special teams...Devin Smith ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

 Bobby April has been an NFL special teams coach for a long time. He first coached special teams in 1991, with the Falcons, and has done it ever since, for a total of eight organizations — one quarter of the NFL.

 

April, the Jets' new special teams coordinator, picked up a lot of philosophies along the way. One of them: Don't mess around with speedy, unproven rookies as punt or kickoff return men.April brought up that point Thursday, at Jets middle linebacker David Harris' charity golf event, when he was asked about the possibility of tinkering with wide receiver Devin Smith on returns. The Jets drafted Smith, who has prodigious speed and deep-ball catching skills, in the second round.But as April sees it, the problem is that Smith is too unproven as a return guy. Smith returned one punt as a freshman at Ohio State and four as a sophomore. He returned one kickoff as a sophomore. And that's it.

 

"Any time you've got a rookie that hasn't done it, and you're saying, 'Let's give it a try,' it's usually not a good combination," April said in an interview with NJ Advance Media. "And your tries can end up losing you games. You almost have to know."Now, will there be mistakes? Of course. But if you're saying, 'Let's see if he can do it,' boy, a lot of people have [tried that]. You see a lot of openers with a lot rookies back there every year. Keep looking backward in time, a team or several teams have done that, and by Game 4, that experiment didn't work. It's happened a lot. It's a risk."

 

Last season, the Jets experienced the pitfalls of using a rookie return man. They initially had fourth-round receiver Jalen Saunders return punts. He returned six of them. But he also muffed a punt in back-to-back games, losing the latter. The Jets cut him in late September. During his college career, Saunders had returned 31 punts and 33 kickoffs.So when the Jets begin organized team activities on Tuesday — 10 days of practice that will mark the first time their veterans and rookies will be on the field together — don't expect Smith to be fielding kickoffs or punts.

 

April said he likes Jeremy Kerley and Walter Powell as his punt return candidates, in that order right now. April said Chris Owusu, Saalim Hakim and T.J. Graham will compete for the kickoff return job. Last season, Kerley returned 25 punts, Powell 12. Percy Harvin, now with the Bills, returned 20 kickoffs for the Jets in 2014, while Hakim brought back 13.Like Smith, all of those returner candidates are receivers — Kerley, Powell, Owusu, Hakim and Graham. Kerley is the only primary contributor, as a receiver, among the bunch.

 

> http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2015/05/why_jets_special_teams_coach_doesnt_want_to_use_fa.html

[Stonehands]

A better question for April would have been, "what do you think of the prospects of Devin Smith as a gunner on punt coverage?"  Because that he has done before and done well.

[flgreen]

A better question for April would have been, "what do you think of the prospects of Devin Smith as a gunner on punt coverage?"  Because that he has done before and done well.

What's your overall outlook for trying to improve the Jets' special teams?

A: "It's always somewhat speculation in the special teams area, because you don't really know who the roster is going to be. You just don't know. It's really hard to say, 'All right, we're going to be able to do this, because we've got this guy.' You don't really know if you're going to have that guy. I'm not picking the roster. Everybody we've talked about, there's no guaranteed contracts on these guys, so I can't go, 'OK, Chris Owusu, I know you've got this exact skill. We're going to plan our whole kickoff return around your skill doing that.' Well, that would be pretty foolish. Not to knock Chris. He's got as good a chance as anybody. But there's no guarantees. I think picking up the kid in the draft, [Lorenzo] Mauldin, and picking up Devin Smith, I think from what I saw of those guys, boy, that's a big addition. Both of them [as coverage players]."

 

http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2015/05/can_bobby_april_fix_the_jets_special_teams_a_qa_wi.html

[kelly]

saw this..

 

~ ~ — Bobby April, a special teams coach in the NFL since 1991, is the Jets' fourth special teams coordinator in as many years. He follows Mike Westhoff (a special teams coaching pioneer), Ben Kotwica and Thomas McGaughey.The Jets' special teams, in terms of their kickoff/punt return and coverage units, haven't been so hot in recent years.

 

Just consider where the Jets have ranked in the NFL over the past three seasons, with the last number here being their 2014 ranking :

 

• Kickoff return: 6th, 18th, 19th
• Kickoff coverage: 5th, 12th, 7th
• Punt return: 12th, 16th, 30th,
• Punt coverage: 27th, 27th, 23rd

 

As you can see, the Jets have been particularly bad on punt coverage, an area of the game that matters more than kickoff coverage, because most kickoffs now result in touchbacks. And last year, the Jets were dismal on punt returns, as well.But there is context behind those numbers, as April explained Thursday at Jets middle linebacker David Harris' charity golf event, during an interview with NJ Advance Media.

