...the Bye W...and after the bye ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

...the Bye W...and after the bye The bye couldn’t have come at a better time for the New York Jets, coming off a 26-20 upset win over the favored New Orleans Saints. It was a solid team effort with kudos especially to Chris Ivory who you just knew was going to have an “I’ll show you Who Dat!” type of game — he’ll be an important factor going forward.

So what do we know about this team as they take a week off after going a remarkable 5-4 for the first a half of the season?

First, Rex Ryan is a candidate for Coach of the Year. I excoriated in him the pre-season for exposing Mark Sanchez to season ending injury in a meaningless contest against the Giants. I didn’t think this team had the players to win six games let alone be above .500 at the break. But Rex Ryan has learned a few things about being a head coach the last couple of years. First, your offensive coordinator matters. Hire someone who knows how to coach up quarterbacks. Enter Marty Mornhinweg and his right hand man QB coach David Lee. Geno Smith would have had no chance under the previous regime. Now he’s had some moderate success that the team can build on.

(More on Smith later)

I believe the most important factor in the Jets surprising success is Rex Ryan has a card to play that few know how to throw down better. It’s the “We are men and people are disrespecting us. That cannot stand” card. Remember this espn ranking? I think that accounts for the win/lose/win/lose seesaw this team has been on. Without monster talent, especially at the skill positions, Ryan can’t really count on playmaking consistency. But you can always count on effort from a Rex Ryan team especially when he takes the no one believes in us route. The wins aren’t always pretty, and a couple have been off fluky last minute penalties (Tampa Bay, New England) , but they are recorded in the win column none the less.

The downside is coaching by exhortation isn’t sustainable. People get emotionally exhausted after a while. That’s how you come out flat and end up with awful losses against the likes of Tennessee and Cincinnati. I think that is the dynamic we see playing out this year.

This is a pattern I’ve noticed for a while with Ryan. One of the best examples is the 2010 AFC Divisional Game played against the mighty New England Patriots in Foxboro. No one, not fans, not media, not anybody gave the Jets a whiff of a chance of pulling off the upset. But the men in the Jets locker room knew what they had. You can easily picture Ryan’s emotional speech the night before that game. We saw versions of it in Hard Knocks. It was a thrilling team win and the Jets earned every bit of it.

The fallout came the next week at Pittsburgh in the AFC Championship Game. The Jets appeared emotionally exhausted. Effort at that level is so hard to sustain. And in a highly charged playoff game the Jets defense was just worn out leading to a 21 point deficit at the half that the Jets, though the offense battled valiantly, could not overcome.

On a macro level, it is what happened in the 2011 season: Overconfidence born of results that were more based on effort than solid fundamental football leading to flat or sloppy play. That year started with Rex Ryan fully committed to his role as media darling. He ignored the offense, never got a handle on the locker room and by the time he started paying attention things were too far gone to salvage. I’ve said it before, I always thought Ryan and the team thought 2011 was just a walkthrough — a mere formality to another playoff run. But by then, the Jets had a target on their backs. No flying under the radar this time. They forgot the cardinal rules: each year is different and you must respect each opponent. They would do well to remember that for the balance of this season. If they do, we can add that to the list of lessons Ryan has learned.

Which leads us to the quarterback situation. Without marquee offensive talent and, in fairness, dealing with a huge amount of injuries, the Jets win when their team effort is there. They’re not good enough to win without it. That’s when they get into trouble with their rookie QB trying to play hero ball and manufacture points. Which leads to turnovers.

Sound familiar ?

I know many Jets fans think Geno Smith is the savior of the franchise. He does have some very nice athletic ability. But sometimes I think his biggest attribute is heis not named Mark Sanchez. I know there have been some pretty long balls and some nifty scrambles, but I think the coaches dialing back his passing opportunities when it started to become clear that Chris Ivory was on fire and the defense was giving Drew Brees and the Saints fits, is very telling. That’s how you end up throwing 8 for 19, 115 yards. I don’t think they fully trust his decision making yet. I know I don’t.

GM John Idzik is wise to not speculate on the quarterback situation for next year. The next few weeks are essentially an audition for Smith to win the role of undisputed starter next year. In particular, I will be watching for growth in decision making and an ongoing understanding of situational football. Example: there can be no more safeties. None. No more throwing late to the sidelines, or holding the ball too long and taking sacks. He can make a case for himself if we can see that kind of improvement.

