Awesome, awesome, AWESOME post. I'm a darksider, proud to admit it- I have no sunshine in me when it comes to this team. I've lived through this script many times before. I saw the pattern start to develop last year with the in-fighting and losing games they should have won. The coach (in this case Rex, but previously Herm Edwards, Bruce Coslet, Joe Walton - this list goes on and on) starts to lose control of the team and the players, and inevitably, instead of pulling himself up by his bootstraps and cleaning house a bit to save his ass, he hunkers down and goes down with the ship. Rex will be gone after this year - if he's not, definitely after next and it's a guarantee that next season will be absolute misery complete with empty seats, constant boos (which have already started), intense media scrutiny, and ultimately, a new rebuilding process. As a fellow darksider, you'll appreciate this: in the preseason, I told all my friends (those who still listen to me) that this had all the earmarks of a 4-12 - 6-10 season for the Jets. They thought I was crazy. But it just seems to go in cycles. The sad part is that there really was a different feel to this team after the second championship game, which made the crash and burn seem even steeper than usual. But here we are, back at this point again. No coaching staff that the Jets have had in the 32 years I've been following the team, with the single exception of Bill Parcells, ever got the team prepared correctly, ever had them play with discipline, ever had them play SMART. They repeat the same types of mistakes game after game, year after year, decade after decade - coaching regime after coaching regime. This doesn't even mention the QB situatoin which is a repeat all over again of Richard Todd, Ken O'Brien, the short-lived Browning Nagle, etc. etc. Next up: a veteran QB at the end of his career to be the savior. Thanks for making me laugh - what a great post.
Enough with the Sanchez height issues - he's 6'2". He's not prototype, but he's not short. He just doesn't have a very high football IQ and has absolutely no leadership qualities. He could be 6'6" and still not get he job done with those holes in his resume.
Sancheeze sux. It's not the oc , line , weapons etc. The guy just sux. Everybody except jet fans understood this years ago. We need to move on. Rex has turned us into a joke around the league. He lost this locker room and never got it back. He has completely let this O go to shit. It's embarrassing , it really is. I'm tired of bs from him. Who the fuck does he think he is talking shit and guaranteeing SB victories when we can't even win the div.? Sorry he needs to go. So does Tanny. And a new owner that actually gives a shit would be nice. Stop being homers. Come over to the dark side.
The height is a real issue. Look at pictures of the Jets huddle and Sanchez looks like a midget. Only Kerley and Greene are shorter.
Vincent Jackson is prob the best FA acquisition this off-season. He's been a beast. Bucs did a great job, and Freeman is improving because of it. He's having a great year
The main thing is the Jets need to forget about this Ground and Pound nonsense. I am so sick of that my now. 2nd in the league in run attempts on first down, and that's at about 3 ypc. Then they want to have Sanchez convert third downs with pass plays? The numbers do not add up, and any third grader could see it. Why Ryan and Sparano do not is beyond me. Speaking of Sparano, does anyone here think he's doing a good job? But it's also on Sanchez. Just complete some passes, already. Man is he having a bad year. If the Jets lose 2 of their next three, they really need to think about putting McElroy in there.
Know it sounds weird but I'm still undecided on Sparano. Does he have enough freedom/talent/control for us to really judge him as a OC? If everybody on this forums can see the predictability of this offense then there's no way Jets coaching staff doesn't see it. Yet, here we are giving the ball to Greene on 1st down for 2-3 yard. Then following up with a 1-3 yard run & then turning to a terrible passing offense to make something happen. Only reason I can think of for constantly repeating this nonsense ..... Rex wants this type of football no matter what. If this was all on Sparano then Rex would have changed it already. I'm really thinking if another OC was hired next season the Jets would be doing the same exact things philosophy & scheme wise. Doesn't matter if the OC came from a high powered offense like the Packers/Pats/Saints. Don't think bringing in Tebow/McElroy will change the way plays are called. The only thing we'll change is which QB is trying to bail out this predictable play-calling on 3rd downs. However, Sanchez isn't a hapless victim in all this. Bad execution on his part on numerous occasions is another reason this offense fails. Perhaps a swap to Tebow or McElroy with make a difference? If not then Jets will need to get another QB if Rex is the HC. Because this philosophy/scheme changes isn't changing.
The Jets are not a ground and pound team. The Jets are a top secret team. Even their fans have no clue as to what they are trying to accomplish.
