Yeah, I used to like Henderson as a player. So far we haven't heard anything from him the entire offseason so I think he's probably done with football. Even Joe Mays has been mentioned more. Lattimore's been making a lot of plays meanwhile, I think he's that top backup ILB who will also excel on special teams.
Owusu and Graham are basically the same type of WR so I see them competing with each other for the backup spot to Devin Smith and ST. Both can return kicks so it will probably come down to the gunner role for the 5th WR. The rest are competing for the 6th WR spot. Posey has been injured so he's gonna be a long shot to have enough plays to stick around. Then you have Shaq and Enunwa competing with 1 or both headed to the PS. There have been some very complimentary articles about Shaq coming out of camp so I wouldn't be surprised to see him kept as the 6th WR.
How can you NOT keep 4 ILBs? You need a backup at each position. I'll be surprised if Kellen Davis doesn't make it. In fact, I'd rather see him make it than Cumberland. Particularly with the OL being suspect, the Jets need someone who excels at blocking at the TE position. Davis may not be much of a threat as a receiver, but he could get you some first downs and TDs, whereas Richardson or Howsare or whichever OL they use as a TE more than likely aren't.
Backup ILB are worthless. You can always pick up a Joe Mays or Henderson on the FA market whenever you feel like it. Doesn't work that way with young quality corners who at the very least add depth and can come in and start for you if they have to. 3 ILB are more than enough. It's not like Harris or Demario have to leave the field at any point, they play every down. And they are reliable. One good backup is more than enough. If need be you just switch to a 4-3 and line up with one MLB and an additional DT/DE instead. Just my take on this, we'll see what Bowles does.
To begin with, I totally disagree with this post and your assertion that backup ILBs are worthless. That's just silly. Injuries can and do happen, particularly to older players like Harris. No, you can't always pick up a Mays or Henderson on the FA market. That's just not factual. Even if you could, with the way that Bowles mixes and matches players based on situation and opponent, the complexity of his D, and the number of nickel and dime sets that he will run, Harris may not be on the field very much in some games, and it would take any FA probably a couple of weeks before he'd be able to contribute in any significant fashion, if then. You don't know how Bowles sees what Henderson can do, and how he might plan to use him, either. Your assertion that they could just switch to a 4-3 D is absurd. They do not have the outside LBers to play a 4-3 D full time. They'd get killed over the middle.
There should be some correlation between the number of starting spots and the roster spots dedicated to a position. With four starters at LB (two inside, four outside) I have to think we keep at least 7 or 8 LBs, especially considering that two of our best OLBs (Pace and Babin) are not getting any younger. With 4, maybe 6 DBs (including cornerbacks and safeties) on the field at one time I do not see how we could keep any more than 9 or 10 players on the roster for the secondary.
Not gonna go back and forth with you on this...but...there is virtually no difference between a 3-4 and 4-3. It basically just means Coples puts his hand on the ground or stands up. That's it. You act like it's two completely different defenses. And Harris WILL be playing every down. I'm not sure what makes you think he doesn't. He's the leader, he's smart, he gets paid to be an every down guy. Who takes over for him? Demario? Please. Like I said, it's not happening. There's no way Bowles cuts Marcus Williams to have a 4th ILB, that's ridiculous...
We'll just have to agree to disagree. You won't go back and forth because you know you're wrong. Dude you couldn't be more wrong about the difference between a 3-4 and 4-3 as far as the LBs are concerned. You're just not being honest or are flat out ignorant. All of our LBs are too heavy and too slow for a 4-3 alignment. Do you know anything about Bowles' D and how often he uses nickle and dime packages? Do you know how slow Harris is and what a liability he is in coverage? I expect him to basically be a 2 down LB. I didn't say anything about cutting Marcus Williams. You're the one who is being ridiculous. We'll see who's right.
Like I said, not going back and forth with you on this. I've seen the Cards play, that's why I brought it up. Harris was, is and will be an every down LB for us, like it or not. I'm not a fan of his man to man cover skills but if you think there's somebody who will take his job on 3rd down, good luck. He's the leader of the defense, he calls the plays, he just signed a fat contract, he played every snap last year except for 6, he is a very effective blitzer. Harris is a good, instinctive cover linebacker. He understands zone concepts, he understands route running, he can read the QB, he has a feel for it. I always get a kick out of people calling him out because he's not able to cover a Gronkowski, because he can't run with a Reggie Bush. It's hilarious. I mean, who does that? Who can cover Gronk? What player - period? Let alone linebacker. Let alone middle linebacker. How many 6'8 middle linebackers with a 40 in vertical and a basketball background are there? If you put your MLB on a TE it's ALWAYS a mismatch. Stop acting like other players in the league do it and Harris is the one who struggles with it. This is why we brought in guys like Skrine and Gilchrist, they will take care of those speedy backs out of the backfield, cover TE's. And it will be either Pace and/or Demario that gets yanked off the field in those situations, not Harris. But again, we'll see what happens.
