NYJets Team Report

EcKo151 · Feb 20, 2006

It's another off-season for the Jets, and that can mean only thing.

The never-ending John Abraham saga takes center stage once again.

Abraham made it clear late last season, his first injury-free campaign since 2002, that he wanted the Jets, or someone, to sign him to a long-term contract. It is becoming increasingly apparent that the Jets will not be that team.

According to published reports, Abraham has told friends he wants out of New York, no matter what the cap-strapped Jets decide to do. Conventional wisdom seems to be that the Jets intend to again slap the franchise tag on Abraham, which would guarantee him a salary of $8.3 million for the 2006 season.

They then would try to trade him, but cap considerations could make this scenario difficult. The Jets would need to clear $34 million off their 2006 cap by March 3, the day free-agency begins, to be able to absorb the salary-cap hit that would come from franchising and then trading Abraham.

In any event, it appears that Abraham will be someplace in 2006, and that leaves a gaping hole. While 2002 No. 1 pick Bryan Thomas, who has filled in for both Abraham and Shaun Ellis during his Jets' career and has finally shown flashes of being the player the Jets expected, he has actually been much more effective against the run.

He has yet to develop into the type of pass-rusher the Jets hoped he would, and worse yet, Ellis' production usually has declined when Abraham wasn't on the opposite end to take pressure off him.

Apparently, the Jets' new regime feels much the same as the old regime, that the 6-4, 265-pound Abraham isn't worth the money he is seeking. Although he did hold up physically in 2005 despite missing training camp because of his monetary dispute with the Jets, management doesn't believe he will continue to stay healthy, especially at that playing weight.

If Abraham goes, that will be yet another need the Jets will have to fill, and they don't appear to have the money to plug all the holes in the 2006 roster.

CB Ty Law will leave after his one-year stint with the Jets, according to published reports. Law, who led the NFL with 10 interceptions but also led the Jets with 10 penalties, most of them from illegal contact, is unwilling to restructure his contract, which calls for an $11 million roster bonus in March.

Possible landing spots for the soon-to-be-former Jet include his old team, New England, as well as Kansas City. Law apparently enjoyed new Kansas City coach Herm Edwards' laissez-faire approach, which allowed the veteran Law often to skip meetings.

--Whatever happens with QB Chad Pennington, the Jets have made it clear that they intend to bring in a veteran to compete with him, particularly if Pennington isn't ready for the start of training camp. At first, it seemed as if the clubhouse leader for this position was Tennessee's Billy Volek, but that was when Mike Heimerdinger was calling the offensive shots.

With Heimerdinger gone to Denver and former San Diego quarterbacks coach Brian Schottenheimer now the coordinator, Drew Brees' name has popped up. Brees will be a free agent, but could again be franchised by the Chargers. Also, much like Pennington, he is recovering from shoulder surgery after being injured in San Diego's 2005 season finale.

--RB Curtis Martin, who will be 33 by opening day in 2006, will count $8.1 million on the salary cap. The Jets also are trying to get him to restructure and indications are that he will be willing to do so. He also is willing to take a backup role, if need be. Martin suffered a knee injury in the second game of the 2005 season and finally had surgery in December. He missed the last four games.

--News of the hirings for new coach Eric Mangini's coaching staff continues to trickle out. It was learned recently that Jim Herrmann, defensive coordinator for the University of Michigan, will coach the linebackers under new coordinator Bob Sutton, formerly the Jets' linebackers coach. Also hired was former Jet Bryan Cox, a Pro Bowl linebacker who will be an assistant with the defensive linemen and will help out D-line coach Denny Marcin, who was retained.

The outspoken Cox didn't speak to the print media for much of 2000, his third and final season as a Jet, so perhaps he won't mind the restrictions on assistant coaches' media availability. Mangini, a disciple of Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells, is likely to not make his assistants available to reporters, just as Belichick and Parcells do not.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "We will look under every rock, everyday." - New GM Mike Tannenbaum talking about how he will search for players. The former cap guru must dispel the perception that he is strictly a money guy, and that he can find talent.

The Jets have a lot of needs, perhaps too many to successfully fill in merely one off-season, particularly with their tight budget. However, if they truly want to emulate the Patriots, it's important that they start bringing in players who are the right fit, rather than players who merely look good on paper, but not on the field.

The defense will be revamped to fit new coach Eric Mangini's preference for a 3-4 over the Tampa Bay-style defense that former coach Herm Edwards preferred, and again, the Jets must find players who fit this new system.

TEAM NEEDS/OFFSEASON STRATEGY

The Jets had an incredible number of injuries last season, and while some of that can be attributed to bad luck, some of it occurred because the team grew old in a hurry, and because coach Herm Edwards let the strength and conditioning program go downhill.

So the team must get younger (and less expensive) in a hurry as the Jets enter a rebuilding mode with a shaky cap situation. Upgrades are needed on most of the position units, including secondary, offensive line, wide receivers and running backs, and also the defensive line, with the assumption that free agent John Abraham won't be back.

Here are the most pressing of many needs:

1. Offensive line: The Jets were bruised and battered at these spots last season. It's likely that both G-C Pete Kendall and T Jason Fabini will be released, and it appears the Jets still are quite interested in Virginia OT D'Brickashaw Ferguson with the fourth overall pick.

2. Defensive line: If Abraham departs, the Jets need to start grooming a replacement as a pass rusher to take some of the pressure off Shaun Ellis, who always functioned best when his close friend Abraham was in the lineup, and not injured.

