Maccnificent

[Pac]

GM’s moves — large and small — salvaged Jets’ roster on the fly

By Brian Costello

September 25, 2017 | 10:19am

 

Modal Trigger

 

The Jets won their first game of the season, a decisive 20-6 victory over the Dolphins at MetLife Stadium. Here are some thoughts and observations from the game:

1. The Jets began offseason workouts on April 17. That is sort of the first day of the new season in the NFL. It is the first time the team is together. But the Jets look much different than they did when they gathered that day. David Harris and Eric Decker are gone, of course, but what struck me Sunday is the number of guys the Jets have contributing who were not here on that day.

General manager Mike Maccagnan has done a good job of filling in holes on this roster in various ways. We all knew the Jets were not going to be big spenders in free agency this year, so he had to find other ways, and the returns have been good. Let’s look at what he’s done:

Draft picks – This is the easiest method to add talent to your team, and the early returns on Maccagnan’s draft have been good. Jamal Adams was a beast Sunday. He was everywhere on the field, highlighted by the sequence in which he batted away a deep pass on one play and sacked Jay Cutler on the next. Marcus Maye is not as flashy as Adams, but he has been solid in his first three games. ArDarius Stewart had a nice catch in the game, too. Elijah McGuire and Dylan Donahue are working as role players.

 

The headline trade Maccagnan made at the end of training camp was shipping Sheldon Richardson to Seattle for a second-round pick and Jermaine Kearse. That trade looks like a home run. Kearse leads the team with 14 catches, 165 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. Another less-publicized trade is paying dividends, too. Maccagnan sent Dexter McDougle to the Eagles for safety Terrence Brooks, who played a good amount Sunday and had two interceptions.

Pickups – Maccagnan found a few castaways that are contributing, too. He claimed Kony Ealy off waivers from the Patriots, and the defensive end has been an important piece of the Jets defense so far. Then he added Jeremy Kerley after the 49ers cut him. Kerley tied for the team lead Sunday with five receptions and is now the team’s punt returner. Finally, the Jets signed pass rusher David Bass off the street last week. Bass played Sunday and recorded half a sack.

None of these players was in the room when the 2017 Jets gathered for the first time in April, but all have become key pieces of the team. Maccagnan deserves some credit for continually trying to improve his roster.

 

2. While we’re throwing around credit, Jets coach Todd Bowles and offensive coordinator John Morton deserve some. One of my biggest criticisms of Bowles through the years has been a lack of creativity in the gameplan. He shut me up Sunday.

The Jets used defensive lineman Lawrence Thomas as a fullback, a very creative use of personnel. Thomas played some fullback at Michigan State, blocking for Le’Veon Bell there. The Jets knew that and without a true fullback on the roster, moved him over there. He even had a catch for 15 yards, which made the Jets defense cheer from the sideline.

The move did not pay huge dividends. The Jets struggled to run the ball still, but I appreciate Bowles and Morton attacking a problem with an unconventional approach.

 

3. There was a lot of focus this week on backup right guard Dakota Dozier having to face Dolphins star Ndamukong Suh, and Dozier held his own. His performance got lost a little bit with everything else going on. Suh had four tackles and one forced fumble, but was a non-factor for most of the day. The one time I saw him get major pressure on Josh McCown, Suh was matched up against left guard James Carpenter.

Dozier was not perfect. He did allow a sack and one hurry, according to Pro Football Focus. Still, Dozier fared better than anticipated. He has not played much in his four-year career. He made the most of his chance Sunday.

4. Bowles made a very subtle lineup change that worked out very well. Darryl Roberts played the outside cornerback spot in their sub packages instead of Juston Burris. The Jets were in nickel for most of the day, so Roberts played 95 percent of the snaps.

Roberts did a good job in coverage, but he also showed he is a much more reliable tackler than Burris. He had seven solo tackles in the game. Last week in Oakland, Burris whiffed on tackling Cordarrelle Patterson, who scored a touchdown on the play, and was beaten twice by Michael Crabtree for touchdowns.

 

Bowles can sometimes be stubborn about lineup changes. This was the right move. The Jets are hoping Burris can be a piece of their future, but he needs to show improvement before getting what is essentially a starting job back.

Revealing stat: The Jets had five tackles for a loss in the game. That shows how active they were in the front seven and how disruptive they were in this game. It is something they failed to show much of in the first two games.

