Who's out there and available who's going to do a better job than Edwards already has, the only head coach in Jets' history to lead them to three playoff appearances in four years? But believe it when we tell you this: Edwards and his staff, none of whom is without faults, are what is keeping this franchise from being the laughingstock it was before Parcells took over. ? Mark Canizzaro It was all about the injuries, in 2005. That was the reason perpetuated in the media to explain the Jets collapse. They finished the season a pathetic 4-12. The injuries were just a case of pure bad luck; it had nothing to do with the Club Ed training camp, or the Club Ed (non-existent) conditioning program. Some of the injuries were arguably the result of malingering, yet nobody would dare suggest that Herm?s players would actually quit on him. The cruel irony when all was said and done was that Herm quit on them. He orchestrated his way out of town. His media propagandists fabricated a fairy tale that Woody Johnson fired him, and that Herm wanted to stay. In the end, they said that Woody was making a big mistake. Many fans believed it. Herm?s stooges wasted no time in their attempts to derail and compromise new head coach, Eric Mangini, and new general manager, Mike Tannenbaum. The running theme was that this would be just another episode of folly in the long line of historical blunders of Jets lore. Owner Woody Johnson was being na?ve, the media experts declared. They told us that Woody was fixated with the Patriots organization, and was making an erroneous assumption that by sheer osmosis, Eric Mangini could somehow infuse New England?s successful program into the Jets organization. They called Eric a wannabe, and proceeded to lambaste every decision that the new regime made. After the Jets released Kevin Mawae, they said it didn?t make sense, that his cap hit was only ?1.6 million?. When they traded John Abraham for a draft pick, they said it was a mistake, that Abraham was irreplaceable. Instead of shoring up holes, the Jets new management team was making new ones. When Eric hired Brian Schottenheimer to be his OC, the experts questioned why an inexperienced HC would want to give such an important job to an inexperienced OC. Finally, the experts all declared that the Jets would finish no better than 6-10, but most likely would acquire the dubious honor of having the overall first pick in the NFL draft. Chad Pennington is throwing well, but it's hard to count on him anymore. Curtis Martin appears to be finished. There isn't a playmaker in the program. They won't be good this year, nor next. - Adrian Wojnarowski After 5 seasons of mismanagement and ineptitude by Herman Edwards and Terry Bradway, how could anyone not think this team was going to be a train wreck? I had faith in Mangini, but I certainly didn?t think he was a miracle worker. In any event, I didn?t think his staff and his players could win ten games and earn a five seed in the playoffs. It was a foregone conclusion that Chad Pennington was done, that there was no way he was going to come back from his second shoulder surgery in as many years. Now, certain beat writers are revising their initial prognostications, and also adding in comments that Herm would have had the same success with this team, this year. I take umbrage with that, because they have diminished the accomplishments of Eric Mangini. It seems that they don?t want to admit that they were wrong about Herm and his questionable abilities. Mark Canizzaro recently said ? I do truly believe that with a healthy Pennington, which Mangini has fortunately had, Edwards would have a very similar record with this group?. The major problem with that belief is it doesn?t take into account the role Herm played in Chad?s chronic injury problem. You can?t dismiss out of hand that Chiefs QB Trent Green?s concussion this season was not the result of being made vulnerable by Herm?s roster decisions. Herm has a case history of neglecting the offensive line. (Recall last years fiasco of replacing the injured Kevin Mawae at center; his backup wasn?t prepared to step in). You cannot make the case that Herm would have assembled an offensive line that would have protected Chad Pennington, this season. There is no evidence or case history that would validate that assumption. In fact, all the evidence is to the contrary. Another issue I have with Canizzaro, is that the Jets success this year, and the contributions from the QB position, resulted from Brian Schottenheimer allowing Chad to utilize his strengths to overcompensate his weaknesses; running a no-huddle offense and changing calls at the line. Herm?s offense would have never allowed that to happen. The idea that last year?s 4-12 record resulted entirely from injuries, and that we should dismiss from possibility that Herm?s mismanagement and incompetence may have created the environment that inevitably was responsible for injuries occurring (and reoccurring) in the first place (specifically Chad?s), is an intellectually dishonest idea. If your players aren?t trained properly, and they are placed on a field to compete with a team that is trained properly, your players are going to get hurt. If all the experts could agree back in August, that this Jets team would be no better than 6-10, yet backpedal when they finish 10-6 with the qualifier that ?Herm could have done the same thing?, predicating all of this on the health (or lack thereof) of Chad Pennington, requires the mental gymnastics of the Amazing Kreskin. If Herm didn?t quit, He?d still be here. Woody did not fire him. And if Herm stayed, Bradway would still be the GM (no new GM would have retained Edwards as the HC). The damaged franchise that Mangini and Tannenbaum took over this year, and brilliantly repaired and made competitive again, would have been exponentially worse in 2007. In fact, I think one more year of Herm and the damage would have been irreparable. Herm and Bradway would have wet themselves, if confronted with the gut check decisions that faced Mangini and Tannenbaum, this prior off-season. Mangini?s team could not effectively run the ball, nor stop the run. Yet, they adapted, improvised, and found innovative ways to win games. When Herm was HC, all we got were excuses: Herm doesn?t have the right players; they need time to gel; he needs a new DC. We didn?t hear that for Mangini. What we got instead was ?his 34 defense is a mistake, he needs to change it?. That was after 4 games. Herm?s cover who defense was a mistake for 3 years. Herm eventually replaced his failed systems, to mixed results, and then he quit altogether. Eric Mangini has stuck to his guns in spite of the critics (Herm?s propagandists), and in less than one year, has turned this team into a winner, laying the foundation for a bright future.
