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Kerry Collins to replace Fiedler?


Mavrik

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Courtesy of good ol' Rich Cimini.

Jay, we hardly knew ye

Jets likely to cut Fiedler after surgery

BY RICH CIMINI

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Jay Fiedler's warm and fuzzy homecoming turned out to be lukewarm and not too fuzzy. It also will be remembered as brief.

The Jets' backup quarterback, scheduled for surgery today on his dislocated throwing shoulder, isn't expected to start throwing again until next spring. By then, he could be an ex-Jet.

With Chad Pennington recovering from surgery, the Jets apparently don't want to take the risk of having two surgically repaired shoulders on their 2006 depth chart and they will release Fiedler before next season, according to a person familiar with the club's thinking.

The Raiders' Kerry Collins, who lost his starting job this week to Marques Tuiasosopo and probably will be a salary-cap casualty after the season, will draw strong consideration from the Jets as they attempt to rebuild at quarterback.

The Jets face the Raiders on Sunday at Giants Stadium.

This isn't how Fiedler envisioned it last March, when he signed a five-year contract to serve as an insurance policy for Pennington. It seemed like the ideal marriage, considering his track record and local roots - he grew up in Oceanside, L.I., 15 minutes from the Jets' complex. But, seven plays after replacing Pennington in Week 3, Fiedler injured his right shoulder.

He had hoped to rehabilitate his shoulder and return by mid-November, but he didn't regain his range of motion, limiting him to 20-yard throws. On Monday, Herm Edwards indicated that surgery was likely. Yesterday, he confirmed it.

Fiedler's surgery is expected to be arthroscopic, less invasive than open surgery, and it will be four to sixmonths before he can start throwing again, according to his agent, Brian Levy. Dr. Stephen Nicholas, a former member of the Jets' medical staff, will perform the surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan.

In retrospect, Fiedler should've went for surgery in September, but "the first option was rehabilitation," Levy said. "Obviously, that didn't work out. Right now, the prudent move is to have surgery, so he can be ready for training camp."

Under normal circumstances, the Jets could bring back Fiedler to be their backup again, but their quarterback situation is anything but normal. They've invested $22 million in Pennington the last two seasons, and they have every intention of retaining him at a renegotiated salary.

Realizing that Pennington is a question mark, the Jets want to acquire a starting-caliber veteran. Collins, 32, familiar with the New York landscape as a former Giant, and the Redskins' Patrick Ramsey are two possibilities. The Jets don't appear to have any interest in the Chargers' Philip Rivers, who could be on the trading block.

Fiedler's '06 salary of $770,000 isn't prohibitive, and it's conceivable he could return as the third-stringer, but the Jets hope to pick up a quarterback with a late-round draft pick. They could have a shot at Southern Cal's Matt Leinart with the first or second overall pick, but they seem more inclined to address another need. That, of course, could change over the next few months.

The Jets could cut Fiedler in March, when he's due to receive a $250,000 roster bonus. Because his signing bonus was a modest $500,000, Fiedler's cap hit won't be a killer. So much for the best-laid plans.

"That's why we brought Jay here; we wanted to secure the quarterback position," Edwards said. "It didn't work out. One of those things. A lot of things didn't work out. That's the way it is."

Fiedler, who turns 34 on Dec. 29, appeared in only two games. He completed eight of 13 passes for 107 yards and one touchdown.

"He still wants to be there," Levy said. "He'll be there - if they want him back."

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It isn't ideal but I am not sure what else they can do. They are going to wait Chad out even if he can't come back he will get a shot at it.

Which means they have to pick someone else up off the scrap heap next year.

1. Collins

2. Bolly

3. Chad

Gotta run to draftdaddy.com and check out the 2007 draft rankings. It is going to be another LONG season.

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What I read in the paper today Fiedler will not be able to start any throwing until march at least- sound familiar to Chad last year situation.

A veteran that can play and start has to be brought in- Collins may not be the right guy but someone has to be brought in

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