I'm not sure if a 34 year old strong safety is the way to go but if it stops us selecting Barron at #16 then count me in. /ericsmithfilla
I would want to know why he left - he was a co-captain and one of their leaders on defense going into last season. edit: the more I see about Upshaw and the other Des/OLBs (and seeing how hard it has been to try to find a safety in FA and the number of them getting franchised) the more I wouldnt be upset if we took Barron in the 1st round.
Landry and Bell would be a nightmare in coverage. I'm all for signing Bell if it means cutting Eric Smith, for whom I am out of patience, but Landry/Bell is not a solution in the secondary.
Barron is a much more sure thing than any of the pass rush prospects. That's not to say that Ingram,Coples,Upshaw, or Branch won't be good or possibly better players than Barron..just that they are nowhere near as sure things. Additionally, as you were alluding to, there is a major drought league wide in terms of safety talent. Landing a player like Barron not only solves a l;ong time problem for the team, but also puts them in a great position moving forward, as there just aren't alot of safety prospects of Barron's caliber floating around on a year to year basis
It would be best to keep Smith on the team. We just don't want him to be a starter. The guy is very good on special teams and good situationally on defense.
We may need to get a stop gap for this season ... I could see us drafting someone later but not with the first 2 picks Safety class next draft could be pretty good.
If Barron is such a sure-fire prospect, then I wouldn't be against drafting him in the 1st - but 2nd round pick will have to go to OLB then.
In a perfect world Jets go OLB in the first round and finally resolve the hole at pass rusher. However, all of the first round OLB prospects have major question marks surrounding them. Conversely, the safety position has been an issue for the Jets for basically as long as pass rusher has been. Barron isn't an Eric Berry caliber prospect..but he does project as an above average player at the position as both a run defender & coverage guy. When you factor is guys like Curry & Branch who could be there in round 2, and present the same question marks as the guys in round 1, as well as the fact that there is a major drop off in talent at safety after Barron..I'm not sayin..I'm just sayin.
Absence of a pass rushing LB has been an issue since before the Jets had Rhodes. So I would not agree with that part of your statement.
The one year they had someone stable next to Rhodes he couldn't adjust on the fly within rex's scheme and couldn't make a tackle. jets always seem to have 1 dependable guy at safety but rarely have consistency at both spots. Last time the Jets had a pass rush (J Abe,Ellis,Ferg,D rob era) the jets Safeties were Erik Coleman & a very young Rhodes. Just sayin. I would agree that pass rusher is a higher priority asnd has been the bigger need for the team..but let's not pretend that safety has been perfect either.
You raise good points. Barron could slip into round 2, but not to #47. The rd 1 selection should be the BPA on their board regardless of position. Also Tremaine Johnson may be available @ 47 if he grades that high on their board. Johnson, according to some scouts, can play FS.
I don't mind bringing in Bell for the sake of having a veteran. It would be a big mistake for us to take Barron over Upshaw imo, and I like Markelle Martin in the draft.
At 2 mill this year maybe, but not at his 3 mill number next season. Smith's time on this team is quickly winding down. He is a good special teams guy but is just not the athlete we need at safety on a team that so often leaves them in one on one situations.
Of course I mostly agree with you. It's more a question of emphasis. I just think the Jets do not get a good pass rush from anyone on the team, and if they did nothing else would improve the D as much. As for safety, I concede the need this off season to deal with, in part, Leonhard's problems in avoiding major injury. Prior to his going down in 2010, though, I was more a fan of his than a critic. And unlike many here I don't lay sole blame for problems covering pass catching TE's on Smith. But as of now, whatever anyone thought of Pool, and i was not a fan, he's gone, Leonhard is too fragile, and that math means the Jets need two safeties, and have only gotten Landry to fill one spot. I still think the other could, in theory, be filled in the draft, though. I read the posts here about possible choices and how they might affect draft strategy, so I know there's an issue on availability of a suitable pass rushing LB. Availability aside, however, I am convinced the biggest hole on D right now is a pass rushing linebacker.
Agreed',,,,,,,,,,we need another safety in the worst way.sadly Eric smith ain't going anywhere because we have zero depth as it is. I don,t know enough about Barron ,I see mixed reviews ,guys love and hate him. I do not want a 34 year old Bell,,,,,we need at least 1guy back there that can cover someone,,,,and that goes for our LB s as well,,,none can cover.it sure would help if we had some type of pass rush,,,,these guys behind the line would look better if we could get any type of rush without sending 8 freaking guys all the time
