gangreenman Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Okay, so reading the board recently over the past week or so, it seems everyone has been getting increasingly testy and agitated. It's been that kind of off-season. I know its only preseason now, and that there are still some definite question marks on this team heading into the season... But I think just being able to watch a game tomorrow night and discuss actual football stuff as opposed to all the speculation, fluff, and that type of sh*t will be a huge relief for everyone's mental health. Here's a few things in particular im looking forward to paying attention to tomorrow night: 1 - Kyle Wilson, Jamaal Westermann, and Joe McKnight. All 3 of these guys pretty much rode the bench last year, and all are expected to play bigger roles this season. We are definitely going to get a chance to see a lot of all three, so it will be nice to see how they look in a game situation 2 - Mohammed Wilkerson and Kerley. Both are rookies that, as it stands now, figure to be in the starting rotation in some form or another (Wilkerson on the DL, Kerley as PR/KR). Both have gotten plenty of hype in TC, so Im excited to see them in Jets uniforms for the 1st time. 3 - The new-look Dline. We lost two mainstays in Jenks to retirment,and Ellis to the Pats in FA. We added Wilkerson and Kenrick Ellis in the draft, and will be getting back the services of 6'8 315lb Ropati Piotutuia(sp?) That leaves us with a rotation of DeVito-Pouha-Wilkerson as starters with Ropati P and Ellis rotating in and out to provide depth. We also have some intriguing UDFA and practice squad types in Dixon and GIlbert who are both supposedly having solid camps and might be in the running for one of the last roster spots. 4 - Last, but certainly not least, Im excited to see how the K/P competitions are shaping up. From all reports in camp, the race is close on both fronts. It being preseason and all, and given the rust that Im sure we'll see from guys on all teams on both sides of the ball, this might be the most telling thing we can watch tomorrow night. (Obviously, neither kickers or punters have to learn any complex plays, routes, blocking schemes, etc.... They just have to kick the ball. So definitely looking forward to seeing how these 4 guys play and compete over the course of the preseason. I would add Sanchez, Mason, the OL, and all the other obvious stuff, but Im not sure how telling any of their performances will be in 1 quarter of a preseason game. Ill hold off on seriously analyzing any of their performances until the 3rd preseason game, when starters usually play about 3 quarters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JetsFanFromQueens Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Good post, I agree with everything you mentioned and can't wait to see these guys take the field. Some things you forgot to mention would have to be... 5- The battle at RT between both Wayne Hunter and Vladimir Ducasse. Of course I'm pulling for both players to perform at a high level of play, but recent reports have it that Vlad could turn out to become something special for us at RT. Wayne Hunter said it himself the other day, that it's not a matter of "if"... But a matter of when Vlad passes him on the depth charts. Hopefully we see Vlad dominate opposing defenders. 6- Watching Dwight Lowery make the transition from CB to FS. We've needed a ball hawk since the loss of Kerry Rhodes at safety... Hopefully Dwight Lowery can become just that, a ball hawk on 3rd down passing situations. It'll be nice to see Lowery come up big at safety. 7- John Conner. I haven't heard any Jet fans talking about Conner, but he's extremely important to our offensive success this season. After losing a future Hall of Famer and all-time great in Tony Richardson, it's a must that John Conner leads the way as our run blocking FB of the future. I really hope to see Conner play smart during the preseason. 8- Scotty McKnight vs Logan Payne vs Patrick Turner as our 5th WR on the depth chart behind Holmes, Plaxico, Mason and Kerley. I'm not even gonna lie, I'm pulling for Scotty McKnight. He's small, shifty, quick and from what I've seen on highlights and read during TC reports... He's able to catch the football. I can't remember the last time a 7th rounder has been surrounded with this much hype during training camp. 9- Jeff Cumberland vs Matthew Mulligan. This is another matchup that I'll be paying close attention to. I'd love to feature two TE's who can catch and run with the football. We already have one in Keller. It'll be nice to use Keller and X in the same types of ways that NE was able to use both Hernandez and Gronk last season. Having two pass catching TE's can help our offense in more ways than one. I'm pulling for Cumberland to have a great preseason. 