 

What follows is a Q&A with April, 62, in which he discusses everything from Bill Parcells taking time to advise him, to which Jets special teams players he likes, to the context of punt returns.

 

Q: How do you see Parcells' influence on new Jets head coach Todd Bowles ?

A: "If you had a chance to be under Parcells, I think you got a great advantage as a coach, because he's not only a great coach, but he knows how to run an organization, top to bottom. He knows all the particulars. He knows talent evaluation. He's got the system. I think it's a great deal for the Jets that we can kind of parlay some of that knowledge. I never coached for Parcells, but I know a lot of people who have. He was gracious enough to me, to talk to me one of the years he was out of football. We talked on the phone several times, about small details, like catching punts, the mindset of the punt returner. He was really good at stuff that you go, 'Parcells knows about that, with all the other stuff?'"

 

Q: So what is Bowles' head coaching style like ?

A: "He doesn't say much personally. He's short and to the point. He's like that with the players. He just says exactly what it is, exactly what he wants. I think it's going to play well, because he's got innate football knowledge, and he's a quality person. I'd like to help him establish himself as a great and long-term head coach. That's my job here."

 

Q: The Jets let key special teams player Nick Bellore depart for San Francisco in free agency. Who stands out among the remaining guys you could use on special teams ?

A: "You've got a couple of guys that were certainly outstanding players. Bellore has been, for four years, kind of the guy. I think a couple guys that kind of stood out that people may not know that much about — Zach Sudfeld, T.J. Graham. I think T.J. was really outstanding. I thought the last game of the year, Chris Owusu did a nice job returning kicks. I think Tanner Purdum is a really good snapper. I texted Todd when I first got the job and said, 'Boy, I'd really like to keep this kid.' Because if you don't have that [successful long snapper], boy, there's a lot of things that suffer: The punter's got to jump over, the kicker is a little bit off. There's always subtleties that he can eliminate that are negatives. I thought he was really good, so I was happy as heck that we got him back. I think [Ryan] Quigley had a solid year, but I think he's got the ability to be a big-time punter. And I think Nick Folk is real quality kicker. I think he'll have a better year than he's had, just because I keep seeing him getting better and better, as we go into spring, even."

 

Q: Will Jeremy Kerley return punts again ?

A: I think Kerley right now is the guy. I think he would like to advance the ball farther up the field, and we're going to try to help him. I know our offense would like him to advance the ball up the field. I think he'll be the returner. I think Walter Powell is going to give him every run for it. I think he had a rookie year that was a little shaky, to say the least. But that happens to guys. I think they kind of get themselves through that, they learn. He's had a whole offseason to work on it. I look for him to be a potential guy."The reality is, your punt returner's ability depends a lot on your defense's ability to make big plays. If your defense can make some big plays, they won't be punting from midfield as much. If your defense can make some big plays, they're going to be in fourth-and-long a lot. So a lot of times, the returner doesn't get anything or there's not much there, and they're [saying], 'Oh, man, that's a terrible punt return team.' Well, you may not have been playing for the punt advance. You may have been defending the fake [because it was fourth-and-short]. It depends on how you approach it. Myself as a coach, I don't want them to get the fake on us. So I may be a little more conservative."Now, we don't ever give up on the return. There's an element of it always there. But we're not going to let you get the fake. So [people say], 'This return team is horse manure.' Well, it wasn't fourth-and-15. We didn't have the chance to play strictly for the return. Where if you've got a really good defense, which I think we'll have, I think we'll see a lot of fourth-and-longs. A big-play defense works in concert with a punt returner like nothing else. Now, we had a good defense here last year. They did a lot of good things. That's not to excuse anything that happened with the punt return. I'm just saying as a statement of fact that they work in concert."

 

Q: Who do you like on kickoff returns, since Percy Harvin is gone ?

A: "I like Chris. Right now, Chris and T.J., Saalim Hakim. [Hakim] had a very good year as a special teamer. He's going to have to cut back on the penalties, obviously. He had a few too many of those, but that was the only spot on what was a real outstanding year. I think Bilal Powell will be a good player, too. We're going to have him back there [on kickoff returns]. I don't know if we'll use him [as the return man]. Those receivers are a little faster. They can get that ball from the catch to 20 usually faster than some of those running backs. We'll work him. He did a nice job [last year on special teams]. He played wing on the punt. He played on the kickoff, was the off returner. He could be a returner. I really have to kind of check and see what's his acceleration from catch to the 20, because if you're slow getting to the 20, you're going to get trapped. You could be Emmitt Smith, but if you can't get there fast enough, they converge on you and you don't have anywhere to go. So you really need just flat-out speed, just to get up the field far enough to even make anything happen."