But if I were Idzik, I’d draft a QB next year no matter what. First it is shaping up as a QB heavy draft. There is quality enough to last a couple rounds and taking one of these guys is much more low risk than it used to be. Before the new CBA, if you guessed wrong, you could set back the franchise financially and as a whole for several years. The new CBA changed all that with the rookie salary restrictions. There is really no downside. Say Smith steps up and shows real growth? Draft a QB anyway and make Smith stay on his toes throughout the offseason and training camp. That’s Idzik’s “always compete” (borrowed from Pete Carroll!) mantra in action. If Smith keeps getting better, there is still no downside to a young QB. He can work and grow out of the spotlight and perhaps when his time comes whether through injury or poor performance, slide right in. Plus a young QB that gets to hold a clipboard and learn sometimes turns into a valuable trade chip. If Smith shows only minimal growth, you can change direction fairly painlessly. Plus, rookie QBs provide hope. Translation? Ticket sales.

We’ll see how things shake out moving forward. Maybe Smith dramatically improves. Maybe he doesn’t. But even if the team doesn’t make the playoffs, Rex Ryan has still done a helluva job.

> http://empirewritesback.com/2013/11/...week-thoughts/

 

 

[kelly]

5-4, a record that nobody thought the Jets would have after nine games. Well, Jets’ fans saw the possibility. The “experts” had the Jets winning maybe five games all season long, not five out of the first nine games. Clearly, the Jets relish the role of the underdog. They have played far better during the Rex Ryan years when not expected to perform well.Now that we are in the midst of the bye week, I thought it might be interesting to look back through the Rex Ryan era and see how the team has performed after the bye week. For starters, let’s take a look at a team that this year has been compared to, 2009.

Just like this year, Rex Ryan hitched his wagon to a rookie quarterback, and that wagon went all the way to the AFC title game. This team nearly missed the playoffs, and at one point coach Ryan thought the team was eliminated. This is the year that Peyton Manning was taken out of their regular season matchup against the Jets, paving the way for a come from behind win. The final record was 9-7.

That year, the team went into the bye week 4-4, let’s see the results after the bye:

10

Sun

November 15

boxscore

L

4-5

Jacksonville Jaguars

22

24

19

322

212

110

3

18

347

208

139

1

11

Sun

November 22

boxscore

L

4-6

@

New England Patriots

14

31

12

226

122

104

5

27

410

299

111

1

12

Sun

November 29

boxscore

W

5-6

Carolina Panthers

17

6

16

283

144

139

3

11

179

104

75

4


13

Thu

December 3

boxscore

W


6-6

@

Buffalo Bills

19

13

17

331

82

249


10

194

71

123

2


14

Sun

December 13

boxscore

W


7-6

@

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

26

3

14

310

135

175

1

6

124

81

43

3


15

Sun

December 20

boxscore

L


7-7

Atlanta Falcons

7

10

17

314

215

99

3

12

238

152

86


16

Sun

December 27

boxscore

W

8-7

@

Indianapolis Colts

29

15

17

293

91

202

18

286

222

64

2


17

Sun

January 3

boxscore

W


9-7

Cincinnati Bengals

37

0

21

320

63

257

5

72

72

To summarize, the team went 5-3 after the bye in 2009. To parallel 2013, if the Jets win five after the bye, we will finish 10-6. If the Jets can pull that off, I think we all will be thrilled, regardless of whether or not that translates into a playoff appearance.

> http://thejetpress.com/2013/11/06/ne...2009-rex-ryan/

[kelly]

Jets Walk the Walk at Taste of the NFL

The New York Jets used their bye week to walk the catwalk.

On Monday night, center Nick Mangold and defensive lineman Muhammad Wilkerson hosted a revamped Taste of the NFL event at 82Mercer in Manhattan’s SoHo neighborhood. Usually held in the off-season, the 10th annual edition, which is a fund-raiser for local food banks in the New York/New Jersey area, was moved to midseason and for the first time included a fashion show with Saks Fifth Avenue. Several of the players were dressed head to toe in tailored clothing from the Saks Fifth Avenue Men’s Collection and showed off their duds during a jaunt down a runway during the event. Most of the players, including Willie Colon, Demario Davis, Stephen Hill and Austin Howard, took their runway duties seriously, but placekicker Nick Folk gave a high kick as he hit the end of the runway.

“Saks Fifth Avenue put together a great collection for us,” Mangold said. “And the players are enjoying it. For guys who don’t usually dress up in suits, to dress up in suits is fun. I like to see the guys get out of their comfort zone.”

Many of the players sported made-to-measure styles in classic men’s wear patterns such as blue pinstripes or solid charcoal gray. “Folks of our size don’t buy off-the-rack,” Mangold said, adding that his “ideal playing weight” is 310 pounds.