Listen, I'm not trying to get in a hassle with you. I think it's probably a moot point now, but I've been trying to make a point. I've seen the Cards play as well. My point is that I think it's ridiculous for you, me or any fan to definitively state that we know what Bowles is going to do on D. We may think we know based on what we've seen and read, but we don't know for certain what he will do. The only things we know for certain, or a least based on what he did with the Cards, is that Bowles adapts to the skills of the players he has on hand, changes his lineups according to the opponent and situation, he blitzes more than anyone else, and he uses a lot of nickel and dime packages. Would you agree with that? Would you also agree that Antonio Allen is faster and has better coverage skills than Harris? Would you also agree that Allen can play like a LB? In fact he did play LB in college, so he has that skill set. You asked who I thought Bowles would have replaced Harris with in the lineup. I think it would have been Allen in the nickel and dime packages, at least a significant portion of them. Allen is like a LB but he's faster and can cover. With Allen out, unless the Jets can pick up another safety, it might totally shift the way Bowles was planning to use the nickel and dime packages. If he only keeps 4 safeties on the roster, and with one of them being a PS-level talent, he may not use as many nickel and dime packages and have 3 safeties on the field at one time. With Allen's injury, I think you're now probably correct that Harris will stay on the field more on 3rd down, but I do think that quite possibly would have changed if Allen had stayed healthy. With the injury, we may never know what Bowles would have done, because Harris may not even be the starter or be with the team in 2016, or Allen may opt to retire or not be the same player when he gets back. Peace?
Jets are going to run more 4 man fronts especially when Richardson comes back. It's a far more versatile front compared to the 3-4, so it will be easier for the Jets to create mismatches at the LOS.
Not going to do the whole 53 right now but heres my wr's keeping 6 marshall decker owusu smith graham i think the silence on kerley is a real indicator. They are looking for explosive big play potential. Kerley is solid but not explosive.
It's crazy I know, but when I look at how Bowles schemes his trail blitzes, it's impossible for me not to look at the list of FA safeties and stare at the words "Jim" and "Leonhard". Crazy. Sent from my 709v82_jbla118 using Tapatalk
you only named 5, no? fwiw, i have the same 5, along with Kerley, who i believe is a lock. I'd want at least 3 experienced WR's on the roster, and Kerley can contribute inside, outside, and on specials.
Is Graham worth it? He's pretty much useless as a receiver and he really didn't do anything as a returner last season. I rather have Powell/Kerley return kicks and punts and save an additional roster spot. For a guy who can contribute on defense/offense. Graham would be stuck behind Smith/Owusu as a deep threat IMO.
Harris will be playing every down. even if they play 3 Safety sets, Harris will still be out there. Bowles isn't going 0 LB, while tasking 200lb DB's to take on OG's when they run it. the only thing Allen's injury might possibly effect is the number of 3 S sets. but i believe Skrine may actually play more of a S role in those sets, with another CB taking the field. will have to wait and see on that, as i doubt Bowles shows us all the subpackage looks in preseason. can't wait..
Graham showed some real promising flashes against Pitt last year. 67yd TD reception, showing that deep threat ability: http://www.newyorkjets.com/videos/v...67-Yd-TD/4c27c52c-e358-445b-a8ed-34f2f0a374e9 and then the forced fumble/recovery as a punt team Gunner: http://www.newyorkjets.com/videos/v...t-Return/6da76258-8e91-42da-b604-1e432a3567c3 was crazy how Jarrett and Graham essentially took that game over. so stretching the field and gunner are his strengths. essentially what we brought Smith in for. But Smith is a rookie, he's inexperienced in terms of position flexibility and route running, and he's hurt. Graham knows the offense already, and he has a few years of NFL seasoning now. he's ready. ultimately i think Owusu sees more action than either, and may even earn the KR spot. Graham can compete for the KR spot too, as he was excellent at it in college. if he returns kicks for us, he essentially takes Hakim's role from last year as Gunner and KR, but with a bigger role on offense. not sure if he can return Punts........but i'll be watching for that, as we are desperate for a PR. if another fringe player really steps up on Punts, that could be the difference and knock Graham's spot.
Oops. fat fingers on a phone. i don't hate kerley and thought he would be a lock earier in the summer. But first smith was getting the first team reps and now owusu. Seems like they are going out of there way to keep him out of the starting lineup. I am not sure kerley has the stature gailey is looking for in a slot wr. something to watch and since i said 6 my 6th would be enunwa. Big body and i thought i read hes been having a decent camp