Smizzy Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 Askew carries desire to play halfback Sunday, December 18, 2005 By DAVE HUTCHINSON MIAMI - B.J. Askew is in line to be the Jets' starting fullback next season as veteran starter Jerald Sowell likely will be swept away in the offensive housecleaning this offseason. There's one problem - he wants to play halfback. "I want to be a movie star," coach Herman Edwards joked. Askew, 6-foot-3 and 233 pounds, feels he's a halfback trapped in a fullback's body. He played halfback until midway through his junior year at Michigan when the coaches had no one else to play fullback and asked Askew to play the position because he was so versatile. He reluctantly agreed. Askew, a third-year pro, has been trying to get back to halfback ever since, and if he's not careful, his obsession with that may cause him to fumble away a gift-wrapped opportunity to start at fullback next season. "I just know I can do it," Askew said of playing halfback. "I've done it for so long. I have great vision. I can see pretty much where things are going to go before it happens. I've prepared mentally for a long time. It's like my dream to be an NFL running back. I can run hard. It's hard to tackle me. I don't want to toot my own horn but . . ." Askew is expected to get another opportunity to show what he can do today at Dolphins Stadium when the Jets (3-10) take on the Dolphins (6-7), who have won three straight. Edwards said Askew and rookie Cedric Houston will share time as the Jets regroup from the loss of Curtis Martin, who underwent season-ending knee surgery this week. Last week, Askew rushed for 54 yards on nine carries, eight coming on the Jets' final drive to run out the clock. He missed the chance to score his first touchdown when Houston came in and scored on a 2-yard dive. "A credit to Ced, he said he'd move to fullback for me and let me run it in," Askew said with a smile. "I almost wanted to take him up on that but I didn't want any trouble. I didn't want anyone to be like, `You're selfish.' " It may be too late for that. Askew's vocal desire to play halfback isn't sitting well with some in the organization. Offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger said somewhat sarcastically that Askew shouldn't be put in the Hall of Fame just yet. Edwards said that Askew may not be blocking and doing the dirty work that fullbacks do to the best of his ability because he yearns to be a halfback. "When you want to run the ball, blocking is like secondary," said Edwards, who wants to see more consistency out of Askew. "These next three weeks, I think he's going to prove a lot to us and to himself on what he is and then we'll have to find a role for him because he's an athlete and he's got some talent. "He's a tough guy. He'll run in there. He'll block. Catch. He runs good. He's got a big body. He's a hard guy to defend if you put him on a linebacker because he's got height. He's kind of like (former Jets fullback) Richie (Anderson)." For two seasons Askew, a third-round pick in 2003, was a special teams ace. Last season, he had a unit-high 31 tackles and was voted the team's special teams MVP. He had just eight carries for 32 yards in his first two seasons. This season, he has been slowed by injuries. He missed four games with ligament damage in his ankle and another two games with a hamstring injury. Injured players annoy Edwards, but Askew said he wanted to play but was told to rehab. His carries against the Raiders last week were his first of the season. "Waiting is frustrating," he said. "I talked to Jerald about it because he waited six or seven years behind Richie. He just told me that when my time comes to be ready. I'm just waiting for my chance. "It's a sense of urgency with me. I have one year left (on his contract). It's not necessarily my fault. I definitely thought I've done what I needed to do. They're giving me an opportunity and I have to show them what I can do or they'll go in a different direction." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maxman Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 He missed 6 games this year because of injury? Oh and he was only playing on Special Teams. Oh man. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Gun Of Bavaria Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 DEAR B.J. ASKEW, GO F YOURSELF AND THE HORSE YOU RODE IN ON. 51 YARDS DOES NOT COVER UP A CAREER OF FAILURE. SINCERELY, THE MANAGEMENT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smizzy Posted December 18, 2005 Author Share Posted December 18, 2005 DEAR B.J. ASKEW, GO F YOURSELF AND THE HORSE YOU RODE IN ON. 51 YARDS DOES NOT COVER UP A CAREER OF FAILURE. SINCERELY, THE MANAGEMENT Career of failure? He was a RB turned FB who just wants the rock. at that size...I say see what he can do...If he doesn't do squat in these next 3 games...he goes back to FB. It's not his fault Bradway drafted him 2 rounds to early. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Gun Of Bavaria Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 Career of failure? He was a RB turned FB who just wants the rock. at that size...I say see what he can do...If he doesn't do squat in these next 3 games...he goes back to FB. It's not his fault Bradway drafted him 2 rounds to early. He was average at best at UM. Whooping up on Oakland's pathetic Defense was a fluke. Askew should just be lucky to still be playing professional football. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smizzy Posted December 18, 2005 Author Share Posted December 18, 2005 He was average at best at UM. Whooping up on Oakland's pathetic Defense was a fluke. Askew should just be lucky to still be playing professional football. You could say that about half the guys on the NY jets roster. Atleast he is young and has some upside and some size. What could it hurt to see if he can run the ball? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenBeans Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 Anyone else smell future free agent signing by the Pittsburgh Steelers here? He'll end up rushing for 1200 and 11 TD's his first season there (2007). Just a hunch... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt39 Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 It's not his fault he was drafted in the 3rd round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormshadow19 Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 At Michigan, BJ was the hybrid FB/HB. And he wasn't all that great. Just another draft mistake by TB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 "I want to be a movie star," coach Herman Edwards joked. Herm, always good for a laugh. Here's another joke, Herm. 3-10. Hilarious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maxman Posted December 18, 2005 Share Posted December 18, 2005 Well let's get this thread back on topic. I would also like to play halfback next season for the Jets. Please feel free to add your name to this list and then we will fire it off to Terry Bradway: 2006 Halfback Candidates - New York Jets: 1. B.J. Askew 2. Maxman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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