Offseason Direction

Truth is Vick just can't stay on the field. He's going to get hurt just by the way he plays.

Out of the guys Rex has drafted, only Wilkerson and Sheldon have developed and they are both d-lineman. Demario Davis sure, but he's an inside linebacker and Coples is a work in progress. We need a pass rushing linebacker and Worilds can provide that.

Sherman isn't as good as Revis simply because he doesn't play both cornerback positions and follow the top receiver around the field. How can you call yourself the best corner in the game when you aren't able to play both sides of the field? Like Rex said, Sherman has not reached Revis-level when he was in his prime.

I think Sherman's film study is on par with Revis, in terms of understanding routes and downs and what the tendencies of their opponent are

 

I was being sarcastic. I thought Vicks presence in Philly this year was very positive for the team, and especially for Foles. Also, my opinion is that he used his experience with being involved in a terrible situation in the past to help the team deal with the Riley Cooper incident last year. So overall despite of his horrific past I believe he can have a positive influence on a locker room.

I would like for us to sign Vick. I think he's better than Geno and that he'd win the starting job. If not, or if he were injured, I think he'd be a positive influence on Geno.

 

Naw da Vicc sux becuz e killdz sum dogz!1!1!!

 

Pt. 1

Coples was a DT, not a DE. I'm not sure the facts will bear you out that he can play from the hash marks to the sideline better than the average DE. It's a good thing they don't require him to cover much, because he has almost no experience at it and at 290 pounds is not gonna be able to keep up with or do a good job covering RBs and TEs.

Davis has sideline-to-sideline speed, but coverage is actually his weakest area and something he has struggle with.

I disagree that it is quite so clear. I think the LB corps is every bit as weak and suspect as the Secondary. As a whole, until this past season, the unit has failed to be able to generate any kind of consistent pressure on opposing QBs and has absolutely sucked at covering RBs and TEs over the middle. That more than anything else has killed our pass D. Harris will need to be replaced sooner rather than later, and probably after this season as he will be a FA again next year and is not worth re-signing at this point in his career. The Jets need to draft a young ILB so they can groom him this year to replace Harris. There's no telling if Pace will be able to come close to duplicating his 10 sacks from last season or if Barnes will be fully recovered from his injury and be able to stay healthy this season. I think Coples is totally miscast as an OLB. The Jets need true pass rushes at the OLB spots. They've tried to get by for far too long at the most important position in a 3-4 alignment with older, slower players (except Barnes). Pace is a role player, NOT a starter, yet he started last season much, if not most of the time. Barnes is a role player. Harris is slow and misses a lot of plays. Davis is the only LB with any real speed. If the Jets had a real, quality OLB instead of Pace he might have had 15-20 sacks last year and the Jets might have been in the playoffs. If Cro is re-signed and his play resumes his level of 2012 as you expect, and Milliner improves as you expect, then the LB corps is actually more of a need than the Secondary. Yes, the FS position is a black hole, but Antonio Allen has shown some potential at SS. We definitely need to add a FS either via FA or the draft, and preferably a young one with potential that Reed can help mentor into a quality player.

If Milliner doesn't show a lot of improvement, and/or if Cro isn't re-signed or doesn't revert to his 2102 level of play, then I agree that the secondary is probably a stronger need. I actually think that chances are that Cro won't return to that level of play, and I certainly don't see him play at that level for 3-4 more years. IMO that's ridiculous. There's no reason to think he would.

Of course, the whole idea about whether Rex had control or a large amount of input into personnel has been heatedly debated on this site for months, as well as on every other Jets board. We just don't know how much input he has had. If he had had his way, would the Jets have drafted or signed a topnotch Safety? We really don't know. The only think we know for certain is that the Jets haven't. I've also seen it projected on other Jets boards that Rex just doesn't value the OLB position. The same things apply there. We can't read his mind and he hasn't said enough on the subject. Thanks to Tanny's idiotic handling of the cap, the team was stuck with both Pace's and Thomas' contracts. With what they were being paid, it was highly unlikely that either would sit on the bench while a rookie started. It would have been smart planning to draft a couple of young OLBs to groom so they would have been ready when Thomas' and Pace's contracts expired, but of course, we know that didn't happen. Some have speculated that after Gholston, they were gunshy and afraid of having another bust. Perhaps so. Another thing that has hampered the Jets is that the topnotch OLB pass-rushing prospects always go early in the draft, and with the exception of the year Gholston was drafted (typical Jets' luck) the Jets really haven't been in position to draft an elite prospect with out trading up. Perhaps Rex doesn't value them. Again, we don't know for certain, but we should get a better idea within the next year or two. Surely Idzik isn't so dumb as to not want a couple of fast, very good, if not elite OLBs in the middle of his D. If he hasn't drafted at least one within the next two drafts, then I'd say that Rex is definitely the problem and he must go.

