Jets News May 4, 2008 Sunday

[Kentucky Jet]

NEXT CHREBET?

DIV. II STAR WOODHEAD LOOKS TO RUN WITH JETS

By MARK CANNIZZARO

DAN-GEROUS: Danny Woodhead , the NCAA's all-time leading rusher from Chadron State in Nebraska, participates in a running drill during a Jets mini-camp session yesterday in Hempstead.

May 4, 2008 --

Danny Woodhead hasn't had the look of the most imposing player wearing a green or white practice jersey as the JetsNew York Jets rookies and free agents have been participating in this weekend's minicamp at Weeb Ewbank Hall at Hofstra.

But he shouldn't be counted out despite his 5-foot-7 1/2, 195-pound frame.

That's a direct warning from Woodhead's coach, regarding the dynamic running back from tiny Division II Chadron State College in Nebraska. Despite his small stature, Woodhead is hoping to become another NFL success story, like Jets great Wayne Chrebet.

"I'm telling you, the teams that passed on him made a mistake," Chadron State coach Bill O'Boyle told The Post by phone from Nebraska. "You're not going to find a better athlete. He's one of those guys that, when you see him in practice, every day he's going to do something that's going to make you shake your head. He's one of those kids."

The numbers tell a good part of the story. Woodhead finished his collegiate career as the NCAA's all-time leading rusher with 7,962 yards. In 2006, he rushed for 2,756 yards, an NCAA record for any level. In the NFL, running backs are measured by how many 100-yard rushing games they have had. In his career, Woodhead had 19 200-yard games, averaged 181 yards per game and scored 109 touchdowns.

Nevertheless, as the NFL Draft unfolded last weekend and 252 players were picked by the 32 NFL teams, Woodhead's name never was called.

But he's OK about that.

"I've had so many people doubt me, this really isn't something new to me," Woodhead said.

"The guy's just been doubted so much it just makes me sick," O'Boyle said. "The more he's doubted the more he's going to step up. He's one of those guys. I talked to him (before he left for New York), and he was going in there with the right frame of mind. He's got nothing to lose. He's going in with a chip on his shoulder.

"He's always had that. He might not admit it, but I saw it when we played Division I teams. There was just something in him that he was go out, and he was going to show the people that, 'Hey, you guys made a huge mistake.' "

O'Boyle is right in that when you speak to Woodhead his humble nature doesn't make one believe he has a chip on his shoulder.

"I'm just excited to get the chance," Woodhead said. "I'm just going to work hard and not change who I am."

Asked if he plays the game with a chip on his shoulder, Woodhead said, "I don't know if it was a chip, but I knew I could play the game. I really believe I can play at a really high level."

When O'Boyle was told Woodhead doesn't sound like a kid who has a chip on his shoulder, he said that's not the case.

"Don't let him fool you," O'Boyle said. "You're not going to find a more competitive kid. He reminds me so much when he runs of Barry Sanders. He's a slasher that can go lateral just as fast as he does straight ahead."

Woodhead also doesn't dwell on his NCAA rushing record.

"The record has worn off," Woodhead said. "If you ask any NFL player, they're not going to care what I did in college. This is a new start."

Coach Eric Mangini doesn't sound like he's counting Woodhead out because of his size or the fact he played in a Division II program.

"When you have that kind of production that's hard to do whatever level you're at," Mangini said.

"He's a little smaller than (Jets 6-foot-3 1/2, 264-pound first-round draft pick Vernon) Gholston," Mangini said jokingly. "Leon (Washington, the Jets RB) isn't the biggest guy to get off the bus. I've been around a lot of players people may consider undersized who have become incredibly effective.

"He has a great story. This is an excellent opportunity for him."

mark.cannizzaro@nypost.com

[Kentucky Jet]

DB'S STATEN HIS CASE TO WEAR GREEN

By MARK CANNIZZARO

May 4, 2008 -- It's rare when you find anyone voluntarily leaving Miami to come to Staten Island, but that's exactly what Al Phillips did when he left his South Florida hometown and enrolled at Wagner College to play football.