Agreed CMAN. We hated Schotty. Now we hate Sporano. I said it about Schotty, and I say it again now. They are doing what Ryan dictates them to do. Parcells was on the radio a few days ago and in so many words, said so. Schotty did what Mangini told him to do. He's doing the same thing with the Rams now for HIS new boss. Schotty did what Rex told him to do. Now, Sporano does the same thing. He does what he can within the confines of what the HC tells him he can do. Meet the new boss, same as the old boss... Becuase the boss at the top pulls the strings, makes the game plan. You hate the offense? Blame Ryan. Stop throwing other coaches under the bus, and put the blame squarely where it belongs. On the head coach. Period. End of story. Ryan is one of these coaches stuck in his own dirt, dirt he poured water on until it became a quagmire of mud. Ground and pound. But, ignore the O line and stick with a very average NFL RB like Greene, and swear by ground and pound until you get fired. The sooner the better. Is Belichick married to the 3-4? Or the 4-3? No, he looks at his personnel and games plans his game plan to fit, not the other way around. Ryan is a one dimensional coach with little imagination. He is a great DC who NEEDS a good HC to tell him what to do. Ryan is not a quality HC. He is stuck in the mud of his own making, unable to change. Plain truth.
I'm not so sure. Ryan might be calling the shots when he says "Run the ball most the time", but he's not the one drawing up plays, blocking assignments, schemes and doing the play calling. That's all on Sparano and the coaches under him.
Store manager: I want you to increase sales. Dept Mgr: Can I order what I know will sell? Store Mgr: No. Dept Mgr: Can I pick what products to put on the high traffic end caps? Store Mgr: No. Now I suppose you want to ask if you can put something on sale? No. Just sell more stuff. And sell the stuff I want you to sell, not that other stuff. Dept Mgr: Um... OK. Will you fire me if I don't increase sales? Store Mgr: No, you are on the team dude! We'll make this work. If it doesn't then sure, I'll fire your ass to protect my own job. That's how it works. That's what Hermy the wermy did it, how Mangini did it, and how Ryan will do it.
Only problem is, there are still things that the Dept Mgr can do. Have you really watched the offense ? Have you watched any of the running plays over and over again looking at blocking schemes and what is being called against the defenses being faced ? Let's really get in and look at the offense. When a passing play is sent in from Sparano, are their any option routes for the receivers aside from the hot routes ? I mean, if you call a slant play and the CB comes up to the line with inside leverage, does the receiver still try and run a slant ? Or does it convert to an out route ? When specific run plays are called in from the sideline, does it specify which side the run should go ? Or is that dependent upon how the defense lines up ? Shonn Greene isn't the best RB in the world of course, but it's borderline impossible to gain yards when the opposing teams LBs are hitting you in the backfield or when they are standing in the gaps waiting for you. Take a look at the blocking schemes that we employ, and then watch just 1 or 2 series of runs by the Texans or the 49'ers. What you'll end up noticing is that they have very advanced blocking schemes compared to ours. They pull guys on every play. The blockers can get leverage because of the attack angles that they use. Instead of trying to go straight forward and push guys off the line, they hit them from the side or at an angle. Try it yourself. Drop into stance with your feet shoulder width apart and leaning slightly forward. What stands a better chance of moving you? Some guy coming straight ahead at you ? Or someone coming at you from a side angle ? In the running game, the Jets line rarely works any angles. It's straight ahead blocking for the most part, and even then, guys rarely get to the 2nd level to attack the LBs. LBs have free reign to crash the gaps and tackle Green. On the few running plays that are successful, most have one of two things in common. Either they involve pulling guards/tackles and/or they are off tackle where someone on the line can actually get a seal block from an angle. Problem is, those types of runs aren't called very often.
No, that's on the HC. Rex hand picked Sporano to run the offense, and if he's not running it the way Rex wants, then HE needs to take steps to make sure they are running what he wants. Rex gets all the credit for the D, but is absolved of blame for the O?
Rex may be bombastic to the media but he's a deferential man in the lockerroom and he allows sparano his space to make his own play calls. he's always shown that respect to his coordinators even tho he knows defense better than most of them
We are basically talking about the difference between strategic and tactical levels of operation. Strategic level is more abstract, while tactical is the "hands on", "detail" type of thing. Head coach has a strategic philosophy, i.e. Ground and Pound. OC is at the tactical level and is supposed to have an effective offense that works within that strategic vision. If the offense flounders due to poor design / lack of creativity, that itself is not the fault of the HC. What is the HC's fault/responsibility was being wrong in his assessment and hiring of the OC. It would also be Rex's fault for not identifying the trouble during the season, and doing something to correct it. In short, there are of course times when the OC or some lower level coach is the scapegoat, but there are also times when the OC or some lower level coach is indeed the problem. Additionally, there are other times when the problems are from top to bottom. Bad HC hires bad OC, who hires bad position/department coaches.
