Jason's annual assessment of the Jets. Pretty good read... http://overthecap.com/thoughts-on-the-state-of-the-jets/ Part 1 -
Very well written, I really think its a foregone conclusion that either Mo or Sheldon is gone after this season and hopefully we can get a high draft pick for them. I wouldn't be surprised with either choice. Sheldon is the better player, but Mo is more consistent and has better character. I personally think Sheldon has way more trade value because of his contract. On the offense, he is totally right that we haven't done much our line since 2006. We have used some late picks and cheap free agents to hold the fort, but on many of those pickups we have whiffed. We were so much better of a team when we had a good offensive line. I remember back in 2009, we had a real ground and pound offense. Thomas Jones and Shonn Greene were nothing more than decent running backs and we would go out there and run it down teams' throats whether they were ready for it or not. Sanchez actually looked good when he had all day to throw. Unless our elusive franchise QB comes around to fix everything, we need to build from the inside out.
That was a good read, thanks for posting. So, we overused Ivory, I hadn't heard/thought of that before but it does have the ring of truth to it. So, our secondary needs safety help. I hope Bowles gets the memo. I do agree we need OL help but I don't think we're in critical melt down mode quite yet. Based on Jason's analysis it's now become clear why Mac wouldn't be disappointed if we miss the playoffs this year. I think we found a good one in Mac.
Can't say I agree with much of it. Coples wasn't cut "to send a message", he just flat out didn't play. And Revis had a tremendous shutdown type season up until the Texans game when Bowles/Rodgers left him hanging by expecting him to cover Hopkins 1 on 1 downfield. Patrick Peterson doesn't lose a step when somebody makes a play like that on him, neither does Sherman. But Revis is suddenly about to become the next Asomugha? Crazy.
I can't say I agree with much of it either. We've had excellent safety play this year when Pryor's not hurt. These guys should just stick to numbers. The only part worth reading is the draft statistics. Outside of that, his football analysis is pretty weak. Our offensive line sucks, especially when 2/5 guys playing are backups and Fitzpatrick isn't a top flight quarterback and needs a lot of help to win games? Groundbreaking.
Wow, I think this article is almost entirely false. Revis was doing amazing until one game, last week. He was shutting down everyone in old Revis fashion. And how could anyone think otherwise? Before the Houston game, he was being praised and labeled to be having one of the best years for a defensive player. And Coples wasn't cut to send a message lol he was cut because he wasn't playing at all and when he would play, he wouldn't do shit. He was an absolute waste of a roster spot and a waste of a first round pick And "the talent isn't there"? Lmao Wtf?! We have one of the most talented rosters in the NFL. Brandon Marshall, Eric Decker, Chris Ivory, Darrelle Revis, Buster Skrine, Muhammad Wilkerson, Sheldon Richardson, Leonard Williams, Nick Mangold, Damon Harrison. Wtf is this guy talking about?! The problem is we still don't have an excellent QB so we are gonna struggle more than we should
Sorry, to say that the Jets OL is bad this year is just wrong. It hasn't been opening big holes in the running game of late, but it ranks second best in sacks given up. I would say its been good to average, but there are other factors. Mangold missed games for the first time in his career. Colon injured and IR'd. The RB's cant stay healthy and the playcalling has been bad. Teams stack the box because they know the Jets will run. I dont think the Jets have mismanaged the OL over the years. Mangold and Brick were 1st round picks that have been the cornerstones they were projected to be. Brick has been solid his entire career, never missed a game. But because he gets pushed back by the best DE in the game and gives up a sack people say he is done. Should the Jets have signed their replacements as 1st/2nd round picks in any year before this one? Or spent a 1st/2nd on a Guard? No, the Jets made the right decision focusing on other positions in the last 4-5 years because Mangold and Brick were solid and played at a high level for a decade. Yes they whiffed on Vlad. Winters hasn't been good, the verdict isnt in yet on guys like Dozier, Qvale, Jarvis Harrison and Wesley Johnson. But Carpenter and Breno were decent additions. Its just that the time has come that everyone knew would come. The cornerstones are reaching the end of their careers and its time to find the Center and Left Tackle replacements.