 

Pt. 2

I like the fact that Vick knows MM's system, but not Vick, either as a player or as a person. I'd rather have Schaub, Moore, Josh McCown or Campbell, who could be cut in Cleveland.

I agree that Winters should improve with a year's experience and an off season in the weight room, but there are no guarantees. I also agree that Campbell and Aboushi are likely to be depth, not starters in 2014, so unless the Jets sign a FA OG like Jon Asamoah, RG will not be a strength for the team, even if Colon is re-signed. With Winters' play still very much a question mark, I think the Jets absolute MUST sign the very best FA OG they can. They need someone experienced who can step right in, start and play at a high level. No rookie is likely to do that. Jon Asamoah is my choice, but I'd be happy even with Geoff Schwartz or Zane Beadles.

I agree that the WR unit should be fun to watch (provide the Jets make the necessary upgrades) and think it also should be the easiest unit to upgrade signficantly. I really like the idea of signing Maclin, since he is a #1 WR and knows MM's system. I'm not high on Decker. His hands are questionable as is his route running, and I think he's more a product of Manning and Denver's system. I also agree with others that he's likely to want big money, and I don't think he's worth it. I would want no part of him. I'd like Maclin and Emmanuel Sanders or the Packers James Jones. I think at least one high draft pick (and possibly two) should be used on the WR position. If two high picks aren't used, then I think one high and a mid-round pick should be used to upgrade the WR position.

I agree that Cumberland should be brought back. That still leaves the team with only he, Sudfeld, Pantale and Reuland, hardly an effective unit. I think Reuland should be released and possibly Sudfelt too. If the team thinks that either Pantale or Sudfeld have any real potential, fine, then keep one of them; otherwise, I hope they keep only Cumberland and come out of the FA and draft with two new TEs. I'd be happy with Brandon Pettigrew, but would rather have Dennis Pitta as a FA signee. Failing either of those two, then I'd like to see the Jets add one of Ebron, Amaro, S-J and Fiedorowicz and then one of Lynch, Gilmore, Jensen, Duncan and Pederson.

At RB, I have mixed feelings on Goodson. He has a lot of physical talent, but if his legal issues aren't behind him and if he was/is guilty of those charges, then I think he should released. I think the Jets do need to add either a RB like Black Mamba or a WR like Dri Archer to be a 3rd down type back and PR and KR.

I almost forgot. I wouldn't care much for that draft at all. I don't think Amaro is the TE we need. We need a two-way TE not a big pass catcher who can't/won't block. While I agree we need a pass rushing OLB, Murphy's not the guy I want. I think we can do a heck of a lot better at WR than Martavis Bryant. If he is the top WR the Jets come out of the draft with, I think the draft would pretty much be a fail unless almost every other turned out to be a very good starter. The Jets need a top quality WR, and there's no reason that they shouldn't come out of this draft with one.

 

I guess we might as well draft another QB early in this draft, since Vick is going to beat out Geno for the starting job, and obviously Vick is just a stop gap until we get a real quarterback. So forget about Trent Murphy in the 2nd

 

I like your thought process in this area and totally agree with your concerns about the LB situation. I have been struggling with the notion of how much value does Cople provide to the Jets with our current defensive schemes. As you pointed out Coples is a defensive tackle and in my view a damned good one with upper potential, but in his current role we are wasting his talents. We are pretty nicely stacked in the front end of our defense, and having him play sort of a hybrid situational OLB is not capitalizing on his strengths.

I often wonder if it would be reasonable to consider a trade for Coples, getting enought value to focus on a more traditional, smaller and faster OLB and/or ILB than can eventually replace Harris. We need plenty of help in that area and I don't think Coples is the answer.

 

I agree with most of what was posted--just two personnel thoughts:

1. Lose RB Goodson--If I were Idzik I'd waive him ASAP to send a message. The guy is a pot smoking head case anyway, and it is sure money that Holmes will be cut, so why not get rid of the other distraction in Goodson? Plus. it would show that Idzik is not afraid to admit a mistake.

