Needs in my view are 1) Pass rusher; 2) Safety; 3) DL; 4) ILB depth; 5) RB. Hopefully we can pick up some help in the secondary in free agency and take the BPA in the draft. Even a receiver or corner.
I think this is the order. 1) a replacement for Ellis 1a) a pass rushing linebacker 3) a safety 3a) a nose tackle
Pass rusher, the best defenses in the leauge have at least one elite/great pass rusher on their team. Every team with a good defense, I could go through most of them. The Jets have nothing the top pass rusher is Calvin Pace and he is LUCKY if he gets 8 sacks
With Lowery stepping up I think right now OLB and DE are higher priorities... but if the BPA is a S I say go for it.
While I think Lowery is doing "OK" at safety, I don't believe he's the long term solution. Lowery is a ballhawk, he has proven that in College and somewhat in the Pros. Lowery isn't strong in coverage and isn't a sure tackler, a safety must be solid tackler, ask Rhodes. I will never commit to saying we have to draft a certain position in Round 1, especially drafting in the Playoff area of the draft. The Jets could be drafting anywhere from 21- 32 and not knowing who is going to be OTC makes it impossible to determine our choice. I would say the Jet's priorities should be: 3-4 DE, Rush OLB, S, WR (depending on Holmes & Edwards status), RT & Back up RB. DE & OLB should be the first considerations in RD 1 if a good one is available. Let's not forget the Jets may be active again in FA....let's see whats in store with the CBA.
Wouldn't that one give you the worst answer possible?:lol::lol::lol: DE and OLB should definitely be our top two concerns, DE at one just because of the top talent in this draft is HUGE.
Was a single blitz effective today? It looked extremely slow, at one point it looked like the DL gave up. OLB over DE IMO, but the pool of talent for DE is bigger...
It's pretty clear the biggest issue with this team are the pass rushing ends in the 4-3 and the outside linebackers in the 3-4. These guys all look like they are running in mud when they try to rush the QB. Ellis, Pace, Thomas and Jason Taylor. It's possible that 3 out of the 4 won't be on the team next year. The defensive lineman in Rex's system are not expected to pressure the qb and Devito/Pouha are both great players in the jets system. Rex has done a great job with these guys and I'm confident he can find other guys to fill in on his defensive line. I would consider drafting an inside type of defensive lineman high in the draft but only if it's someone like Ngata. The Jets have to start drafting the 3-4 OLB Tweener player. Right now that's the biggest problem with the team.
When the Jets blitzed they were able to pressure Cutler. When they rushed 4, they might as well have let Cutler eat dinner in the pocket.
Pretty much since John Abraham was traded away, our top concern has been just that for the better part of 4 years now.
Ellis has dropped off and and Thomas has been useless save for 3-5 plays/month. Couple that with opposing OCs are running away from Pace and you're not looking at a lot of opportunities for him. The problem is, even if we can bring in a replacement for both Ellis and Thomas in this draft we have to start worrying about Pace real soon. We might have to go OLB/OLB early in the next two drafts. Or tag and trade one of the bigger departing FAs.
I think it helped that they were in a new scheme, and you can draw up pass rush plays all you want but their is nothing better than having a guy who can just get a sack with a one on one match up IMO 3-4 DE is kind of an overrated position as far as aiding the pass rush. Most 3-4 teams dont have defensive ends as their top pass rusher. I mean you dont want totally immobile guys but they need to occupy offensive players so your pass rushers can make plays
Safety is a big time need but not more than end and linebacker. Ranking them exactly really doesnb matter a ton because the picks will be based on value available anyway. I will say that getting an upgrade at safety will be a lot easier than finding a food passrusher.
