I thought of that, too, but despite that, unless one thinks Hunter should be the starter at RT on opening day, we are realistically talking FA, given the other important needs some of which will be easier fits for rookies. Having said that, I would not be surprised to see the Jets go to the draft for a RT. Ftr I thought Hunter had a pretty bad season, but he was not as bad as many here describe. Still, counting on him to be the starting RT next year is too risky, even foolish.
I agree that counting on Hunter to the be starting RT would be foolish. I don't understand what the Jets are doing with him, but it's hard to imagine they plan on paying him $2.5 million to be a backup in 2011 to a FA given there cap situation. Drafting a starter makes the most sense to me because the cost wouldn't be prohibitive. It also scares the shit out of me because I don't want them to be going into round 1 and 2 thinking they have to come out with a starting RT. That would likely lead to Tanny again trading away valuable picks.
With regard to WR, I agree that Burress should be gone, but disagree that a drafted WR would have to be taken high in order to start. Last year, both Denarius Moore and Kerley were drafted in the 5th round and both played very, very well. There were other WRs taken in the 2nd and 3rd rounds that were solid contributors and/or starters. There quite a number of excellent WR prospects in the draft this year. The WR position is arguably the strongest and best position in this draft, even better than OLB possibly, and may be one of the best WR classes ever. I think there are a number of WRs that could come in and possibly start or at least make strong contributions immediately. In rounds 2-3 I like Juron Criner. In round 3 I also like Brian Quick, although he may be a little more of a project. Depending upon who's rating them Joe Adams, Gerrell Robinson, Marvin McNutt, Jarius Wright and Ryan Broyles are also excellent prospects and could go anywhere from round 3-5. Broyles could be the steal of the draft. They definitely need a WR with speed to stretch the field, but they may have that player already on the roster in Erron Riley. He's 6'4 and very fast and has great hands. He just hasn't had an opportunity to develop. I hope the Jets will give him every opportunity to succeed and be patient with him. They must see something in him since they kept him on the active roster until the end of the season after signing him off of Denver's PS. I'd be happy if Braylon was brought back, but I'd be shocked if that happened, and if the Jets sign a FA S and RT, I don't know that they'll have enough money to bring back Braylon too. With regard to needs, this is where we have a major disagreement. Between OLB, S, RT and WR, I think WR is by far the lesser need. The Jets are returning to a ground and pound offense. They do need a WR to stretch the field, but Holmes has the speed to do that, Keller does and Kerley may as well. If Erron Riley develops, they'll definitely have that. They can hedge their bets by taking a faster WR somewhere in rounds 2-4 and be fine. With OLB being the most important position on the D and I would posit the second most important on the team, their almost total lack of pass rush over the last several years (without blitzing), the lack of playmakers in the front 7, and with both starters slated to be gone in 2013, they need TWO, and OLB is easily the biggest need. Safety is second by virtue of the fact that Leonard is coming off of a major injury, and is slower and can't really cover well anyway, the Jets have no one who can cover at S, and opposing TEs have been killing the Jets for the last several years, and they need TWO. RT is a close third. I haven't given up on Ducasse as a bust yet. He needed the off season last year probably more than any other player in the NFL. Switching to an easier, man blocking scheme should help him immensely. I think it's also obvious that for whatever reason, Callahan wasn't getting through to him/helping him that much. I think that Sparano and the new OL coach should be able to help Ducasse. I still think the Jets should sign a FA RT, either someone younger like Collins or Geoff Schwartz, someone a little older like Pat McQuistan, Khalif Barnes or Ryan OCallaghan, or an older vet like Ryan Diem or Kareem McKenzie (if it was his knee that caused him to have a bad year this past year rather than a deterioration of his skills) as a stop gap. I think that if the Jets do nothing else in this offseason, they have to come away with two new OLBs, two new Safeties, another RT, a WR. and a new punter. They should have 10-11 picks in the draft and between that and FA, those goals should be reachable. Anything else is gravy. It will indeed be interesting to see what happens with Pouha. He is great vs the run, but practically useless vs the pass. I think a lot will depend upon how the Jets view Ellis. With a full offseason, will he be ready to start or at least see a lot more action? If so, then Pouha may not be as important, but he is also well liked and a leader, so from that perspective alone, it might be wisest to bring him back. With Soliai availalbe in FA, might Sparano want to sign him? I do think the Jets would be smart to give Sparano some players he wants, but as they've already used more of their draft picks on offense than defense during Rex's tenure and with glaring needs at OLB and S, and to a lesser extent ILB, I think that trend has to start reversing itself this year in a big way. I could see one middle round pick being used on a WR and one on a RT, and maybe a lower round pick on an OG, but everything else should go to D imo.