"Wagner was my only offer coming out of high school, so I took it and ran with it," Phillips said.

Phillips, a 5-11, 195-pound free agent defensive back competing in the JetsNew York Jets ' rookie minicamp this weekend, made the most of his experience on Staten Island, last season leading the Northeast Conference in interceptions with seven and passes defended with 18.

Phillips, who recorded 17 career interceptions at Wagner, also returned kickoffs, averaging 27.2 yards and punts (11.2-yard average).

It was a conversation with Jets defensive backs coach Jerome Henderson that swayed Phillips to sign with the Jets.

"He seemed real genuine and he said I have a chance to compete for a spot," Phillips said. "I think I can bring a lot to the team. I can return kicks and cover."

One interested observer of Phillips' game while he was in college was former Jets head coach Rich Kotite, who played his college ball at Wagner.

"He would come to the practices sometimes and talk to us about working hard and playing hard," Phillips said.

*

The Jets have three Hofstra players in minicamp as unsigned tryouts trying to follow the Wayne Chrebet path to making the team: WR Charles Sullivan, RB Kareem Huggins and G Shawn McMackin.

"We've had good success with a couple of Hofstra players," Eric Mangini said. "Every year, it seems like a player goes into the league from [Hofstra] and does very well."

Sullivan, a Nanuet native who went to St. Joseph Regional High School in Montvale, N.J., is the career reception and receiving-yardage leader at Hofstra with 238 catches for 2,869 yards. He capped his career with 86 catches for 991 yards last season, setting the school single-season mark for receptions.

Zach Catanese, a former Arizona State S, was already preparing for life without the NFL before the Jets invited him to the minicamp. He had been working out for the Canadian Football League's Saskatchewan Roughriders.

[Kentucky Jet]

Duke coach defends new Jets quarterback Ainge

BY ERIK BOLAND | erik.boland@newsday.com

May 4, 2008

David Cutcliffe knows the primary rap on his most recent pupil. There was a palpable harrumph in his voice when he addressed it.

"As a football coach, I'll tell you he has plenty of arm to play in that league. Plenty of arm," Cutcliffe said of Tennessee's Erik Ainge, the Jets' fifth-round draft choice, during an interview with Newsday on Thursday.

Cutcliffe has some experience in evaluating and mentoring successful quarterbacks. A pair of his students won the last two Super Bowls: Peyton and Eli Manning.

"He [Ainge] was very gifted," said Duke coach Cutcliffe, who served as Tennessee's offensive coordinator when Peyton played in Knoxville and was Eli's head coach at Ole Miss. "I've been around a lot of gifted quarterbacks and he's very gifted as well. I wish I would have had him four years instead of two."

Ainge is happy about the two years he got, crediting much of his development to Cutcliffe. The 6-5 Ainge started his entire freshman season, then shared time with Rick Clausen during a disappointing sophomore season. Ainge was named the starter before his junior year, which coincided with Cutcliffe's arrival on campus.

Ainge remembered how Cutcliffe taught the new offense. "All we watched were '03 Ole Miss cuts from Eli's senior year," Ainge said yesterday. "That was easy for me because I could get the play, watch the coverage, watch Eli, and Eli threw it to the right guy almost every single time. So it was really easy for me picking it up watching his tape."

Ainge also remembered talking to Peyton Manning to get the lowdown on Cutcliffe.

"Peyton gave some good advice right when coach Cut got there. He said, 'Hey, whatever he says, shut up and do it and everything will work out,'" Ainge said with a laugh. "There's going to be times where you hate him, times where you love him, but he knows what he's doing, so just tuck your tail and do what you need to do."

Ainge did. In 2006, his first season under Cutcliffe, his completion percentage rose to .670 from .455, his QB rating jumped to 151.95 from 89.94 and his touchdown passes went to 19 from five.

Ainge followed that with one of college football's more underrated seasons in 2007, throwing for 3,522 yards with 31 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions. Two of those picks, including one returned for the go-ahead score, came in the fourth quarter of Tennessee's 21-14 loss to eventual national champion LSU in the SEC championship game.

