-3-5 is one of the big reasons the Jets are where they are at this point. He plays linebacker in that formation and gives the Jets excellent flexibility to either blitz or have solid coverage on the checkdowns and on the TE.
Isn't it funny how almost every single person on the team seems to have gotten better? There's only a handful of players who are playing worse than last year. Rex Ryan has really done wonders for this team.
i think he has instilled anger and emotion and confidence in guys, they obviously needed it after the mangini way for the last few years. i at this point appreciate what mangini did as it has allowed them to understand the way he wanted them to be and now rex comes in and gives them the things they need.
If the Jets are a "system" team like a lot of the critics love to throw out there - then I'm damn glad it's this system we're running because it's awesome. Every player on the team, the defense in particular, is being allowed to excel under this "system". Firing the "genius" and hiring Rex might end up becoming the single best football decision the Jets have made since winning Super Bowl III.
I think the 'system' is basically allowing true flexibility for the players to adjust to what looks they're seeing from the offense and being able to dictate how they're going to attack that look. This is the type of defense I wanted to see when Mangini came in, not some rigid 3-4 base with befuddling adjustments. Sometimes I get worried because they are still talking and moving around in their adjustments right up to the point that the ball is snapped, and I think Collins caught them with their pants around their ankles a number of times in the second and third quarters, but they are learning and becoming more comfortable with it and it showed in the fourth quarter. While I was breaking down plays on Gholston for the Ravens game, I also had the chance to watch a lot of Eric Smith. He's a very flexible player and I think Ryan saw that early on and probably chose Eric Smith over Elam because of it. I have no doubt that Mangini probably had Smith in play as far as the Sanchez trade scenario, and probably settled for Elam. I like the way it turned out. Eric Smith is our Doug Plank. He's part of what makes the nickel and dime packages able to flex from attack to cover on his side, it's a beautiful thing to see. I'm glad we held onto him and I hope he keeps learning with the rest of the D.
Coleman almost had a pick if it wasn't for Justin Gage acting as a DB and stripping the ball out of Coleman's hands. He has been tight in coverage when he's been used in the past two weeks. Smith is starting to look like a beast. I love how Ryan is playing him up, closer to the line almost like a linebacker. I'm beginning to wonder if Doug Plank just steals his jersey and pads before a game.
Medusa (Thats the nickname me and my friends gave him after that hit on boldin last year) This guy has great potential and Rex is really letting him show it.
