flgreen Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Jets’ hidden treasure: Wide receiver June, 26, 2012 Jun 26 11:00 AM ET By James Walker | ESPN.com Examining a position group that could exceed its preseason expectations: Most of what we've heard from the New York Jets this offseason was their renewed focus on running a "ground and pound" offense. But don't be fooled. New offensive coordinator Tony Sparano also wants improvements made in New York's vertical passing game. The Jets' offense was in shambles last season. The group finished 25th in the NFL, and didn't do anything particularly well on a consistent basis. Some weeks the Jets could run the football, some weeks they couldn't. Some weeks quarterback Mark Sanchez had success through the air, some weeks he'd get pummeled and forced into multiple turnovers. Sparano is clear that New York's identity is running the football. But the team's potential hidden treasures at wide receiver also show a commitment to throwing deep when the situation calls for it. Stephen Hill, Chaz Schilens and Jeremy Kerley are three under-the-radar receivers to keep an eye on. This group, along with No. 1 receiver Santonio Holmes, could help Sanchez take the next step. Hill is particularly intriguing. He is a second-round draft pick from Georgia Tech who didn't catch a lot of passes, but made big plays in college nearly every time he touched the football. Hill has the size and speed to get behind the defense if opponents stack the line. Schilens showed flashes during his time with the Oakland Raiders, but couldn't avoid injuries. Kerley came on strong in the second half of his rookie season, and wants to build on that momentum. The Jets must have the ability to throw when needed to be successful. These receivers and potential hidden treasures must step up this season when their number is called. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flgreen Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 Holy Crap! Is this really a positive themed article from Walker? I never thought I'd see the day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whodeawhodat Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 DYNOMITE!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SenorGato Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I like the WR talent now, but mostly I'm glad to hear we have IDENTITY. We're going to RUN IT DOWN THEIR THROATS under Sparano's GRITTY leadership and guidance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitonti Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 it's notable that Sanjay Lal came from the Raiders and brought Chaz with him. he didn't have to do that, he must really think Chaz has something to offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
faba Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Mark's play action is one of his good attributes- so if we can run successfully it should open up the passing game Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Il Mostro Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Mark's play action is one of his good attributes- so if we can run successfully it should open up the passing game Prior to last season he looked really good on play action and, especially, roll outs that were by design rather than forced/improvised. This should be the meat & potatoes of the passing game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JiFtheOracle Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I think we'er going to see Kerley turn into a Davone Bess type player with Tony S here. With 2 guys that can take the top off and Holmes, he should have plenty of opportunities to move the chains with the underneath stuff. I see him having a very good year. Keller too. I wouldnt be surprised to see him line up wide quite a bit this season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flgreen Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 it's notable that Sanjay Lal came from the Raiders and brought Chaz with him. he didn't have to do that, he must really think Chaz has something to offer. It is very notable. Not only that, but Schilens was, I believe, the first FA the Jets signed. During the recent minicamp when there were a lot of hammy's, and Schilens got to run with the firs team, by all accounts, he did an excellent job, I read an article at that time that quoted Sparano as saying that "Lal really stood on the table to get Schilens" I'm not going to be stunned if Schilens turns out to be the big upfield guy this season while Hill, who I love, gets acclimated to the Pro Set. I have a feeling if the OL is back where they were in 2010, and can establish the running game, suddenly everyone is going to be stunned about what a potent upfield passing game the Jets suddenly have Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sirlancemehlot Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I have a feeling if the OL is back where they were in 2010, and can establish the running game, suddenly everyone is going to be stunned about what a potent upfield passing game the Jets suddenly have well, that's the rub, isn't it? spot on statement and one that gets overlooked far too often, I think. As the line goes so goes the offense. We don't have that game changing player that can take the offense on his back and overcome its deficits. Sadly, it appears Tanny has once again neglected the Oline and we'll be back to the trenches with same mediocre cast and little in the way of depth. Mangold and Brick can't block everyone. Both the passing and running game suffered badly from the oline's woes last season. Two seasons ago it was another story. Drafting Ducasse and losing Turner and starting Hunter without a backup plan while replacing Faneca with Slauson...hoo boy, who couldn't see the offensive struggles coming? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flgreen Posted June 26, 2012 Author Share Posted June 26, 2012 well, that's the rub, isn't it? spot on statement and one that gets overlooked far too often, I think. As the line goes so goes the offense. We don't have that game changing player that can take the offense on his back and overcome its deficits. Sadly, it appears Tanny has once again neglected the Oline and we'll be back to the trenches with same mediocre cast and little in the way of depth. Mangold and Brick can't block everyone. Both the passing and running game suffered badly from the oline's woes last season. Two seasons ago it was another story. Drafting Ducasse and losing Turner and starting Hunter without a backup plan while replacing Faneca with Slauson...hoo boy, who couldn't see the offensive struggles coming? We certainly agree in principle, but I think we disagree on the state of the OL. For some reason unknown to me, Brick had a horrible season last year. 9 sacks is unacceptable for a guy of his status. Maybe it was just the post big contract blues. I fully expect Brick to be back as a first rate LT Slauson IMO is one of the most underrated players on the Jets. I think he was