Cutcliffe said Ainge showed his mental toughness - which also has been questioned by scouts - by driving the Vols back down the field after that final interception and putting them in position to score. "That's an indicator of being not only tough but mentally tough," Cutcliffe said.

Cutcliffe said the most important development he saw in Ainge the last two years was the quarterback's ability to take everything in.

"When you look at Peyton or Eli or any of the good quarterbacks, they see the field well," Cutcliffe said. "They see things at a speed not all of us can see at. Erik is just now learning to use that and will continue to learn that."

And if Ainge makes the unlikely - though not unprecedented - leap from late-round pick to having a solid NFL career, most of the plaudits will go to Cutcliffe.

"One thing that helps me out from coach Cut in getting to the next level is he's coached those other guys and they played early," Ainge said. "I'm not saying anything about myself comparing to those guys ... it's just he knows how to get quarterbacks ready to play football and so that's really helped me out. He changed how I play the game."

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[Kentucky Jet]

Jets' Woodhead not worried about shortcomings

By Jane McManus

The Journal News

[Kentucky Jet]

Size adds range at receiver

Sunday, May 04, 2008

BY DAVE HUTCHINSON

Star-Ledger Staff

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- The Jets feel they finally have some size at wide receiver in 6-4, 210-pound rookie Marcus Henry, who enjoys making the tough catches across the middle.

Add 6-2, 248-pound rookie TE Dustin Keller, who'll likely line up wide in some sets, and the Jets might actually complete a fade pattern in the end zone in 2008.

Last season, Laveranues Coles (5-11) and Jerricho Cotchery (6-foot) were the Jets' top receivers. Although Brad Smith (6-2) and Justin McCareins (6-2) were also on the roster, the Jets repeatedly ran fade patterns in the red zone to no avail because they didn't have a big receiver.

The Jets' decision to trade into the first round to pick Keller (30th overall) was booed at Radio City Music Hall and has been questioned in the media. But if he can operate as a de facto big wide receiver in the middle of the field, the Jets might be on to something.

Henry, for one, says he's up for the challenge.

"I think I'm the type of receiver that's a big target and can go up and get the ball," said Henry, a sixth-round pick out of Kansas who caught a career-high 54 passes for 1,014 yards (18.8-yard average) and a school-record 10 TDs last season.

"I kind of take pride in going across the middle. I'm not afraid to get hit by a linebacker."

Keller is expected to be a huge matchup problem for small cornerbacks and linebackers alike.

"Right now, I would say my speed and my ability to stretch the field and pressure the defense," Keller said of his biggest assets.

Keller said he understood the fans' booing his selection because he flew under the radar leading up to the draft.

People will learn and know about me later," he said.

P Jeremy Kapinos, a first-year pro out of Penn State, has been impressive and may unseat 34-year-old Ben Graham, who struggled last season.

"I think the comfort level is definitely up, maybe it's maturity ... knowing what kind of punts (the coaches) like," said Kapinos. "The offseason program is going great and I feel really good."

Although unhappyTE Chris Baker said the Jets promised to give him a new deal, the club made no such pledge, a person close to the situation said yesterday. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak publicly.

Baker, a sixth-year pro, is averaging $1.65 million on a four-year deal, which is believed to rank 20th among starting tight ends. It's the same salary the Jets are paying veteran TE Bubba Franks on a one-year deal.

And while Baker had a career-high 41 receptions last season, that total ranked 19th among tight ends.

Thus, the Jets are expected to stand firm on their stance not to give Baker a new contract.

CB Dwight Lowery,a fourth-round pick, has impressed the Jets with his smarts.

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[Kentucky Jet]

The argument for Ainge

Sunday, May 04, 2008

BY DAVE HUTCHINSON

Star-Ledger Staff

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- College quarterback guru David Cutcliffe knows young QBs, having coached Peyton Manning at Tennessee and Eli Manning at Mississippi. He feels the NFL scouts are dead wrong when it comes to his most recent protégé, Jets rookie quarterback Erik Ainge.