Surprising snap count: ArDarius Stewart only played five snaps and Chad Hansen was inactive. The rookie wide receivers have taken a back seat to veteran Jeremy Kerley.

Game ball: Demario Davis was a man possessed on Sunday. He had 12 total tackles, three tackles for a loss and one pass defensed. Davis was a huge factor in not allowing the Dolphins any extra yards. He was a sure tackler and a force all over the field.

[jeremy2020]

The best 1-2 superbowl bound team ever! 

[T0mShane]

[AFJF]

He's done some good and he's done some bad, which is about what you get with most GMs in the NFL.  A dramatic departure from Idzik whose only good moves were basically down to the law of averages.

[T0mShane]

[Beerfish]

Well my question is despite having a plan do these guys actually have a plan?

The kearse, kerley safety whose name i can't recall were all last minute things that do not smack of having a plan.  They will make the team better short term but the concern is still taking reps from younger players.  Nest year at camp we'll be saying, hmmm i wonder if Adarious Stewart and Hansen can play or not?

[varjet]

Macc did a very good job scouring the late waiver wire for players that could improve the Jets and make them more competitive.

Kearse was a great 2 year acquisition, and I don't think the Jets would have won either of the first two games if we had SR.

I don't think the 49ers were picking up one year players on the waiver wire-they appear to be rebuilding but also standing pat.  MaccBowles want to be as good as they can this year, as opposed to perhaps not going the extra mile to pick up late cuts to improve the team in the short term.  

The SR trade was a great move all around.  Brooks is here for a year.  Maybe Kerley long term is WR 5 and returns punts-better than Jalen.  Let's see where this goes-I think the Jets are still in the hunt for a decent QB1 in the draft.

[JetsFanatic]

A very good synopsis. Mac is a solid football guy and given time will build a nice team. You can start to see that they have some fine young talent.

[dbatesman]

Remember when we gave up 66 points in the first two games

[RutgersJetFan]

6 minutes ago, T0mShane said:

Hoooooly hell now that's a blast from the past.

[dbatesman]

Also, if this narrative is starting in September, there is a 100% chance Bowles gets fired and Maccagnan stays, which is so perfectly Jets.

[JetsFanatic]

3 minutes ago, Beerfish said:

Well my question is despite having a plan do these guys actually have a plan?

The kearse, kerley safety whose name i can't recall were all last minute things that do not smack of having a plan.  They will make the team better short term but the concern is still taking reps from younger players.  Nest year at camp we'll be saying, hmmm i wonder if Adarious Stewart and Hansen can play or not?

Kearse is only 27 and he added a 2nd round pick in 2018. Kerley is 28. Amazing how negative some people have to be.

[DMan77]

34 minutes ago, AFJF said:

He's done some good and he's done some bad, which is about what you get with most GMs in the NFL.  A dramatic departure from Idzik whose only good moves were basically down to the law of averages.

This is what I always try to bring to the mac "argument"... He's been average... But I think for some people a GM needs to go 7 for 7 on draft picks every year, or he's a worthless bum that needs to go. It's a world of extremes. No one likes a middle ground.

He's average so far! He's trying to build something and I'm happy to give him the time to work it out. I'll take the good with the bad for now. I'll take the stability. I like the idea of one person sitting in that chair for a while longer, instead of rotating new guys in every 2-3 years...

[BurnleyJet]

Don't mind whats Macc's done, he just needs to get us a QB next year.

[jeremy2020]

2 minutes ago, DMan77 said:

This is what I always try to bring to the mac "argument"... He's been average... But I think for some people a GM needs to go 7 for 7 on draft picks every year, or he's a worthless bum that needs to go. It's a world of extremes. No one like a middle ground.

He's average so far! He's trying to build something and I'm happy to give him the time to work it out. I'll take the good with the bad for now. I'll take the stability. I like the idea of one person sitting in that chair for a while longer, instead of rotating new guys in every 2-3 years...

I'm good with 2 for 7 in the draft. Being ok in bringing in Pro players is great and all, but how many employed GMs do you hear about being great "Free Agent" guys or "Great traders" compared to "Great Drafters". 

[AFJF]

9 minutes ago, DMan77 said:

This is what I always try to bring to the mac "argument"... He's been average... But I think for some people a GM needs to go 7 for 7 on draft picks every year, or he's a worthless bum that needs to go. It's a world of extremes. No one like a middle ground.