If they think they can come out of this draft without taking an OLB, then they're a bunch of fools imo, should be fired, and none of them ever work in the NFL again. The Jets' starting OLBs have been slow, basically good only vs the run and have pretty much sucked at their major responsiblility, rushing the passer. Thank God one of those players (Thomas) is probably already gone, or at least should be. Pace should be gone by next season. With the exception of last year and the year they took Gholston, the Jets have had almost no opportunities over the last 10 years to draft an elite pass rusher. They simply cannot afford to pass up the opportunity again this year needing two new starters next year. I don't care if Luck and Blackmon fall to the Jets top two picks, they cannot afford to take them (well, I guess they'd HAVE to take Luck). They absolutely HAVE to take two OLBs in this draft. It's not an option. They don't need to bring in a clone of Thomas and Pace. That would just be stupid imo, but watch Rex and Tanny do it. If they bring in Johnson and don't draft an OLB, then I'm done with this franchise until Woody cleans house in the FO, scouting dept. and CS or sells the team, and I hope they'll lose every game until that happens. I'm tired of the stupidity of the Jets' owners and supposed leaders.
Oh, how did Brady perform in Super Bowl where couple of good second half drives could have won him the SB? He played like dog shit. Lets continue to play this game.
You're probably right, but if so, and after guaranteeing Hunter's contract, I think it's more than fair to say that they have absolutely nothing on their minds and they're stupid bordering on a retarded level.
The Jets defense is pretty good. The offense sucks. We don't HAVE to take 2 OLB's in this draft, and so long as they plug the hole vacated by Thomas in FA they don't HAVE to take any. I agree that we need to upgrade at OLB, but I don't believe the situation is as dire as you're making it out to be. Rex can make due with lesser talent on the defensive side of the ball.
Even if he is cheap, why waste snap with that POS? The Jets need to be giving their younger players all the snaps they can get to speed their development, not wasting time dicking around with some older asshole who's only in it for the money. Eff Haynesworth. I hope he never plays another down in the NFL. I'm no fan of Henne, but it is logical, and probably the best option for the Jets because Sparano knows him and he should be cheap. Bring back Vinny? OMG. Please. I just threw up in my mouth.
I'm sorry, it's just flat out wrong and dumb imo to say that they don't have to draft any OLBs. It's the most important position in the 3-4 alignment. It is the playmaking position. Here the Jets have one of the top defensive minds in the game, and you're content for them to make him have to work with a bunch of jags rather than giving him some real studs to work with???? The D will never be elite and/or dominant without getting that stud pass rusher. The offense sucked because of Schotty and because of Tanny's foolish decisions (keeping Holmes over Edwards), constantly trading away picks, not signing some veteran OL depth last season. The Jets have used more draft picks on offense than defense during Rex's tenure. If it isn't fixed by now, it isn't going to be as long as that jackass Tanny is GM and as long as the Jets have the same Scouting Dept. They can't keep ignoring the D and throwing draft pick after draft pick at the offense. That's just stupid.
