Thats why I left Ford out. I just don't see the value in a KR anymore. They're basically trying to get rid of kick returns altogether with this new rule. Any good kicker can pretty much take the return out of play for the most part. Kyle Wilson has returned kicks before. Not saying he's a great option but you really just need someone who can physically do it at this point. I'm sure you can work with a guy like Saunders as well and try to groom him for that role. I believe pre accident Rex already said that he'll be returning punts this year.
I like this list, especially relative to last year. Good mix of speed, height with at least 4 of the 6 having "sure hands" so Geno can trust his guys. Hopefully Saunders can become a threat out of the slot by midseason.
I want Hill to be "the" guy so bad but it just doesn't show. At this point I'm not even sure where he fits into the WCO. I think unless he shows something extraordinary on the 22nd he's out.
I am not so sure about that. I think Hill needs to show something these next two games, especially Friday, for him to stay on the roster. That's my list too.
If the Jets want to show some balls they would cut Hill's ass if he blows the next 2 weeks. I just think they are petrified of him catching on somewhere else and figuring it out.
If Geno shows he's the man this season - I wouldn't be surprised if we looked to better the WR group w/ an established QB. At least that's what I am thinking ...
Crazy to think that two years of frustration over the polarizing Hill could come down to a Friday night preseason game. What do you think we could get for Hill if we tried to trade him to the Browns or the Panthers or even the Lions? A 4th (he's got to be worth more to a WR starved team (besides us) than Ivory was to us when we got him from the Saints). If we cut him, good chance he could end up with the Pats.
Maybe Daryl Richardson can return kicks, then there is no reason to keep Ford. My list: Decker Kerley Hill Nelson Saunders Salas
For those who are ready to cut Hill already, and I do have my doubts, can you tell me what have I missed from Nelson in preseason to make him a favorite because IMO there hasn't been much performance out of him at all. To call Hill performance pathetic is a huge reach since he was only targeted about twice per game with some decent catches and the drop was by no means an easy one. I think after Decker and Kerley is a draw for the rest with Salas a strong contender. Pretty slim pickings. Hill and Nelson are in about the same boat. Saunders has not shown anything yet, perhaps for legitimate reasons. I doubt most seriously that they will keep Ford over Hill.
1. Decker 2. Kerley 3. Nelson All 3 are pretty much locks to make the roster 4. Saunders if he gets healthy. Tomorrow we should hear about what his medical problem is. 5. Hill Not a lock but likely. It would not be surprising to see the Jets try to trade him. The 6th spot is between Salas/Gates and Ford. Salas and Gates both have had great camps. Gates can return kicks, be a deep threat and fill the role of the quick receiver that can break open the game. But Salas is an Idzik guy and seems to be ahead at this point. Gates brings more to the table but he has had many chances and never has been able to keep healthy. Ford can fill Gates role as kick return and deep threat but can offer as much as a receiver. I think he is a bit behind Gates. I think its between Salas and Gates for the last spot unless something happens to Saunders or Hill.
Decker Kerley Nelson Saunders Salas Hill Enunwa to PS. As for Hill..his hopes of becoming a impact #1 or 2 appear numbered. But this corps still needs that vertical threat to keep defenses honest. It comes down to him Vs. Ford. Ford obviously can return kicks but as someone else mentioned that is no longer a major priority. Hill has shown more from a receiving perspective than Ford has. Hill is also a good blocker in the running game.
That's a fair assessment of why Hill could stay. Then again "tall" and "blocks for run game" are really weak reasons to keep a wide receiver. I don't think he's gonna keep any team honest, they see the same things we do, only they are better at evaluating it.
I was thinking about this the other day and I really think teams return too few kicks at this point. You should have a good KR and you should run everything you can out of the endzone. If you miss you lose maybe 3 to 7 yards on the play but if you hit you score a TD or get out past the 35. That has to be a good tradeoff. The key is you have to have a guy who can take it to the house and he has to reliably hold onto the ball. Taking the ball at the 20 50%+ of the time is a losing move in my opinion. It's giving away an incremental advantage to the opponent without any chance of a huge return. I think KR's are more important now than they were before the changes. You have to have a good one or else you'll be starting from the 20 after most of your opponent's scores. Another way to look at this is that barring a fumble or a disastrous return you can only lose so much by running it out. If you start on the 13 you start on the 13. There's no difference between how you approach a 1st and 10 on your own 13 and a 1st and 10 on your own 20. A bad throw will be a pick 6 either way. If you can't make the 10, well that's a different story but no KR should wind up getting held to the 10 or less if he cleanly fields the kick. On the other hand the opportunities presented by running it out are huge.
This is all true but the percentage of kicks not returned naturally brings down the percentage of kicks returned in general. Not to mention with the way the NFL is coached most teams frown on guys taking it out 8 yards back in the end zone every time. In theory what you're saying makes sense but there aren't any coaches that teach you to take out no matter what.
44% of all kicks are not returned at this point. Some percentage of those are not returned because the KR takes a knee 7 to 9 yards deep in the endzone. I think those knees should be eliminated except when the KR has uncertainty about catching the ball reliably. KR's should be gamblers at this point, betting a 7 yard loss against taking it to the house.
Yeah I agree but if they're not coached in that matter it's silly to keep a seperate receiver just because he can return kicks. Especially considering it's 2/3 between Salas, Saunders and Ford assuming Hill is locked in. I just don't think Salas should be cut in favor of a guy solely because of his ability to kick return.