very solid last year. Even with his injuries. He's not great but is certainly much better then average. I expect he will again have a solid season if he is fully recovered. Mangold is the best at his position in the game. His injury killed the Jets OL. Not only for the time he was out, but high ankle sprains is a very dreaded injury. He just wasn't right all season, and there wan literally no one to replace him. Moore, had off season hip surgery, a very serious injury. He just wasn't himself the first half of the season. I am a bit concerned about him because he is getting a bit long in the tooth. Think he has at least one more very solid year. Hunter.....I'm stunned Hunter is still the starting RT. According to Guge he will be the starter on opening day unless some body shoots him. I thought he was history for sure, and would have bet on it. Not a fan. Guge loves the guy. Even said he thought he was the best RT in the NFL. He has said, in not so veiled terms, that Hunter's break down was Calahan's fault. Not sure that I understand that, but for now either Guge belongs in a straight jacket, or Hunter got a bad rap last season.. The Jets won't be throwing the ball 60 times in a game this year (hopefully) so that may help. All in all as far as the starters are concerned, if Guge isn't a total boob, they should be an excellent OL again this year. As far the the back ups go. I have to agree with you for the most part. The back ups are an unknown value. I guess that's why most back ups are back ups. Maybe some of them will step up. Maybe not. If there aren't a lot of injuries I think they are good to go. As far as Turner goes, i don't think he was any loss at all and would not have made a bit of difference. His value to the team was he was good at camp fights, and played several positions...................Badly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bleedin Green Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We certainly agree in principle, but I think we disagree on the state of the OL. For some reason unknown to me, Brick had a horrible season last year. 9 sacks is unacceptable for a guy of his status. Maybe it was just the post big contract blues. I fully expect Brick to be back as a first rate LT Slauson IMO is one of the most underrated players on the Jets. I think he was very solid last year. Even with his injuries. He's not great but is certainly much better then average. I expect he will again have a solid season if he is fully recovered. Mangold is the best at his position in the game. His injury killed the Jets OL. Not only for the time he was out, but high ankle sprains is a very dreaded injury. He just wasn't right all season, and there wan literally no one to replace him. Moore, had off season hip surgery, a very serious injury. He just wasn't himself the first half of the season. I am a bit concerned about him because he is getting a bit long in the tooth. Think he has at least one more very solid year. Hunter.....I'm stunned Hunter is still the starting RT. According to Guge he will be the starter on opening day unless some body shoots him. I thought he was history for sure, and would have bet on it. Not a fan. Guge loves the guy. Even said he thought he was the best RT in the NFL. He has said, in not so veiled terms, that Hunter's break down was Calahan's fault. Not sure that I understand that, but for now either Guge belongs in a straight jacket, or Hunter got a bad rap last season.. The Jets won't be throwing the ball 60 times in a game this year (hopefully) so that may help. All in all as far as the starters are concerned, if Guge isn't a total boob, they should be an excellent OL again this year. As far the the back ups go. I have to agree with you for the most part. The back ups are an unknown value. I guess that's why most back ups are back ups. Maybe some of them will step up. Maybe not. If there aren't a lot of injuries I think they are good to go. As far as Turner goes, i don't think he was any loss at all and would not have made a bit of difference. His value to the team was he was good at camp fights, and played several positions...................Badly Pretty much agree with this across the board. Nearly the entire OL was dealing with injuries last year, with the exception of Brick, who also had his worst season since his rookie year. I think the lack of offseason hurt Brick more than your typical veteran as he's had issues throughout his career with keeping his weight up, which has had a pretty direct correlation to some of his struggles early in his career. I can hear what you're saying about Moore but as you said, there's no doubt he was playing at a much higher level by the end of the year, so hopefully he can keep that up this season. Mangold is obviously never going to be a concern and as you said, Slauson may not be great, but he is certainly underrated and has definitely improved quite a bit over the past 2 years. I think you can easily make an argument that he was the Jets best OL not named Mangold last season. So I think it all comes back to health and of course, Hunter. As far as depth, at the very least the team seems to be much happier with it this year, whatever that is worth. Even if he never becomes what they hoped, another year of experience and his first full offseason should help Ducasse and the team is clearly very high on Schlauderaff, who's been taking reps at all of the interior line positions. Not to mention, the Jets have brought in a number of experienced depth players at tackle this offseason to battle it out, which should help. While the OL is hardly guaranteed top be a success, I certainly think it's possible with the group they have, considering the starters are the same 5 guys who managed to do pretty damn well together in the late season / playoff run in 2010. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitonti Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 funny how posters spend 2000 words dissecting an OL where 3 out of 5 starters made the Pro Bowl. If everyone's healthy, the Jets OL is going to be top 5 in the league, easily. I don't think sack stats are accurate, period. They are hugely subjective and without knowing the blocking scheme it's almost impossible to assign blame. Alot of it goes back to the play call and the QB play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thai Jet Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 Holy Crap! Is this really a positive themed article from Walker? I never thought I'd see the day Yes , Hell HAS frozen over. lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jason423 Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 Ran numbers on the Jets the other day for a pass protection ranking. They had a bad season primarily because of the bookends. Hard to even fathom what happened to Ferguson. BG might be right about the lockout hurting him. Jake Long was a disaster as well and may have had a similar problem. In general I think the Jets had a tougher time than alot of teams with the lack of an offseason and