3. Quarterback: The Jets need a veteran who could be a capable backup or push Chad Pennington for the starting job, should the latter not be healthy enough to start the season. In hindsight, it's easy to see he probably wasn't ready physically to start the 2005 season.

FRANCHISE PLAYER: None.

TRANSITION PLAYER: None.

UNRESTRICTED FREE AGENTS: DE John Abraham; TE Chris Baker; OG Jonathan Goodwin; OT Scott Gragg; QB Kliff Kingsbury; DT James Reed; QB Vinny Testaverde; LB Kenyatta Wright.

PLAYERS RE-SIGNED

--P Ben Graham: Potential ERFA; terms unknown.

MEDICAL WATCH

TE Chris Baker: Rehabbing broken fibula. Should be ready for training camp.

LB Eric Barton: Rehabbing torn biceps. Should be ready for training camp.

WR Wayne Chrebet: Retiring because of concussions.

DE Shaun Ellis: Missed last three games because of hamstring. Should be ready for spring mini-camp.

T Jason Fabini: Rehabbing torn pectoral muscle. Could be a cap casualty.

QB Jay Fiedler: Rehabbing from shoulder surgery. Will be a cap casualty.

RB Curtis Martin: Rehabbing from knee surgery. Should be ready for training camp and will likely have reduced role in 2006.

C Kevin Mawae: Rehabbing from biceps injury. Should be ready for training camp, although he also could be released.

QB Chad Pennington: Rehabbing from shoulder surgery. It's uncertain when he will resume throwing.

DT Dewayne Robertson: Missed last three games because of quad injury. Should be ready for spring mini-camp.
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http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/teamReport?categoryId=67057&type=StrategyAndPersonnel

JETSFAN5180 · Feb 20, 2006

Wow im glad im a Jets fan.

O'Brien7 · Feb 20, 2006

:jets:
:beer:

PennyandtheJets · Feb 20, 2006

QB Jay Fiedler: Rehabbing from shoulder surgery. Will be a cap casualty.

Ok RobA are you willing to admit now that Jay Fielder will not be with the team nor was he ever going to be with the team?

RobA · Feb 20, 2006

PennyandtheJets said:

QB Jay Fiedler: Rehabbing from shoulder surgery. Will be a cap casualty.

Ok RobA are you willing to admit now that Jay Fielder will not be with the team nor was he ever going to be with the team?
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How does the press know he will be a cap casualty? He's not going anywhere.

The Sowell Train · Feb 20, 2006

I thought Jay could have been a nice back up for us last year. Such a shame he got hurt! We coulda been decent with him!

PennyandtheJets · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

How does the press know he will be a cap casualty? He's not going anywhere.
Click to expand...

Sometimes I wish I could punch your posts because they frustrate me.

AMJets · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

How does the press know he will be a cap casualty? He's not going anywhere.
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The press knows he will be a cap casualty because the one's who are saying it are level-headed, have no love for Jay Fiedler like some people, and realize he has a high cap charge for a backup QB (with a big roster bonus coming if he's on the roster).

PennyandtheJets · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

How does the press know he will be a cap casualty? He's not going anywhere.
Click to expand...

The press knows he will be a cap casualty because EVERYONE, but you knows his ass is getting cut...hello? 26 million over the cap..

RobA · Feb 20, 2006

10Pennington10 said:

The press knows he will be a cap casualty because the one's who are saying it are level-headed, have no love for Jay Fiedler like some people, and realize he has a high cap charge for a backup QB (with a big roster bonus coming if he's on the roster).
Click to expand...

If it's so "big" then restructure, I'm sure he wants to stay.
But he only counts for 1.12 million of the cap, so he is very affordable.

BIG COUNTRY · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

If it's so "big" then restructure, I'm sure he wants to stay.
But he only counts for 1.12 million of the cap, so he is very affordable.
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Not that easy, hes gonna do what Pennington did if that comes up, anyways hes getting cut.

AMJets · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

If it's so "big" then restructure, I'm sure he wants to stay.
But he only counts for 1.12 million of the cap, so he is very affordable.
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He counts $5.1M against the cap. There is no reason to restructure, he just needs to be cut.

RobA · Feb 20, 2006

10Pennington10 said:

He counts $5.1M against the cap. There is no reason to restructure, he just needs to be cut.
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Cut him, then we are down to one QB, bollinger, feel safe with bollinger?? We would have to sign 2 qb's, it's cheaper to just keep fiedler in the long run, then sign 2 brand new qb's when we only have to sign one right now.

AMJets · Feb 20, 2006

RobA said:

Cut him, then we are down to one QB, bollinger, feel safe with bollinger?? We would have to sign 2 qb's, it's cheaper to just keep fiedler in the long run, then sign 2 brand new qb's when we only have to sign one right now.
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We can find a QB as good as Fiedler for less than $5.1M, absolutely. And with Fiedler's arm troubles, I'd rather play Bollinger. No one knows what Fiedler will be like upon return.

Smizzy · Feb 20, 2006

PennyandtheJets said:

Sometimes I wish I could punch your posts because they frustrate me.
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LOL!! Funny stuff

KSJets · Feb 20, 2006

PennyandtheJets said:

Sometimes I wish I could punch your posts because they frustrate me.
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Just print them out. You can do so much more with them that way. Punch them. Burn them. Make little origami footballs. Whatever you want :grin:

EcKo151 · Feb 20, 2006

Fiedler makes Rob Johnson look like Joe Montana.

Get him out of my sight...Take the ears too.

NYJets Team Report

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