The problem is the offensive line is crumbling and Brick is finally starting to look his age and Mangold keeps getting hurt/hasn't been elite this year while still good. They're both hitting the down cycle of their career and there's nothing but garbage behind them with no presumable starting waiting in the wings. It looked good early in the year, but one injury is making it look pretty bad. It's moreso the fact that the line is going to be trash in a year or so if they don't address it big time.
Summary: Keep throwing QBs at the wall until one sticks. In the mean time, keep building your Defense and O-Line. And find a workhorse RB to shoulder the load. We've neglected our O-line for the last 10 drafts. It takes 2-3 years of solid drafting to build a solid O-line (see: NY Jets D-line). Most would expect Maccagnan to focus here for the next several drafts, while filling out the 2-3rd team roster (including Special Teams) all the while doing whatever he can to find the next Tom Brady. I like it. Assuming Macc does indeed find us a QB in the next few seasons, it would be fantastic to have a great defense, top o-line, and a top running game already in place. Last, the OP's point about Bowles gaining a personality is spot on.
Disagree about the personality issue. I don't care if he has a personality or not provided he can coach. Belichicken has ZERO personality but can coach (and has time Brady) and I would give your left nut to get him back to the Jets. The problem with Bowles is not his personality, the problem is that he is simply in over his head as a HC and my opinion is we need to cut bait right now and move on before we waste another 2-3 years and have to start over yet again.
Agreed, but the point is the Over the Cap article says the Jets mismanaged the OL. I think thats wrong. Within the last 10 years do you spend a 1st or second round pick on a Center or LT? No, you don't because you have two of the best in the game and they were proven to be dependable. And its debatable whether you should ever draft a guard with a high draft pick. So with the exception of the Vlad whiff, I don't think the problem has been one of drafting talent. We dont know what the Jets have in the younger guys. But agreed the time has come where they need to plan for a youth movement on the line. Its either the young guys on the roster need to step up or they need to draft heavy OL in the first and second rounds in 2016/2017.
We had the NFL's top O-Line / Running game in '09 / '10 and it took us to b2b afccg. Brick and Mangold continue to be our 'anchors', but we have failed with mid-late round picks to shore up the rest of the line. Recent FA's haven't been great either. With a good lineman lasting 10-15 yrs in the NFL, it worth using high draft picks on these positions. Left tackle, center, and right tackle are the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th most valuable positions in the NFL. You might swap out a right tackle for a JJ Watt, unless it's your team facing JJ Watt, and then the right tackle becomes THEE most important position on the team. At least for that game. Build from the trenches out. No sense wasting a franchise QB's frist 5 yrs in the NFL while you search for a left tackle than can keep him on is feet.
If a good lineman lasts 10-15 years, your saying we have maybe 5 more years with Brick and Mangold? Not sure thats the case. Agreed that RT should have been handled better. But all teams have holes on their OL's. The Jets will be drafting OL high in the next few years, for sure.
It's the Mangini affect all over again. His paranoid manner kept reporters (and fans) on guard. Bowles is not paranoid, but he shows zero emotion on the field or behind the mic. He needs to rally the players, but he also needs to rally the fans. That's what pressers are for. If the press turns on him, he's a dead man walking.
Yeah and that was 5 years ago. People are married to those teams like they've been the status quo the past 5 years. The problem isn't necessarily spending high draft picks on the line, it's that we take offensive lineman in the mid rounds every year and whiff. Quality teams need to pull a starting guard out of the 4th-6th every once in a while. Instead we went and poured a bunch of money to solidify the spot. It was needed, because we can't hit at all on mid-round offensive lineman. Look at the Panthers, Bengals, Patriots, Packers, Cardinals, etc. With the exception of the Cardinals and Iupati/Patriots w/ Vollmer very few of the top tier teams in the NFL pour a lot of money or a ton of high draft picks into their line. It seems as though we have to which takes away from the playmakers (news flash Marshall/Decker are shortly leaving their prime) that you're supposed to get early in the draft. We have 0 young offensive talent outside of our second round tightend that's on IR. The offensive side of the ball looks very grim for the immediate future, specifically 2017 when we have what 4 offensive players under contract and they're all over 29 except for Carpenter.
Both could easily be in the league 5 more years, but neither will be dominant. They could easily take vet min and play back up roles at a good level on most teams.