then the new practice rules. A team built like the Jets I feel does better with hitting in practice and being tougher than other teams that they cant out-talent. http://nyjetscap.com/2012_Articles/olineranking.php Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HessStation Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 I don't think sack stats are accurate, period. They are hugely subjective and without knowing the blocking scheme it's almost impossible to assign blame. Alot of it goes back to the play call and the QB play. Absolutely. So are almost all individual defensive stats minus sacks, TFL, and pressures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smashmouth Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 Most writers and analysts dont spend nearly enough time studying teams. Its why 90 % of the time they have no idea WTF is going on in the league they are supposed to be covering. Example : Idiot Warren Sapp was talking about the Jets and his assessment this morning on NFL network was Where is the Jets pass rush coming from this season ??? and he chuckled. I just sat there thinking what is this complete imbecile talking about. Teams actully game plan to get the ball out quick vs the Jets for a reason Warren, not to mention we added speed at LB and Coples on the DL with Wilkerson playing in his second year with bright expectations. Warren probably does not even have that info unless its given to him by the people behind the scenes who actully do the research. In this case they told this Fat pig nothing. he certianly knows how to interupt all of his collegues on a consistent basis other than that the guy seems like he could give a sh*t less. He certainly knows a lot about the Bucs There is no way any of these guys are going to put in the work to really study each team and get deep into whats going on. These are mostly ex football players that go through the motions and get a nice payday other than that they dont give a freakin damn WTF the Jets are doing or any other team they have no interest in for that matter. A select few do pay attention like Jaworski and Dilfer and Mayock but other than that dont expect much from these idiots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitonti Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 Ran numbers on the Jets the other day for a pass protection ranking. They had a bad season primarily because of the bookends. Hard to even fathom what happened to Ferguson. BG might be right about the lockout hurting him. Jake Long was a disaster as well and may have had a similar problem. In general I think the Jets had a tougher time than alot of teams with the lack of an offseason and then the new practice rules. A team built like the Jets I feel does better with hitting in practice and being tougher than other teams that they cant out-talent. http://nyjetscap.com...lineranking.php it's a good read but again I question the raw stats behind the article. Does anyone really believe the Bills have the best pass blocking line in the league? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SenorGato Posted June 27, 2012 Share Posted June 27, 2012 I think hiring two highly touted OL coaches and simplifying the blocking schemes for the Faneca/Woody/eventualMoore replacements is really going to help out the OL. I think it's really underplayed that Sparano has been able to get OLs and running games to play up with him. It's probably his most likeable quality as our new OC, particularly since McElroy came out and said not many changes have been in the passing designs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#27TheDominator Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 I know that everybody is deathly afraid of Ducasse and has given up on him. I was one of the last holdouts for the guy. He was a project and needed to be coached up by NFL level coaches and he was constantly moved back and forth from G to T which couldn't have helped his development. Particularly when the Jets were running a more complex blocking scheme. The thing that scares me about him is that he seems to be back at G. I would have thought that if he were still considered a prospect that they would prefer him at tackle and this makes me think they are probably as fed up with him as the board. It will be interesting how it shakes out during preseason. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bitonti Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 The thing that scares me about him is that he seems to be back at G. he's always been a guard, JMO. Projecting him to tackle was always wishful thinking. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
#27TheDominator Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 he's always been a guard, JMO. Projecting him to tackle was always wishful thinking. Well, they kept trying him there. Seemed like one could make a case that they only used him at G through necessity - cutting Faneca, injury to Mangold. OTOH, I think they said that the G position was more complex in the zone blocking scheme and he may be doubly helped by moving inside and the simplified assignments. We'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slats Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 I know that everybody is deathly afraid of Ducasse and has given up on him. I was one of the last holdouts for the guy. He was a project and needed to be coached up by NFL level coaches and he was constantly moved back and forth from G to T which couldn't have helped his development. Particularly when the Jets were running a more complex blocking scheme. The thing that scares me about him is that he seems to be back at G. I would have thought that if he were still considered a prospect that they would prefer him at tackle and this makes me think they are probably as fed up with him as the board. It will be interesting how it shakes out during preseason. I agree that that's disappointing. Fans all think the RT position is the biggest hole on the OL, but it could be that the coaches really do believe in Hunter and see Ducasse as a potential pulling guard. And yeah, we'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villain The Foe Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Superbowl 3peat. Rex will go down as the best coach this decade and the Jets will be the first team in NFL history to make it to the Superbowl with homefield advantage and win it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Gun Of Bavaria Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Superbowl 3peat. Rex will go down as the best coach this decade and the Jets will be the first team in NFL history to make it to the Superbowl with homefield advantage and win it. Based upon....??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Villain The Foe Posted June 30, 2012 Share Posted June 30, 2012 Based upon....??? This thing called "the ether". Thats where the thought came from lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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