Kleck, Yes, we seem to agree more than not. In general agreement on: Tanny and FO. Perhaps past seasons in fairness might have seemed less compelling to take an approach other than the ones he took. But this year the middle ground seems like the only reasonable strategy. Trading up could be disastrous. I have looked at arguments on how to get more cap space, and they strike me as pretty unconvincing, at least in general. He's going to have to intelligently sign at least two FA's for two out of the four of Wideout, RT, OLB and Safety, and I agree with you on OLB being a better position to fill from the draft. I have no reason to disagree with your assessment about the availability of promising linebackers in this draft, either. And yes it will be an interesting development if the team does nothing to the linebacker roster. That we agree woulld be virtually criminal. A brief note about Pace - he's probably gone after last season, but if he performs well this coming season, there's nothing to say they might not bring him back at a lower number. But at this point I think not given the need to improve overall linebacker speed, and as I have said this is a crying need for the D. RT. Another huge mistake is possible here as you indicate, as much because I have no faith in VD as it is a criticism of Hunter. McElroy. I never took seriously the notion that his comments amounted to talking himself off the team. Right now I'd rate the prospects of him being the backup Qb higher than any other scenario. Of course that doesn't mean by any stretch that he's earned it or it is what I would do. It's just the whole all in with Sanchez thing that seems to be what will happen. TE. Again i tend to hope you are right since Keller is imo one of hte more overrated players around here whose contract virtually demands a move be made now. I just tend to be cynical they will do the right move here. Greene. I think I may be more concerned about his fragility than you, and just because it would be nice to see just what McKnight has doesn't mean relying on him to improve is the answer to complementing Greene with LT gone. I see you have another post...
But isn't that another good reason to fill RT from FA? As for the apparent inconsistency with paying him that much money, since that is apparently already a done deal, better to be inconsistent and still go FA for a starter than to compound the error and actually depend on Hunter to start OR to srew up the draft going crazy trying to fix RT with everything else going on, much of which is better suited to be addressed with rookies. We are in complete agreement on their letting Hunter's contract proceed being virtually inexplicable.
I agree that the defense likely will never be elite without a stud pass rusher. I don't think you need an elite defense to win the superbowl though. We've had good to very good (borderline elite) defenses under Rex so far. He's done that with lesser talent and he's been able to get a pass rush using schemes. That's where good coaching pays dividends. Of course I'd love to see us draft a stud pass rusher, and if our turn comes to draft and there's one that is BPA, let's take him. I simply disagree that we have to have one and we have to have one now. If our offense was able to play at the level of our worst defensive performance under Rex we'd have a very, very good team. Why the offense sucked is debatable. I tend to agree with all of your reasons for why it sucked, and would throw in a few more. I don't think that matters though. I don't think we should stop trying to improve the level of play of our offense through the draft simply because we've tried before and failed. It's not like we've used a bunch of high picks on skill position players on the offensive side anyway. I'm not even trying to say that we should take offense over defense in general. I'm all for taking BPA outside of a handful of positions (CB, C, LT, FB). I really hope the Jets aren't going into the draft thinking they HAVE to have a certain position, especially 2 of them.
I was speaking in terms of what I believe is most likely to happen given what has already transpired rather than what I thought would be best. Sorry for not clarifying.
