Mehta Divines Idzik's QB Plan; Claims he porked it

[Lego My Lageman]

Manish has Dm'd me on twitter a few times. He is so easy to fire up.

[JoeKlecko]

It's been argued that he is physically capable of performing.  He just didn't want to deal with it being more work than when he was 28 and didn't need to ice down his knees every day after practice.  He said he was into it and wanted it and was willing to work through it and just flat-out lied.  In week one of adversity, Garrard quit.  And the team wasn't even doing anything serious yet.

 

One could argue that he should have brought in someone else but he wanted a dirt-cheap, up to 1 year band-aid of a QB who would then be satisfied being the #2 guy and mentor.  Garrard seemed like a perfect fit and Idzik was wrong because Garrard lied about his resolve.  Lesson learned, I hope.

 

I think that's a stretch.  We have no evidence that Garrad lied or was even asked "What if...." type of questions.  If anything, he was probably asked something like "How's the knee?" or "How are you feeling?"  Garrard could have truthfully answered "fine" because it was at that point in time.  Unless he is softer than I think and has zero pain tolerance, if his knee was capable of holding up, I think he would have kept playing.  I think it just suddenly got very bad and painful for him and he knew he wouldn't be able to make it through the rigors of TC and the season.

[flgreen]

I dont know man.  Playing dinged up is the way of life as an NFL player.  Playing on a sore ankle, knee, back, shoulder etc is going to effect every player during the year.  Maybe this was to see how Smith would respond.  If he was the starting QB do you think that the #2 QB would start the next game because of a twisted ankle? Def not. IMO, what we have here is a lesson for Smith, you cant let your play slip because you are dinged up.  He didnt use it as an excuse which is a positive but he wasnt able to compensate for it in practice.  A pro QB plays through injuries.  See Raplesburger, dood played with a cast on his ankle.

 

I just dont get where the blame falls on Idzik.  You think he went to Smith and told him to get out there on the field?  You think he told Rex to make Smith practice?  I just dont get it.  Maybe, MAAAAYBE, Smith was told if he wants a shot at starting he has to practice but that goes for just about EVERY player on the roster.  I dont see where Idzik is the bad guy unless drafting a QB with hopes he is better than our incumbent, uncuttable QB.

 

Oh I agree.

 

Perhaps I didn't communicate well.  I wasn't bashing Idzik for making Smith play, or for making Rex make Smith play.  I don't think he did.  That's a coaching decision, not a GM's decision.   Of course in the end the GM is the boss, but he shouldn't be making those decisions. 

 

I think Mehta just made up the whole scenario where Idzik forced something either on Rex, or Smith, just to write a controversial article.

 

The ankle didn't appear to be that bad, and I don't think it really had that much to do with what happened yesterday.  Was a rookie QB melt down day.  Sucks for Smith, but stuff happens

[Jetscode1]

Drama, drama, drama...sell more papers...what's not to like?

[Sperm Edwards]

I think that's a stretch.  We have no evidence that Garrad lied or was even asked "What if...." type of questions.  If anything, he was probably asked something like "How's the knee?" or "How are you feeling?"  Garrard could have truthfully answered "fine" because it was at that point in time.  Unless he is softer than I think and has zero pain tolerance, if his knee was capable of holding up, I think he would have kept playing.  I think it just suddenly got very bad and painful for him and he knew he wouldn't be able to make it through the rigors of TC and the season.

 

I remember a bunch of vets on TV kind of rolling their eyes.  You could almost hear the say the word "pussy" just from looking at their expressions.  

 

The guy knew what is entailed; he was just in training camp a year earlier with Miami.  By agreeing to play, he agreed to go through training camp and then went back on his word.  He didn't sustain an injury, which I would excuse outright.  He was sore and didn't want to do it anymore after having made a commitment to Idzik and the rest of the team.

 

 

And Mehta is a douchebag.

[Sperm Edwards]

Sorry, but that's on Idzik, IMHO.

He traded a fourth round pick, and spent $2M/year -each- for two veteran RBs, while simultaneously opting to cheap out at the most important position on the field. All the while knowing full well that the draft wasn't offering anything remotely close to a sure-fire thing at QB, either.

I don't care what the player said to him, he hadn't played an NFL down in two years. Idzik took an unnecessary risk that backfired.

 

Wasn't much to choose from.  And they're $1.5M each.  

 

But I accept your above apology anyway.

[JoeKlecko]

I remember a bunch of vets on TV kind of rolling their eyes.  You could almost hear the say the word "pussy" just from looking at their expressions.  

 

The guy knew what is entailed; he was just in training camp a year earlier with Miami.  By agreeing to play, he agreed to go through training camp and then went back on his word.  He didn't sustain an injury, which I would excuse outright.  He was sore and didn't want to do it anymore after having made a commitment to Idzik and the rest of the team.

 

 

And Mehta is a douchebag.

 

Hey, we're in total agreement regarding Mehta.