 

Q: What's your overall outlook for trying to improve the Jets' special teams ?

A: "It's always somewhat speculation in the special teams area, because you don't really know who the roster is going to be. You just don't know. It's really hard to say, 'All right, we're going to be able to do this, because we've got this guy.' You don't really know if you're going to have that guy. I'm not picking the roster. Everybody we've talked about, there's no guaranteed contracts on these guys, so I can't go, 'OK, Chris Owusu, I know you've got this exact skill. We're going to plan our whole kickoff return around your skill doing that.' Well, that would be pretty foolish. Not to knock Chris. He's got as good a chance as anybody. But there's no guarantees. I think picking up the kid in the draft, [Lorenzo] Mauldin, and picking up Devin Smith, I think from what I saw of those guys, boy, that's a big addition. Both of them [as coverage players]."

 

> http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2015/05/can_bobby_april_fix_the_jets_special_teams_a_qa_wi.html

[#27TheDominator]

 

April said he likes Jeremy Kerley and Walter Powell as his punt return candidates, in that order right now. April said Chris Owusu, Saalim Hakim and T.J. Graham will compete for the kickoff return job

 

They named five guys for the return game and only one is likely to make the team.  This may determine who they keep at WR.  His liking Sudfeld in coverage probably goes a long way towards determining TE/H-back

[JetBlue]

They named five guys for the return game and only one is likely to make the team.  This may determine who they keep at WR.  His liking Sudfeld in coverage probably goes a long way towards determining TE/H-back

That is also because he hasn't seen guys like Taiwan Jones, Wes Saxton  and of other UDFAs play special teams yet.  I hear Jones is a beast on special teams. 

[flgreen]

Just from the tone of April's interview, it sounds like Evans and  Enunwa will have a difficult time making the roster.   The 6th WR, if there is a 6th WR, usually separates himself , and earns a roster spot with ST's ability.  

 

Sounds like if April has any say in it, he would prefer Owusu, and even Walter Powell

[#27TheDominator]

That is also because he hasn't seen guys like Taiwan Jones, Wes Saxton  and of other UDFAs play special teams yet.  I hear Jones is a beast on special teams. 

 

Yes, that may well determine the bottom of the roster at ILB too, but they don't have any return men in their UDFAs and despite all the "NFL caliber" running backs, none seem like return men.

[JetBlue]

Yes, that may well determine the bottom of the roster at ILB too, but they don't have any return men in their UDFAs and despite all the "NFL caliber" running backs, none seem like return men.

I wouldn't be surprised to see us pick someone up...  I was disappointed we didn't draft Akeem Hunt assuming he was there in the 7th round (I believe he went to the Giants).   

[#27TheDominator]

I wouldn't be surprised to see us pick someone up...  I was disappointed we didn't draft Akeem Hunt assuming he was there in the 7th round (I believe he went to the Giants).   

 

 

Hahaha.  What made you pick him?  I think I picked Akeem Hunt in the 5th round of the mock draft for the Ravens.  Giants did sign him as an UDFA

[Larz]

April said he likes Jeremy Kerley and Walter Powell as his punt return candidates, in that order right now.

 

April said Chris Owusu, Saalim Hakim and T.J. Graham will compete for the kickoff return job.

 

 

thanks.  I've been wondering about this

 

I am happy no important starters are in the mix

[JetBlue]

Hahaha.  What made you pick him?  I think I picked Akeem Hunt in the 5th round of the mock draft for the Ravens.  Giants did sign him as an UDFA

I thought he would be a good special teamer also has potential as a third down back.   I won't be shocked if this guy turns out to be better than Stacy who we traded the 7th for.  

[kelly]

April said he likes Jeremy Kerley and Walter Powell as his punt return candidates, in that order right now.

 

April said Chris Owusu, Saalim Hakim and T.J. Graham will compete for the kickoff return job.

 

 

thanks.  I've been wondering about this

 

I am happy no important starters are in the mix

 

 

"...I am happy no important starters are in the mix  "

 

 

~ ~ agreed !.. I'd rather not use any of our starters on st's   

 

 

 

 

 

cheers ~ ~