Kleck, The one thing you won't get me to talk at length about is VD. Imo it is pure speculation at this point that we will see some change going into this year that will lead to a huge improvement for him. Can't say it won't happen, or what the odds are, either. That about covers it for me. One area of football knowledge I would never claim to have is about draft prospects, because quite simply I do not have the time or inclination to watch college football. Used to, but... Talking about college prospects for me would just be me regurgitating other analyses. I admit it, so I don't do it. That being the case, I have no reason to doubt what you say about this draft class and wideout prospects. I will say your reference to the experience with Kerley is hardly precedent for success one could count on going forward. Kerley was a rare bright spot among younger players this past season. Given where he was taken, he was arguably the best pick by the FO since Revis. Even so he was not starter material, and only began to show much promise about mid season. I would hardly take the experience with him as making it a given that this FO will come up with a starter wideout from a mid round pick. Your refernce to Keller as a downfield receiver is also puzzling, for two reasons. One is you elsewhere argued he should be gone, the other is I don't think he was a dependable downfield option. Despite professed intention to go more for the ground attack, the Jets need a minimal level of competence at wide receiver. Without an upgrade, they will be something less than that. Ftr I would be happy if Edwards returned at the right number. As for relative needs, one reason I placed wideout so high is they cannot rely on the existing roster to fill that position even stretching it. Otherwise I am in agreemetn with you on OLB, safety and RT which at various points of FA and draft picks adds up to a total of five players. A brief note about safety. Leonhard is a question mark so no point in talking bout him, but you seem to be the rare person here who agrees that E Smith is not so bad while Pool is way overrated by too many here. Pool quite simply is weak as a safety. Not aggressive. He is poor in pass coverage, and tries unsuccesfully to make up for his poor fundamentals in coverage with speed. My guess is too many look solely at the fact that Pool is quicker than Smith, but there's more to playing safety than speed. Pouha. Ellis is too much of a gamble to replace him. He only got into five games this past season. That tells me something. He's got a way to go to be starter quality. Pouha also has the intangibles of being a team leader. He needs to come back.
The discussion since the end of the season has pretty much convinced me that FA is NOT the way to go at OLB, but that meanwhile the Jets need to make a big move there. Briefly the factors are: Maybin and Westerman. Unlike some other big needs, at ROLB the Jets at least have two warm bodies, and with Pace can help a rookie develop. I know Maybin has his own developing in front of him, but it's not like wideout where there's literally no one, or putting that aside safety where the Jets need a starting quality player on opening day. Pace's Contract and Age. He has to come back this year, but will likely be gone next. Realistically this means two OLB's need to be obtained. I don't necessarily agree they both have to be obtained this year, but it would be optimal, since otherwise next year how do the Jets fill Pace's spot? With an FA signing? FA OLB's. Quite simply, too expensive. Now if a quality vet OLB somehow fell into the Jets' lap at a cheap price, of course they should go for it. Imo, not happening.
Pool was the 10th best safety in the league in terms of opposing QB rating when thrown at in 2011. He was the 2nd best in 2010.
I think there are some cheap, around Bryan Thomas quality vet OLB's that will be available to us and I think we should absolutely take one if the price is right. Jarret Johnson is one such example I already gave, and him being an ex-raven will make him more desirable. I don't disagree we should upgrade at OLB. I disagree that we NEED to make a BIG move. We NEED to plug the hole that Thomas vacated.
Replacing Thomas is an opportunity to increase the overall speed of the linebackers. My understanding is that the contract situation with Pace makes him a virtually guaranteed return, and speed is more important than at ILB. ILB in any event is Harris, who is clearly not going anywhere, and Scott who I also understand has a contract that makes moving him too onerous. In short the need to replace Thomas is also an opportunity to improve speed in the linebacker corps. The presence of other vets also makes this an ideal position to bring in a rookie. Meanwhile the Jets need opening day starter replacements at RT and safety, and I would also say wideout. Given this set of needs, OLB seems better suited for a draft pick approach.
I don't know how much Rex values speed at OLB on first and second down. I would absolutely love to get more speed on the edges. It seems to me that Rex wants to build a giant heavy brick wall that people can't run through up front and load up on the back end to defend the pass.
Imo and I hope I can explain this adequately, but part of my thinking here is that lack of speed at linebacker ends up being a problem when the opponent uses an early down to pass the ball, particularly to the TE. An LB with speed can help tremendously in such situations. You can't always play the safety up on the line. It is clear that the weakness of the Jet passing D, now that they have two solid starting Cb's, is over the middle. WHere the linebackers are. Speed helps there. And of course speed helps at rushing the passer.
