Before I begin, this isn't intended to be an Offseason thread that combs through the roster/depth chart; rather one position specifically -- RB. 1) Jones is on the wrong side of 30, and thus, there's a good chance he won't return next year. 2) Leon's injury has cast a cloud of uncertainty on his physical return; not to mention, the contract issues. Will he lose speed like the way we saw Justin Miller lose speed? We just don't know what Leon is going to be anymore. 3) Shonn Greene looks like a beast with the ability to be a featured back in two (or three) RB system. The only thing that concerns me is his ability to stay healthy: he was injured throughout the beginning of the season, and then came on strong in the final several weeks of the season including the Playoffs. And then we saw him injure his ribs last night. Again, more uncertainty, because how can we be sure he's cut out to play a full season every year? Does this unexpectedly make RB a new priority in the Offseason? Or do we risk waiting it out to see what happens with Leon? If Jones is released and Leon doesn't return to his previous form, that puts all of the pressure on Greene, and more importantly, it will put a lot more pressure on Sanchez.
This has been discussed at length. Jones has had his exit date stamped on his forehead for months unless he agrees to seriously rework his contract. We'll take our chances and roll with Leon and Shonn Greene next season and will likely pick up a 3rd, larger back to supplement those 2. Don't forget we're also in the beginning stages of a conversion process for Danny Woodhead. He'll likely get snaps both at WR and at his native RB position. I don't expect him to have a huge impact at RB, but he's an emergency fill in if we end up with an injury hole and have to address the issue during the season. With our OL, we should be able to plug in a 3rd back easily.
The Jets have an excellent OL. A running back taken in the 5th round could see success behind that line, as could a proven but low-profile FA pickup. A late round pick as well as an FA pickup could do wonders for spelling Greene. Besides all that, Jones should be kept around for short yardage situations and to be a closer (because damn! that man has some guns!) at game's end. I don't think it's a huge need, but it does need to be addressed, ESPECIALLY if Leon does end up walking.
if we do end up picking up a 3rd HB in the offseason...we may only need him for goal-line carries and some spot duty. I'm confident S.Green/LW can share the load otherwise...provided Leon comes back 100%
Jones isnt what everyone believes him to be. His line deserves 90% of the credit for his 1000+ yard seasons. He runs east to west more than north to south.
We have Chauncey Washington on the practice squad. Maybe he's the 3rd back if TJ is gone. We have a bunch of holes, but none are totally glaring. We need another WR, a young lineman to groom on offense, a defensive end upgrade, an edge rusher, and another corner.
100% agree with this. The Giants OL made a near superstar out of Derrick Ward, a 7th round pick who was not good enough to make the Jets' active roster. I'm not a big fan of spending big $$ or high draft picks on RB's. Their shelf life is too short.
I think based on Greene's injury history we will need to add another back. I'm not too worried about Leon as it was a broken leg , he didn't tear anything. I'm more worried about his contract status. Jones looked done yesterday. I've never understood the dislike for the guy as he has quietly been very very good for this team and was robbed of a PB spot this year. The OL is very good and they did a good job of protecting Sanchez yesterday and Greene was just getting warmed up before he got hurt. I still think Jones will be gone next year and we will need to add another guy. I like Woodhead but I don't know if he can make it as our 3rd runningback.
If we can keep the OL together, Slauson should be stepping into the LG spot by 2011. We need someone who can take over for Woody, but that's not as glaring. I definitely agree on the last three, especially the DE upgrade.
Leon will be an RFA. They will most likely offer him a 1 year deal with incentives and then sign for long term pending the year he has.
The team said it all by their actions when Greene went out yesterday......the wind definately went out of their sails. The blocking wasn't as dominant. There was most definately a change in the aggressiveness of the offense.
I think next year Jones will be out of the mix. It will be Greene, Leon, and Woodhead. Greene's style makes him injury prone so maybe we can get a cheap backup in case he goes down. I think the bigger hole is FB, T-Rich can't play forever. Our second and third CBs as well as our O-line depth needs to be the top concern in my opinion.
I guess what I forgot to ask but was discussed in these posts anyway, was how high on the priority list is RB? It seems the consensus is that the OL allows us to find a RB later in the draft or someone cheap in FA. So, yeah, I was wondering if Jones' departure and the injuries to Leon and Greene, would make the FO want pursue a RB earlier in the Draft.
Assuming Slauson is the future at guard for the Jets. It's not as glaring, and I won't have a huge problem if we ignore it, but I like the philosophy of building from the trenches out, and I want our OL to be a perennial power. RB is a need, but I go 1a. DE 1b. CB 3. #3 WR 4. pass rushing OLB 5. #2 TE 6. RB This could change when I get more time to think about it. Runningback is a position you can fill later in the draft. If we have a top OL, we can plug a lot of people back there, and they'd have success. Come playoff time, we'd be in trouble if other backs got hurt, but Greene and Washington is a great combo. I don't want to spend back to back high picks on #3 RBs, especially since Jones is still under contract in a potential uncapped year. We also have an RB on the practice squad in Chauncey Washington, as well as Danny Woodhead Our defense is the unit Rex wants to lean in. Let Rex make it dominant, and then worry about the offense.
3. Injury to Shonn is no concern. It was a rib injury and that can happen to anyone if u give them a good shot in the ribs. And yes, we'd need another back if TJ doesn't return.
I don't think we are going to lead the league in rushing attempts next year, I expect us to be top 10 in rushing, but not 1st again. This would mean that our guys won't get as banged up, but I still definitely think we should get a 3rd string guy just in case Greene and Leon go down, not necessarily in the Draft but in FA.
But Greene was injured earlier in the year, then didn't get many carries until the latter part of the schedule, then became featured in last night's game-- and then he got injured again. Maybe he just had some bad luck with his injuries throughout the season, but it's not very reassuring. Having said that, he may stay healthy for the rest of his career, who knows? But if you want to try to project his future durability based on this year, it's a bit suspect.
I'd put OT on the list of needs. In fact, I consider it a pretty significant need. You're right that we need to build in the trenches. I'd say DE, CB, and OT are the needs I'd like to see addressed before all others.
These are the primary needs, and a good slot receiver for offense, these are pretty much what we need right now, to get to that next level, not elite but on the way up there.
