RB dept. ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

 Chris Ivory hasn't been guaranteed that he will be the New York Jets'

No. 1 running back, but he figures he has a better chance to make an

impact here than he would have in New Orleans.

"I think it does give me a better opportunity," Ivory said. "It was
just a tough situation over there. We all had our roles. It's just tough
to fit four backs in a system."
 

 

 

Chris Ivory's rushing attempts went from 137

in 2010 to 79 in '11 and just 40 last season. He is eager to reverse that slide.

Ivory
averaged 5.1 yards per carry in limited action during his three-year
career with the Saints. The 6-foot, 222-pound back is a physical
presence who could replace Shonn Greene as Marty Mornhinweg

installs his own offense in his first season as coordinator. The Jets

still have Bilal Powell, who got an even amount of reps at times last

season, as well as free agent Mike Goodson and Joe McKnight.

Ivory is still picking up Mornhinweg's playbook.

"It's a little different," Ivory said. "I was so used to being in one system

and now it's a completely different system."

The knock on Ivory is that he isn't as good at catching the ball as he is

at bulldozing his way across the line of scrimmage.

Ivory, who was rarely targeted as a receiver in New Orleans, looks

forward to an opportunity to prove the doubters wrong.

"People say I can't catch," Ivory said. "But how many times have

these people seen me receive a pass out the backfield?"

 

> http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/jets/post/_/id/23366/chris-ivory-ready-for-opportunity-to-knock

[kelly]

Joe McKnight is not planning on being washed out of the Jets running

back competition.
 

"Like I said, I don't care who they bring in," McKnight said.
"They're going to have to kill me to take my spot. So, whoever they
bring in, I don't care."

McKnight saw the Jets add Mike Goodson from the Raiders and Chris

Ivory from the Saints this offseason. The team also drafted a fullback,
re-signed another and still has Bilal Powell on the roster.

Since his rookie season in 2010, McKnight has 112 attempts for 502

yards and no touchdowns. He developed a niche as a kick returner and
earned All-Pro consideration in 2011.

But the team's expectations of a potentially explosive, multifaceted

running back have yet to be seen for one reason or another. Perhaps it
was the tandem of LaDainian Tomlinson and Shonn Greene soaking up the
carries during McKnight's first two seasons as a pro. Maybe it was a
lean toward a more physical ground game last year that pushed McKnight
to the periphery.

"I'm not angry at all," McKnight said about the situation. "I'm just

tired of people running their mouths like I'm not going to be here. I'm
just going to make it a point to prove I'm going to be here."

McKnight is certain of his spot on the Jets roster this year. He says

in practice he's been motioning out to the slot receiver position and
that there's plenty of misdirection plays installed that suit his skill
set.

"All four are going to have our own package," McKnight said.

"Whatever package we're going to be in -- sometimes we might be on the
field together -- you never know. We know we're going to have our own
packages."

 

> http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2013/05/jets_joe_mcknight_theyre_going.html

[kelly]

New York Jets running back Mike Goodson
was arrested Friday morning on drug possession and weapon charges,
according to the New Jersey state police. You can read the full story here.

After signing a three-year, $6.9 million deal with the Jets

in the offseason, Goodson, 25, seemed like a lock for the team's
backfield. He was expected to be in the rotation alongside fellow
offseason acquisition Chris Ivory and returnee Bilal Powell. Joe McKnight,

who said Thursday "They're gonna have to kill me to take my spot," also

figures to be in the mix. The Jets lost starter Shonn Greene to Tennessee

in the offseason.

Now, as the legal process plays out and a possible suspension looms
for Goodson, this could throw a wrench into the Jets' plans. Will
Goodson be available, and if so, can the team count on him? It seemed
McKnight may have been the odd man out, but is he suddenly going to be
needed? These are questions that will needed to be answered in the
upcoming months.

Goodson, a fourth-round pick of Carolina in 2009, has rushed for 722
yards and three touchdowns in his career. He's played in 40 games,
including 12 with Oakland last season, when he rushed for 221 yards.
He's shown some ability of being a pass-catching running back, as he
hauled in 40 passes in 2010, and caught 16 passes last season. His
career-high in carries is 103, which came in 2010.

 

> http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/jets/post/_/id/23375/what-to-do-with-mike-goodson

[Smashmouth]

 Joe McKnight,

who said Thursday "They're gonna have to kill me to take my spot,"

 

Maybe Goodson took that literally

[kelticwizard]

I seem to never remember McKnight catching the ball.  But in 2011, he caught 13 passes for 139 yards.

 

LaDaininian Tomlinson was still here in 2011, and it looked like McKnight was being phased in as the pass catching fast back out of the backfield.  Then in 2012-pffftt!-nothing.  One pass caught.  Goodson was brought in to take that role.

 

Maybe McKnight will show us this year that he can do what he was drafted to do-replace Tomlinson in the role LaDainian had here.

[kelly]

I seem to never remember McKnight catching the ball.  But in 2011, he caught 13 passes for 139 yards.

 

LaDaininian Tomlinson was still here in 2011, and it looked like McKnight was being phased in as the pass catching fast back out of the backfield.  Then in 2012-pffftt!-nothing.  One pass caught.  Goodson was brought in to take that role.

 

Maybe McKnight will show us this year that he can do what he was drafted to do-replace Tomlinson in the role LaDainian had here.

 

if - IF he does that...cool ~ ~