Cutcliffe, who is now head coach at Duke, tutored Ainge for two seasons at Tennessee. He was fighting mad while reading the overwhelmingly negative reviews on Ainge leading up to the NFL Draft.

"Ten years or so ago, people were wondering if teams should take Ryan Leaf or Peyton Manning, need I say more?" Cutcliffe said the other day via his cell phone while on a recruiting trip. "You look at a player's body of work.

"First, (Ainge) played in the SEC, which is really a test. I had him for two years and he took a beating. His completion percentage went from 45 percent (as a sophomore) to 67 percent at the end of his junior year. He had a great junior year because he had veteran receivers.

"Last season, with brand-new receivers and playing with a broken (pinkie) finger (on his throwing hand), he threw 31 touchdowns and 10 interceptions and got us in the SEC Championship game. That would be my answer to any critics."

That answer was good enough for the Jets, who drafted Ainge in the fifth round (162nd overall). He was the ninth quarterback taken.

"It's more about where you go and the situation that you're in, not the number of pick you are," said Ainge, who was giddy about being selected by the Jets, in part, because he's friends with Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens.

Ainge, 6-5, 225 pounds, is one of 57 players at the Jets' three-day rookie minicamp at Hofstra, which concludes today. During the portion of practice open to the media, he did little more than stretch.

Jets coach Eric Mangini said Ainge is a quick study and showed good read progression on routes and a strong huddle presence. He is also a film-room junkie.

Nonetheless, NFL scouts were brutal on Ainge despite his size and prolific stats. They questioned his toughness and arm strength. They called him inconsistent and injury prone. They said his delivery was slow and his passes too wobbly.

Never mind that Ainge threw for 8,700 yards, third-most in Volunteers history behind Peyton Manning and Casey Clausen, with 72 TDs and 35 INTs in 37 starts. He helped Tennessee put together three seasons of at least nine victories, won two SEC East Division titles and played in three bowl games.

"One criticism that I can't imagine where it came from is that he doesn't have the arm strength," said Cutcliffe. "He has great arm strength and it's going to get better as his knowledge of the game improves and he knows where to go with the ball."

Cutcliffe also praised Ainge's intelligence, work ethic, field vision and his ability to read coverages.

"My response to (the critics) is what coach Mangini, coach (Brian) Schottenheimer and coach (Brian) Daboll tell me I need to get better at, that's what I'm going to work on," Ainge said. ... "I think I have plenty of arm strength, but I don't think that's the determining factor in whether I end up a good pro or not."

Ainge, the nephew of former NBA star and current Celtics executive Danny Ainge (the pair are close), grew up just outside Portland, Ore. He didn't start playing football until the sixth grade. Basketball and baseball were his sports.

By high school, though, football was Ainge's game. He was named Oregon's Gatorade Player of the Year, throwing for 3,078 yards, 24 TDs and just eight INTs as a senior.

At Tennessee, Ainge started six of nine games as a true freshman before a shoulder injury ended his season. The following season, he started five of eight games, alternating with Clausen, who was a senior. Ainge started his final two seasons despite battling various injuries (knee, ankle, shoulder and finger).

Comparisons to Peyton Manning dogged Ainge at Tennessee. He shrugs them off, saying there'll never be another Peyton Manning.

"It's a matter of finding out what your niche is and what you're good at and just working really hard," Ainge said.

Asked to compare Ainge with the Manning brothers, Cutcliffe said simply, "It's not fair to compare anyone to the last two Super Bowl MVPs."

Dave Hutchinson may be reached

at dhutchinson@starledger.com

[Kentucky Jet]

http://www.newyorkjets.com/news/articles/show/2175-coach-s-saturday-news-conference

[Kentucky Jet]

Jets like TE's Keller instinct

By RICH CIMINI

DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Saturday, May 3rd 2008, 8:31 PM

Weissman for News

Jets' draft pick Dustin Keller works during rookie minicamp.

After his 68-catch, 881-yard senior year at Purdue, undersized tight end Dustin Keller was projected as a third-round draft pick. In an effort to improve his pro stock, he made an unusual - and risky - decision: He blew off the postseason all-star games.