He's average so far! He's trying to build something and I'm happy to give him the time to work it out. I'll take the good with the bad for now. I'll take the stability. I like the idea of one person sitting in that chair for a while longer, instead of rotating new guys in every 2-3 years...

I said it a few weeks ago...if the brilliant John Elway was throwing tons of money at  Osweiller and drafting Paxton Lynch in the first round because he didn't know Trevor Simeon was any good, how realistic is it expect anyone to get it right?  You show me an NFL GM, and I'll show you a guy who bombed multiple picks.

[#27TheDominator]

3 minutes ago, DMan77 said:

This is what I always try to bring to the mac "argument"... He's been average... But I think for some people a GM needs to go 7 for 7 on draft picks every year, or he's a worthless bum that needs to go. It's a world of extremes. No one like a middle ground.

He's average so far! He's trying to build something and I'm happy to give him the time to work it out. I'll take the good with the bad for now. I'll take the stability. I like the idea of one person sitting in that chair for a while longer, instead of rotating new guys in every 2-3 years...

I agree that he has been average-ish.  My problem is that he seems to completely lack an understanding of positional value and I question the actual planning of this rebuild.  What players have we heard are playing well? Claiborne, Wesley Johnson, Dozier, Kony Ealy, Seferian-Jenkins, Terrance Brooks and Enunwa are looking at free agency.  This is a great many of these young players that have looked good.  A couple of those guys may be RFAs, but still... With too many of these guys we are looking at the Winters situation where they will probably cost us more than they should.

Looking at the Ijalana contract, it is not a great deal, but at least they locked him up for a 2nd year in case he ended up starting.  Who cares that Kerley is only 28 when he is on a one year deal? 

[Pac]

18 minutes ago, RutgersJetFan said:

Hoooooly hell now that's a blast from the past.

kinda makes you wonder why he still has a folder where he can readily access this photo at a moments notice.

[drsamuel84]

I'm not making excuses for the HC but this article really goes to show you that there were so many moves made through waiver pick ups that the coaching staff was probably going to need some time to figure out the best personal packages and how best to implement all these new guys.  Again, not making excuses but looking at it from Bowles' standpoint, he had a lot new guys that weren't even on the team two weeks ago.  And from Macc's standpoint it's easy to say he got lucky with some of these waiver wire pickups but he said from the very beginning that this was his plan and while it may seem easy, guys like Terrance Brooks are not household names, this is where having a good scouting dept. in place comes into play as Macc is very much going to rely on his scouts when it comes to moves like these.

[#27TheDominator]

8 minutes ago, Pac said:

kinda makes you wonder why he still has a folder where he can readily access this photo at a moments notice.

That folder is easy to find.  It's labelled "WALLPAPERS."

[bostonmajet]

I wonder if Kerley sticks once Jalin comes back from his suspension. Someone needs to go. I doubt the release Lawrence Thomas again; and, if they do, I doubt he is sitting there to be signed back to the practice squad.

[kdels62]

7 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

I agree that he has been average-ish.  My problem is that he seems to completely lack an understanding of positional value and I question the actual planning of this rebuild.  What players have we heard are playing well? Claiborne, Wesley Johnson, Dozier, Kony Ealy, Seferian-Jenkins, Terrance Brooks and Enunwa are looking at free agency.  This is a great many of these young players that have looked good.  A couple of those guys may be RFAs, but still... With too many of these guys we are looking at the Winters situation where they will probably cost us more than they should.

Looking at the Ijalana contract, it is not a great deal, but at least they locked him up for a 2nd year in case he ended up starting.  Who cares that Kerley is only 28 when he is on a one year deal? 

This is concerning. I like the young pieces on this team that are emerging. However, if we try to re-sign them after they've emerged we'll lose that talent and cap space. Claiborne might be as good as gone, Johnson and Dozier should be re-signed now because they are at least quality backups and potentially trading pieces to a team like the Giants, ASJ needs to be re-signed now.

We will draft more o-lineman, we can draft another contributing running back and try to find a corner. Either way these first 3 games have made me feel pretty secure in the team we will field when we draft a qb. 