“We’ve been involved for five years,” said Tom Ott, senior vice president and general merchandise manager of men’s for Saks Inc. “We like the relationship because it gives us an opportunity to dress these guys and see how good they can look when they’re actually fit correctly.” In addition, the exposure is a great marketing opportunity for the SFAMC brand. “They help show that it’s not so classic and can be good for young men as well.”

Ott said the energy was even better this year following Sunday’s surprise win over the New Orleans Saints. “There’s a real buzz around the team,” Ott said. “They’re no longer the other football team in New York.”

As expected, talk turned to the game and the team’s hopes for a playoff spot this year.

Rookie quarterback Geno Smith credited his teammates for doing a “phenomenal job going out and competing against the Saints, one of the best teams in the league. It shows a lot of resiliency and puts us in a good position down the stretch,” he said. Although four of the team’s remaining seven games are on the road, Smith said he’s hopeful the momentum will continue. “Going on the road will be a test, but we’re prepared and will go hard.” He said his goal for the rest of the season is to be “a lot more consistent, just play ball and have fun.”

While he has been haunted by a number of interceptions, he refuses to dwell on the negatives and strives to move on. “You have to in this league. It’s something I’m accustomed to. I know nothing in the past can effect the future. Just let it roll off your back and move on from there,” said Smith.

The event raised $150,000 for the cause.

> http://www.wwd.com/menswear-news/lif...he-nfl-7265488

[Bleedin Green]

The fallout came the next week at Pittsburgh in the AFC Championship Game. The Jets appeared emotionally exhausted. Effort at that level is so hard to sustain. And in a highly charged playoff game the Jets defense was just worn out leading to a 21 point deficit at the half that the Jets, though the offense battled valiantly, could not overcome.

 

While overall it is an interesting read, what the hell is this heaping pile of horsesh*t?  The so-called "battled valiantly" offense directly gave up 7 of those 24 first half Steelers' points on their own, without the defense ever stepping on the field, while scoring only 17 points in the entire game.  Meanwhile, the defense pitched a second-half shutout and scored 2 points of their own, plus also got 2 INTs that saw the offense go 3 and out on both ensuing drives.  Given their rough start, the defense isn't completely blameless, but this interpretation of the events is complete nonsense.

[kelly]

While overall it is an interesting read, what the hell is this heaping pile of horsesh*t?  The so-called "battled valiantly" offense directly gave up 7 of those 24 first half Steelers' points on their own, without the defense ever stepping on the field, while scoring only 17 points in the entire game.  Meanwhile, the defense pitched a second-half shutout and scored 2 points of their own, plus also got 2 INTs that saw the offense go 3 and out on both ensuing drives.  Given their rough start, the defense isn't completely blameless, but this interpretation of the events is complete nonsense.

 

...so  Bleedin Green ....is this our happy face ? ?

 

 

[MexiRoll6]

But you can always count on effort from a Rex Ryan team especially when he takes the no one believes in us route.

Which is basically Rex's ONLY card. Did you see the game vs Cincy? Think the Jets played hard that day? Even Rex says they didn't and didn't even watch the film it was so bad. I give it to Rex that he can motivate the team to play 'over their heads' against certain opponents when no one gives them a chance to win. But then it is ALWAYS followed by a game where the Jets look flat as a pancake. This will not fly. Rex has no means at his limited disposal to motivate the team to play at that level EVERY week. Look at the Miami home game last year, Jets needed a win to be 4-4 at the bye and Rex called it the most important game of the season and they lost 30-9. I have said it over and over and I'll say it again....the Jets will NEVER win a SB w/ Rex Ryan as HC.

[whodeawhodat]

But you can always count on effort from a Rex Ryan team especially when he takes the no one believes in us route.

Which is basically Rex's ONLY card. Did you see the game vs Cincy? Think the Jets played hard that day? Even Rex says they didn't and didn't even watch the film it was so bad. I give it to Rex that he can motivate the team to play 'over their heads' against certain opponents when no one gives them a chance to win. But then it is ALWAYS followed by a game where the Jets look flat as a pancake. This will not fly. Rex has no means at his limited disposal to motivate the team to play at that level EVERY week. Look at the Miami home game last year, Jets needed a win to be 4-4 at the bye and Rex called it the most important game of the season and they lost 30-9. I have said it over and over and I'll say it again....the Jets will NEVER win a SB w/ Rex Ryan as HC.

 

He has to fix this, I think he will fix this. 

[kelly]

He has to fix this, I think he will fix this. 

 

..he's workin' on it