 

Perhaps Garrard is too, but I just think that maybe he changed his mind.  It's entirely possible that with no Ivory or Goodson around and the way the WRs were dropping passes left and right, and with Cumberland and no one else at TE at the time, those things may have played a big part in Garrard's decision.  Would you want to go through the pain for a team that you thought might only win 5-6 games and on which you might take a beating until the OL gelled, and then only to be replaced as the starter at some point in the season?  I don't remember when Garrard signed, but I think it was fairly early.  Was it before the draft or after?  If it was after, and he saw that the Jets didn't draft a WR, TE or OG higher than the 3rd round. and knew that their backups at OG were Ducasse and Schlauderarff (they're both dogs), saw that Holmes wasn't gonna be back and it was gonna be Kerley, Hill and a bunch of UDFAs and castoffs at WR, maybe he decided then that it wasn't worth it, whereas earlier he thought the Jets would field a better team around him.  Who knows?

 

Question:  Where did you see the vets laugh (presumably) at Garrard's announcement that he was going to retire?

[Larz]

I didn't see a quote from idzik

 

weird

 

so without anonymous sources, he is allowed to just make sh*t up

 

**** him

[Sperm Edwards]

Hey, we're in total agreement regarding Mehta.

Perhaps Garrard is too, but I just think that maybe he changed his mind. It's entirely possible that with no Ivory or Goodson around and the way the WRs were dropping passes left and right, and with Cumberland and no one else at TE at the time, those things may have played a big part in Garrard's decision. Would you want to go through the pain for a team that you thought might only win 5-6 games and on which you might take a beating until the OL gelled, and then only to be replaced as the starter at some point in the season? I don't remember when Garrard signed, but I think it was fairly early. Was it before the draft or after? If it was after, and he saw that the Jets didn't draft a WR, TE or OG higher than the 3rd round. and knew that their backups at OG were Ducasse and Schlauderarff (they're both dogs), saw that Holmes wasn't gonna be back and it was gonna be Kerley, Hill and a bunch of UDFAs and castoffs at WR, maybe he decided then that it wasn't worth it, whereas earlier he thought the Jets would field a better team around him. Who knows?

Question: Where did you see the vets laugh (presumably) at Garrard's announcement that he was going to retire?

Probably ESPN or NFL network.

You could be right about him saying f-this due to the Jets likelihood of success this year. But it's not like people were breaking his door down trying to outdo each other to get him.

[Joe Jets fan]

QFT

I must have this meaning wrong cause it looks like you told me to quit f@&king talking??

I was talking about Manish and agreeing with you.

[slats]

I must have this meaning wrong cause it looks like you told me to quit f@&king talking??

I was talking about Manish and agreeing with you.

Haha!

QFT = quoted for truth

[Joe Jets fan]

Haha!

QFT = quoted for truth

Lmao. I figured I screwed that up.

[kelticwizard]

It's been argued that he is physically capable of performing.  He just didn't want to deal with it being more work than when he was 28 and didn't need to ice down his knees every day after practice.  He said he was into it and wanted it and was willing to work through it and just flat-out lied.

Are you saying that you know for a fact that Garrard could have continued and not be hampered by an injury and he just copped out?

 

I don't think you can really make that judgment.  Garrard had been in the NFL for many years.

 

The GM's job is to shift through the pluses and minuses and make his move.  Idzik guessed wrong on Garrard and it's on him. 

[whodeawhodat]

Lmao. I figured I screwed that up.

 

google is your friend young padawan

[Sperm Edwards]

Are you saying that you know for a fact that Garrard could have continued and not be hampered by an injury and he just copped out?

 

I don't think you can really make that judgment.  Garrard had been in the NFL for many years.

 

The GM's job is to shift through the pluses and minuses and make his move.  Idzik guessed wrong on Garrard and it's on him. 

 

Did I say for a fact? No, I did not.  

 

It was an impression I got from NFL veterans on TV, whatever that's worth.

 

But we do know that he didn't sustain a new injury or it would have been announced, if for no other reason than for Idzik to save face.  More mud on his face for the guy just quitting than if he sustained a new injury.  

 

It SEEMS that he learned that his body & recovery & soreness is different than it was even last year with Miami (as he should have expected, since I'm sure that was different than the year or so before his Miami off-season).  My GUESS - guided by the input of others who themselves played the game into their mid-30s or later - is that he didn't want to deal with it (even though he told Idzik he would).

[MexiRoll6]

Is it just me or is Manish much, much, MUCH worse now than he was when he started covering the Jets?

 

It's as if there's a poison in the press room that slowly but surely turns you into Rich Cimini...

Don't forget about the original Jet hater Steve Serby. Manless has been out of control in his unabashed dislike of John Idzik, or perhaps its his man crush on Sanchez. That headband DOES make Sancho look like a soccer player, something Manless is probably more familiar with. Something about covering the Jets does seem to make reporters into haters though.

[kelticwizard]

Okay, so Garrard elected to have back surgery after being cut at the beginning of the 2011 season, preventing him from signing with other teams, (he had offers).  And he had arthroscopic knee surgery in training camp of 2012, ended up playing nowhere  He came to the Jets as 35 year old, and he was working out but fluid appeared on his knee again.  He said the knee wasn't all the way back, and retired.  I would be inclined to take the word of a well-respected player who took time off for two surgeries trying to put himself into shape to prolong his career, about whether one of the surgeries really worked well enough for football.  I don't know that anyone, even a former player, can say he quit.

 

 

At any rate, it was Idzik's job to weigh the risks.  I can understand that Garrard was a competent QB and would have been a great addition, but Idzik's risk/benefit analysis didn't pan out this time.