The Senior Bowl extended an invitation, but he declined. The East-West Shrine game wanted him. Sorry, no thank you. It certainly raised eyebrows in the scouting community.

Instead of showcasing his talent before pro scouts, Keller decided to focus on training for the scouting combine in late February. He would've been used as a traditional, in-line tight end in the all-star games, he figured - a role he believes would've played to his weakness (blocking), not his strength (receiving). "It was a high-risk, high-reward kind of thing," Keller said yesterday at the Jets' rookie minicamp, which concludes Sunday at Hofstra. "It ended up being for the better."

With everything riding on the combine, Keller (6-2, 248) dazzled the NFL brass, blazing the 40 in 4.52 seconds - a quick sprint that made him a millionaire. As a first-round pick (30th overall), he will make about $5 million in guarantees. A third-rounder will receive about $750,000.

Obviously, Keller made a fantastic business decision, but it raised questions: Is he the type to duck a challenge? Does he have any interest in becoming a complete tight end?

The Jets insist that Keller will improve as a blocker; Keller agrees. But some opposing scouts think otherwise, saying he's a tight end/wide receiver hybrid, a situational player. Of course, it won't be such a bad situation if he develops into a legitimate receiving threat.

"He's faster than your average big guy," said Eric Mangini, already imagining the favorable matchups a fleet-footed H-Back will create.

The Jets, disregarding their awful history with first-round tight ends, thought so much of Keller that they traded up six spots to pick him, sending second- and fourth-round picks to the Packers. The Jets actually laid the groundwork for the trade several days before the draft, a source said.

They felt it was a good spot to take him because players of similar ilk were drafted in the same area in recent years - the Patriots' Ben Watson (No. 32 in 2004), the Colts' Dallas Clark (No. 24 in 2003) and the Ravens' Todd Heap (No. 31 in 2001).

Ostensibly, Keller gives the Jets leverage against the disgruntled Chris Baker, who wants a new contract and is boycotting the voluntary offseason program. But in reality, they play two different positions. Even with the addition of former Packer Bubba Franks, Baker remains the Jets' best two-way tight end.

Someday, Keller hopes to be that kind of player.

"Some people may perceive me one way. If it's in a negative sense, I go out and try to prove them wrong," he said.

Keller estimated he was used as a traditional tight end in about 90% of the plays last season. With the Jets, he'll line up in the slot and go in motion, a potential matchup problem for an opponent that stays in its base defense. If the defense switches to nickel, the Jets can exploit the sudden size advantage by pounding the ball on the ground.

Offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer came from an offense (the Chargers) that featured the tight end (Antonio Gates) in the passing game. In 2005, Schottenheimer's last year in San Diego, Gates made 37 of his 89 receptions as a split-out receiver, according to STATS, LLC. Naturally, the Jets would be tickled if Keller approaches that level. Say this for the rookie: He's fast. His life changed in 4.52 seconds.

LIVING IN A VACUUM: Fifth-round QB Erik Ainge (Tennessee) hasn't impressed with his arm strength, but he drew praise for his work in the classroom and leadership in the huddle. Ainge is so immersed in the camp that he didn't know his favorite team, the Celtics, lost Friday night to the Hawks, forcing a Game 7. His uncle, Danny Ainge, is the Celtics' GM. ... Diminutive RB Danny Woodhead, who rushed for nearly 8,000 yards at Division-II Chadron State, is returning punts for the first time since high school. Woodhead, Brown WR Paul Raymond and Wingate DE Kenwin Cummings have stood out among the undrafted free agents. ... WR William Bullard (6-5, 215), in camp as a non-roster player, played basketball at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He participated in the NCAA slam dunk contest at the Final Four, leaping over a person on his first jam.

[Kentucky Jet]

Ball High grad Johnson joining NY Jets

By Joshua Buckley

The Daily News

Published April 30, 2008

Football

Johnson Joining New York Jets

Ball High grad Rodrick Johnson admitted that it was nerve wracking to go unselected in this past weekend