[bostonmajet]

5 minutes ago, kdels62 said:

This is concerning. I like the young pieces on this team that are emerging. However, if we try to re-sign them after they've emerged we'll lose that talent and cap space. Claiborne might be as good as gone, Johnson and Dozier should be re-signed now because they are at least quality backups and potentially trading pieces to a team like the Giants, ASJ needs to be re-signed now.

We will draft more o-lineman, we can draft another contributing running back and try to find a corner. Either way these first 3 games have made me feel pretty secure in the team we will field when we draft a qb. 

I wouldn't get too worried, YET. It is one thing to have to try and resign a previous regime's picks that were either hard to judge from film, etc or who were already in a bad contract situation (or close to it). Let's see how he does with Quincy (he is RFA i think) and Ealy, Jenkins, and Brooks before we judge to harshly.

[kdels62]

Just now, bostonmajet said:

I wouldn't get too worried, YET. It is one thing to have to try and resign a previous regime's picks that were either hard to judge from film, etc or who were already in a bad contract situation (or close to it). Let's see how he does with Quincy (he is RFA i think) and Ealy, Jenkins, and Brooks before we judge to harshly.

Macc has never shown an ability to be proactive with contracts or with roster moves in general. He's pretty good at finding value especially at WR and he's made our team much deeper in his tenure here. However, being passive on contracts has gotten him in trouble with Wilk and Snacks and Winters. This season he has to correct that. 

[Saul Goodman]

Nice read. Maccagnan has done a really good job obtaining role players from late round picks and UDFA's. That will (unfortunately from a draft pick perspective) keep us out of last place. 

We obviously need a franchise QB, but we we will also need some pro bowl caliber playmakers, especially on offense. 

[Sperm Edwards]

1 hour ago, DMan77 said:

This is what I always try to bring to the mac "argument"... He's been average... But I think for some people a GM needs to go 7 for 7 on draft picks every year, or he's a worthless bum that needs to go. It's a world of extremes. No one likes a middle ground.

He's average so far! He's trying to build something and I'm happy to give him the time to work it out. I'll take the good with the bad for now. I'll take the stability. I like the idea of one person sitting in that chair for a while longer, instead of rotating new guys in every 2-3 years...

Now that we're in the supposedly-requisite 3rd season to tell anything, grade the 2015 draft. Nobody expects your strawman nonsense of going 7 for 7 (and ironically, you're the one making the "extreme" argument in doing so).

Fans do rightly expect a GM, whose only prior qualification was being an NFL scout, to be better than 1 for 6. In particular, where the only one he hit was the easiest no-brainer to not bust in the whole draft (it's not like he went against conventional wisdom and it paid off; it was the safe, pussy pick given he was handed a team already being set for years on its DL). Question is, if Williams is off the board, does he even hit that unacceptable 1 out of 6? 

He is not average. He's demonstrably below average. 

[bostonmajet]

9 minutes ago, kdels62 said:

Macc has never shown an ability to be proactive with contracts or with roster moves in general. He's pretty good at finding value especially at WR and he's made our team much deeper in his tenure here. However, being passive on contracts has gotten him in trouble with Wilk and Snacks and Winters. This season he has to correct that. 

Wilk was already in a contract issue before Mac took over, he couldn't avoid that; we gave him too much, but we have an out clause we can leverage for next year - I think, quite frankly he isn't worth the 17 million next year and I am not sure he is someone they want long term at this point.

Snacks was in his last year of his contract during Mac's first (if I remember correctly) - I also remember Snacks saying he wanted to check out FA. At that point, the Jets were never going to pay him the type of money the Giants/FA would - he was as good as gone; again, not sure what Mac could have done differently except maybe overpay less a year earlier

As far as Winters goes, I was not sold on him, and I don't believe the Jets were either. I think Mac was hoping that someone else would step up. When that didn't happen, we grudgingly gave him more money (although not outlandish) than we wanted to. I would not be surprised to see him get replaced in a year or two.

Again, let's see how he deals with Quincy and some of his own picks/signings before we judge too harshly.

[#27TheDominator]

7 minutes ago, bostonmajet said:

Wilk was already in a contract issue before Mac took over, he couldn't avoid that; we gave him too much, but we have an out clause we can leverage for next year - I think, quite frankly he isn't worth the 17 million next year and I am not sure he is someone they want long term at this point.