10- Last but not least... How does Jim Leonhard look after coming back from IR? Did we forget to mention both Wilkerson and Kerley? I cant wait to see these two kids take the field. Wilkerson I'm anxious to see make a game changing play and with Kerley? I just can't wait to see him make plays coming out of the slot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gangreenman Posted August 14, 2011 Author Share Posted August 14, 2011 Good post, I agree with everything you mentioned and can't wait to see these guys take the field. Some things you forgot to mention would have to be... 5- The battle at RT between both Wayne Hunter and Vladimir Ducasse. Of course I'm pulling for both players to perform at a high level of play, but recent reports have it that Vlad could turn out to become something special for us at RT. Wayne Hunter said it himself the other day, that it's not a matter of "if"... But a matter of when Vlad passes him on the depth charts. Hopefully we see Vlad dominate opposing defenders. 6- Watching Dwight Lowery make the transition from CB to FS. We've needed a ball hawk since the loss of Kerry Rhodes at safety... Hopefully Dwight Lowery can become just that, a ball hawk on 3rd down passing situations. It'll be nice to see Lowery come up big at safety. 7- John Conner. I haven't heard any Jet fans talking about Conner, but he's extremely important to our offensive success this season. After losing a future Hall of Famer and all-time great in Tony Richardson, it's a must that John Conner leads the way as our run blocking FB of the future. I really hope to see Conner play smart during the preseason. 8- Scotty McKnight vs Logan Payne vs Patrick Turner as our 5th WR on the depth chart behind Holmes, Plaxico, Mason and Kerley. I'm not even gonna lie, I'm pulling for Scotty McKnight. He's small, shifty, quick and from what I've seen on highlights and read during TC reports... He's able to catch the football. I can't remember the last time a 7th rounder has been surrounded with this much hype during training camp. 9- Jeff Cumberland vs Matthew Mulligan. This is another matchup that I'll be paying close attention to. I'd love to feature two TE's who can catch and run with the football. We already have one in Keller. It'll be nice to use Keller and X in the same types of ways that NE was able to use both Hernandez and Gronk last season. Having two pass catching TE's can help our offense in more ways than one. I'm pulling for Cumberland to have a great preseason. 10- Last but not least... How does Jim Leonhard look after coming back from IR? Did we forget to mention both Wilkerson and Kerley? I cant wait to see these two kids take the field. Wilkerson I'm anxious to see make a game changing play and with Kerley? I just can't wait to see him make plays coming out of the slot. Nope. See #2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slats Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 7- John Conner. I haven't heard any Jet fans talking about Conner, but he's extremely important to our offensive success this season. After losing a future Hall of Famer and all-time great in Tony Richardson, it's a must that John Conner leads the way as our run blocking FB of the future. I really hope to see Conner play smart during the preseason. I think we're going to see less of the FB position this year. I think we're going to see a lot of three WR sets, with Keller on the field, too. If the Jets can start putting more points on the board early (a personal pet peeve), then maybe we'll see more Conner in the second halves of games. 8- Scotty McKnight vs Logan Payne vs Patrick Turner as our 5th WR on the depth chart behind Holmes, Plaxico, Mason and Kerley. I'm not even gonna lie, I'm pulling for Scotty McKnight. He's small, shifty, quick and from what I've seen on highlights and read during TC reports... He's able to catch the football. I can't remember the last time a 7th rounder has been surrounded with this much hype during training camp. I was gonna mention this one. I'm particularly interested in Payne, as I think he's got the inside track on the #5 WR position due to his performance on special teams. I like the preseason. I'll also be very interested to see what McElroy does against the future UPS drivers of Houston, as he could be pressed into service at any time during the season. I don't trust Brunell as the primary backup, and I'm not sure the jets do, either. Hoping Bilal Powell has a big night, too. No reason he can't be a contributor as a rookie, either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Drums Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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