2. Trade Q. Coples at the draft--The guy is NOT an OLB, he can't cover anyone, and having him in there just telegraphs to the offense where the pass rusher is. Coples could fetch a decent draft pick, and the guy has played d-line his whole life (except under Rex). If the jets keep him, I think he should be in the DE/DT rotation where he belongs. Won't happen though, Rex would never admit that his 290 lb. linebacker was a bad idea.

 

Thanks. I definitely think it would be a very good idea for the Jets to see what, if any, trade value Coples has. Since he has been playing out of position, had some injury issues and his play has been somewhat spotty or inconsistent, I don't know what the Jets could reasonably expect to get in return. I'd hope at least an early 3rd round pick, and it probably should be at least an early 2nd round pick. I believe he was a 1st round pick and has proven that he has a lot of talent, works reasonably hard and can make plays. The Jets quite possibly could trade him to a team in serious need of DL talent and perhaps excellent depth at the OLB or ILB positions for a player and a pick, or for a quality draft pick that the Jets could use to draft an OLB, ILB or perhaps even a FS and use one of their other high picks to get that OLB. I'm sure that Rex would be against the idea, but I hope that Idzik will do his due diligence and explore every possible area for improving this team. IMO, at this point in time the Jets should only have three "untouchable" players that they aren't willing to entertain trade offers for: Wilkerson, Richardson and Big Snacks (even though they have Ellis behind him). I include Big Snacks, not because he is an elite talent like Wilkerson or Richardson, even though he is very, VERY good, but rather because NT is such a critical position in the 3-4 alignment, excellent ones are hard to find, and they are usually very expensive. Big Snacks is young, very good and CHEAP.

 

Nice post. No doubt Rex will be against it, unless he can make a trade with the likes of the Steelers, Seahawks or 49rs or similar team where there might have a surplus of LB or safety talent.

 

Kerley says hi.

 

Thank you!!!

 

Was only talking about the d-line and linebackers that Rex has developed. No doubt Kerley was a gem for us as we were 8-4 last season when he was on the field. But I'm not going to credit Rex for Kerley. Rex doesn't have a clue on offense though he knew enough to know that Hill wasn't a good pick for us

 

anybody hear about demarcus ware possibly being a cap cut? i wouldnt mind bringing him in. i think he still has alot left in the tank. at least another good 3-4 years. He only didnt have a good season last year because of the transition from 3-4 to 4-3 in Dallas. And he had some nagging injuries that should be gone. With our young double-team demanding d-line i think he can have a another 15-20 sack season. especially with some rex blitz packages. He could also school coples. what ya think?

 

I would rather see us go after some WRs in the draft than give Decker and Maclin top dollar. If there are some
other areas the draft could help, TE and Safety would be tops. Use free agency to give us some depth at
positions where we are just average.

 

Might just be speculation, but La Canfora thinks the steelers will let Worilds go.

http://www.steelersgab.com/2014/02/...ll-keep-woodley-wont-be-able-to-sign-worilds/

Of course he could be wrong but I hope we can sign him if he's available. He'd get a lot of sacks

 

The direction you want to go with free agents is the young to early-prime (25 to 27 year old) second-tier guys who have produced at the NFL level but been held back by entrenched players on their own rosters. You want these guys because they have significant upside if they're given a real opportunity to compete and because they're cheaper than the established stars.

You're not going to get them on a long-term deal, because you're not blowing them away with a strong offer. However that gives them major incentives to keep increasing their playing level and you can always renegotiate with them if they look like they've taken the next step.

In this free agent class you're talking about people like Riley Cooper (if the Jets think the clubhouse will be cool), Danario Alexander, Dexter McCluster and Damian Williams. All young guys. All have some upside potential. McCluster has a chance to be a very special player as a play maker. He could easily be a 3rd down scatback and a slot receiver and he's a very good punt returner. He's the kind of guy that would be a huge addition at maybe not such a huge number coming in the door.

 

Anyone else see that the steelers have decided to keep woodley and let worilds go. I am excited about this as I think we could target worilds. He is pretty young and had eight sacks last year and could slide in opposite coples. I think signing him would be smarter than orakpo because he will cost less and orakpo will be 28 by next season as worilds will only be 26. IMO that is the only move we need to make to the starters in the front seven and we will be set. Other than that I think we should draft a safety and cut cro, signing one of the younger corners on the FA market. With coples having a full year of the position under his belt, and antwan barnes coming back from injury, with the signing of worilds and the moves i said earlier to the secondary I think our defense could be top5 if everyone progresses as they should and we dont get riddled with injuries