Snacks was in his last year of his contract during Mac's first (if I remember correctly) - I also remember Snacks saying he wanted to check out FA. At that point, the Jets were never going to pay him the type of money the Giants/FA would - he was as good as gone; again, not sure what Mac could have done differently except maybe overpay less a year earlier

As far as Winters goes, I was not sold on him, and I don't believe the Jets were either. I think Mac was hoping that someone else would step up. When that didn't happen, we grudgingly gave him more money (although not outlandish) than we wanted to. I would not be surprised to see him get replaced in a year or two.

Again, let's see how he deals with Quincy and some of his own picks/signings before we judge too harshly.

You can make excuses all you want, but none of these issues was a surprise.

Richardson? 

[Sperm Edwards]

5 minutes ago, bostonmajet said:

Wilk was already in a contract issue before Mac took over, he couldn't avoid that; we gave him too much, but we have an out clause we can leverage for next year - I think, quite frankly he isn't worth the 17 million next year and I am not sure he is someone they want long term at this point.

Snacks was in his last year of his contract during Mac's first (if I remember correctly) - I also remember Snacks saying he wanted to check out FA. At that point, the Jets were never going to pay him the type of money the Giants/FA would - he was as good as gone; again, not sure what Mac could have done differently except maybe overpay less a year earlier

As far as Winters goes, I was not sold on him, and I don't believe the Jets were either. I think Mac was hoping that someone else would step up. When that didn't happen, we grudgingly gave him more money (although not outlandish) than we wanted to. I would not be surprised to see him get replaced in a year or two.

Again, let's see how he deals with Quincy and some of his own picks/signings before we judge too harshly.

Couldn't avoid?

He could have traded Mo outright instead of holding out for compensation no one was going to offer up.

He could have used Mo as part of a trade-up for a QB in 2016. 

He could have extended Snacks in 2015 (and it certainly wasn't going to cost $9m/year back then).

He could have extended Winters in 2016 after he looked so much more improved in filling in for Colon. He had insanity-level leverage over Winters. Had he picked up his first choice in FA (Osemele) Winters would have been relegated back to being a backup. And both Winters and his agent knew it.

He legitimately sucks at this.

[dbatesman]

23 minutes ago, Sperm Edwards said:

Now that we're in the supposedly-requisite 3rd season to tell anything, grade the 2015 draft. Nobody expects your strawman nonsense of going 7 for 7 (and ironically, you're the one making the "extreme" argument in doing so).

Fans do rightly expect a GM, whose only qualification was being an NFL scout, to be better than 1 for 6. In particular, where the only one he hit was the easiest no-brainer to not bust in the whole draft (it's not like he went against conventional wisdom and it paid off; it was the safe, pussy pick given he was handed a team already being set for years on its DL). Question is, if Williams is off the board, does he even hit that unacceptable 1 out of 6? 

He is not average. He's demonstrably below average. 

John Elway tho

[bostonmajet]

5 minutes ago, #27TheDominator said:

You can make excuses all you want, but none of these issues was a surprise.

Richardson? 

Not making excuses; not defending him; I am saying it is hard to judge based purely on being handed other people's problems. That's all. How many GMs (especially first time) don't SUCK at this? I have zero problem with people pointing out issues with anyone at the Jets, I was just pointing out that by the time Mac was on board, the Wilk and Snacks situation was already F-d up. Maybe someone else could have done better, maybe not. Maybe he totally sucks at it.

My point is that the GM has to deal with garbage only in the first 2 years; after that, he deals with his own mess and MAYBE he will be better at his own mess. That is why I capitalized on YET. Not saying he will be good. Not saying he has been good. Just saying let's not close the book YET.

[Sperm Edwards]

Just now, dbatesman said:

John Elway tho

This lame post is missing your poetic license usage of unnecessary commas. 

Please bring A game in the future. Thanx.

[Bugg]

1 hour ago, AFJF said:

He's done some good and he's done some bad, which is about what you get with most GMs in the NFL.  A dramatic departure from Idzik whose only good moves were basically down to the law of averages.

You take the good, you take the bad, you take them and there you have the facts of life!

 

[Sperm Edwards]

1 minute ago, Bugg said:

You take the good, you take the bad, you take them and there you have the facts of life!

Awesome. I should get plenty done today with that ****ing song ringing in my head now.

I hate you.

[Spoot-Face]

I find this notion that Macc is a good GM paculiar. Quite paculiar, indeed.