simms & rogers ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

     Tennessee’s Simms, Rogers Reconnect in North Jersey    

                    

 The Jets have several job openings on offense. One is for youthful

competition at quarterback. And they may well have a spot for a young,

up-and-coming wide receiver.

Any Volunteers? Why, yes we do. Two, in fact.

“It’s a small football world,” said Matt Simms.

Simms is the first-year QB with North Jersey roots who spent his last

two college seasons with the University of Tennessee, then worked his

way onto the Jets roster last offseason. Now he’s back for a second

go-round in green and, like all the QBs on this roster, learning a new

offense in coordinator Marty Mornhinweg’s West Coast scheme.

And one of the wideouts he’s playing pitch and catch with these days

is Zach Rogers, the 6’0″, 177-pounder out of Nashville who was viewed by

more than a few draftniks as one of the top undrafted wideouts

available following the end of Round 7 last month.

“Coach Ryan and Mr. Idzik were very passionate about me coming here,”

Rogers told me in the Atlantic Health Jets Training Center locker room

recently. “They preached open competition and that’s really all I want. I

wanted a shot to make a name for myself and try to make an impact on

this team.”

And where did Rogers play his college ball? Tennessee, of course. In

fact, he and Simms teamed up on several occasions in the 2010 and ’11

seasons, most notably on a 72-yard touchdown catch-and-run early in the

Vols’ 32-29 OT win over Alabama-Birmingham in 2010.

“It’s good to be back teammates with Matt again. He’s a good guy,”

Rogers said. “He’s very intelligent. I learned a lot from him. And he’s

still got a cannon.”

Simms returns the compliments.

“Zach’s definitely a fast guy, he plays fast, and he’s a really smart

guy,” he said. “There’s not too much on the field that he’s not aware

of.”

The two didn’t have a lot of connections on the field, only 13

catches in those two seasons (but for 212 yards, a 16.3 average per

catch). That’s because Rogers didn’t play a lot in ’10, both were

limited in ’11, and last year Simms was gone. Before he departed for the

pros, he recalled a business course the two had together. After one

class, the two got to talking and Rogers said he was taking his

education very seriously because he didn’t think the NFL would be in his

future.

“You have the talent,” Simms told him then. “You never know what’s going

to happen. It’s a long season.”

Last season at Tennessee, Rogers, despite divvying up passes from

Tyler Bray with a pair of top draft picks-to-be — Cordarrelle Patterson

went 29th to the Vikings, Justin Hunter 34th to the Titans — Rogers

finished with 32 catches for 491 yards (15.3 avg.) and seven TDs, which

attracted the attention of the aforementioned Rex Ryan and John Idzik.

“The Rogers kid, we expected him to look good, and he was a

tremendous player at Tennessee, albeit he never started because of the

other two guys,” Ryan said. “But he was very productive there and he

really did a nice job of running routes and catching the football.”

“I was always hoping to get drafted,” Rogers said, “but at the same

time this was the hand I was dealt so I’m trying to make the most of it.

I was blessed to play with those big-time receivers, though. I learned a

lot from them.”

“Remember that story you were trying to tell me?” Simms told Rogers

when they were reunited in North Jersey. “It proved to be wrong. It just

goes to show that a year or two can really make the difference.”

Now for the disclaimer. Rogers has a long road ahead to get onto the

Jets’ regular-season roster, being that he’s one of 13 wideouts, with

five of them veterans. And Simms, even though he’s now in a four-man QB

competition after David Garrard apparently withdrew due to his ongoing

knee issues, knows the field is still crowded.

“But right now I’m just going to take it day by day, improve on one

thing at a time, and just go from there, really,” he said. “I’m going to

keep my head in the playbook and just keep working.”

Same thing for Rogers, a volunteer no more, who worked a lot out

of the slot during the rookie minicamp.

“I’m trying to learn as much as I can. Coach [sanjay] Lal is teaching

me little technique things that maybe I didn’t think about in college,”

he said. “I think it’s going pretty well. I’m just trying to learn the

offense the best I can and work with my new teammates. It’s a great

opportunity for me and really I’m just trying to make the most of it.”

 

> http://blog.newyorkjets.com/2013/05/21/tennessees-simms-rogers-reconnected-in-north-jersey/

[flgreen]

I really don't understand why Simms is still on this team.  I thought when Tannenbaum left so would he

[jbone]

Phil promised Woody he would never speak negatively about the Jets on air as long as he gave his kid a paycheck. 

 

That's my theory.

[flgreen]

Phil promised Woody he would never speak negatively about the Jets on air as long as he gave his kid a paycheck. 

 

That's my theory.

As good as any. 

 

It certainly isn't because he has NFL talent

[Bleedin Green]

I really don't understand why Simms is still on this team.  I thought when Tannenbaum left so would he

 

At this point it's probably a matter of nothing more than him being another camp arm that costs them nothing and the current offensive coaches haven't even seen yet.  No particular reason to send him packing at this point, might as well let him throw to those other guys currently holding onto the bottom of the depth chart, while hoping maybe it turns out they stepped in sh*t with him.  Every team has at least 4 QBs in camp, so no reason to send him off unless they bring another QB and are worrying about the number of reps they have to divvy up.

[T0mShane]

I really don't understand why Simms is still on this team. I thought when Tannenbaum left so would he

"BoyItellya, his dad was a heckuva tough guy. Boy, I remember when he'd play the Eagles..."

[pointman]

Simms is a dumb ass, but he can bomb the ball down field. I wouldn't mind seeing him take some real snaps just for the lollies. Better than watching McElroy or Sanchez disappoint.

[jetsjetsjetss]

rex grossman for prez (starting qb)

[kelly]

Phil promised Woody he would never speak negatively about the Jets on air as long as he gave his kid a paycheck. 

 

That's my theory.

 

that's probably it...we need another arm in tc so....