Very little Jets news today 7/7/08

[Kentucky Jet]

2008 NFL Offseason Page http://walterfootball.com/offseason2008nyj.php

New York Jets

New York Jets (Last Year: 4-12)

2008 NFL Season Preview:

Veteran Additions:

RB Musa Smith, RB Jesse Chatman, FB Tony Richardson, TE Bubba Franks, OT/G Damien Woody, G Alan Faneca, DE/OLB Calvin Pace, NT Kris Jenkins, CB Andre Woolfolk, S Cameron Worrell.

Draft Picks:

QB Erik Ainge, WR Marcus Henry, TE Dustin Keller, OT Nate Garner, DE/OLB Vernon Gholston, CB Dwight Lowery.

Offseason Losses:

QB Marques Tuiasosopo, FB Stacey Tutt, WR Justin McCareins, WR Chris Davis, TE Sean Ryan, OT Anthony Clement, G Wade Smith, G Adrien Clarke, DT Dewayne Robertson, OLB/ILB Victor Hobson, ILB Jonathan Vilma, CB Andre Dyson, S Erik Coleman.

2008 New York Jets Offense:

One question: Why is Chad Pennington still on this team? I have absolutely no idea why the Jets are wasting their time on him. I know Kellen Clemens tossed twice as many picks (10) as touchdowns (5), but after going through multiple knee surgeries, Pennington doesn't have the arm to succeed in the NFL. He lacks the proper strength to complete an out pattern, often getting picked off when he makes those throws (see the Giants and Bengals games for proof). Pennington is also a jerk, as it seems like he makes it a weekly routine to lash out at the media. He's quick to remind the reporters that covering him is a privilege. Another question: Does that mean it's also a privilege for fans to sit at Giants Stadium and watch Pennington throw like a 12-year-old girl?

In short, the Jets need to move away from the weak-armed Pennington and toward Clemens, who has much more potential. The knock on Clemens is that he can't read defenses and struggles with decision-making. Still, despite those negatives, Clemens, as a mere rookie, helped the Jets average more points per game (17) as a starter than when Pennington was penciled into the lineup (14.8).

And was Clemens so bad anyway? I have to put a lot of the blame on offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer, who called one of the worst games in NFL history on Thanksgiving. Here's a quick look at what happened in the first three quarters of that 34-3 beatdown:

Series in which Brian Schottenheimer called a run on first down:

Times a Run Was Called: 11

Average Yards Gained on Series: 6.0

Number of First Downs: 3

Number of Sacks/Fumbles/Interceptions/Penalties: 5

Number of Punts/Turnovers at End of Series: 8

CHI / DET / GB / MIN

ATL / CAR / NO / TB

ARZ / SF / SEA / STL

BUF / MIA / NE / NYJ

BAL / CIN / CLE / PIT

HOU /IND / JAX / TEN

DEN / KC / OAK / SD

Back to the 2008 NFL Offseason Page

2008 NFL Mock Draft

2008 NFL Free Agents

NFL Mock Draft Database

2008 NFL Draft Prospects

2009 NFL Mock Draft

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[Kentucky Jet]

The above article is very long. Please pull it up and read. It would take forever to try to post it all here. Thanks, KJ

[Kentucky Jet]

SAINTS DRAGGING THEIR FEET ON COLSTON

Posted by Mike Florio on July 6, 2008, 11:03 a.m. EDT

Receiver Marques Colston was the steal of the draft in 2006, a seventh-round pick who has become the team

[Kentucky Jet]

MARINO DROPPED FROM INSIDE THE NFL

Posted by Mike Florio on July 6, 2008, 10:27 p.m. EDT

As expected, the folks at Showtime have relied primarily on talent from its sister network, CBS, to staff the Inside the NFL operation.

But one key figure from the CBS on-air lineup won

[Kentucky Jet]

SHAUN TOO SOFT?

Posted by Mike Florio on July 6, 2008, 6:03 p.m. EDT

In an item from June 18 that a reader pointed out to us on Sunday, Clark Judge of CBSSports.com explained that veteran running back Shaun Alexander possibly is drawing no interest on the open market because he has a reputation for being too soft.

That was the prevailing opinion that developed as Judge polled the coaching and personnel community regarding the attitudes toward Alexander, the league’s Most Valuable Player in 2005.

“He doesn’t have anything left,” one NFC general manager told Judge. “People are always talking about the numbers, but the numbers don’t tell the story. There’s the injury factor. And the hands factor. And a desire and competitiveness that don’t seem to be there. He’s never been known as a very tough player, and there have always been questions about his attitude. I’m not saying that because he’s out there [unsigned] now. I would have told you the same thing four or five years ago. Basically, I don’t like him [as a back], and I don’t trust him.”

There’s also a concern that Alexander wouldn’t be worth the cash he’d want, given his stature and accomplishments.

As a result, there’s a good chance (in our view) that Alexander doesn’t find a financial package that he deems worthy of his talents, and that he decides to hang it up.

Meanwhile, a recent item in the Boston Herald, which cites the Judge report, seems offer up a bizarre suggestion that Alexander is being blackballed not because of his football abilities but because of his Christian beliefs.

“This principle is partly what makes Alexander a pillar in his community and a pariah to some NFL general managers,” the Herald item states. “Football is not Alexander’s first love.”

Meanwhile, Alexander is hoping that a Higher Power will help him to sift through the offers (there are any?) and to find one that will help him finish what he started in Seattle.

“I’m asking God to close doors that need to be closed and open up whatever needs to be open so I can go there, win a Super Bowl, impact the team, impact the community,” Alexander told the Herald. “That’s been my goal.”

It all sounds good on paper, but there are good Christian men on every NFL roster. Apparently, God only wants 1/32nd of them to win the Super Bowl each year.

So maybe God has other goals when connecting a player to an employer. Or maybe God doesn’t really care if a given man or a given team win the Super Bowl.

Anyway, it’s July and Alexander doesn’t have a job. Our guess is that his best shot will come if he greatly reduces his monetary expectations, and if one of the top backs on another team gets seriously injured during training camp or the preseason.

sorry 124 I should have read the main board first!

[Kentucky Jet]

Florida camp helps Steelers reach higher level

By John Harris

TRIBUNE-REVIEW

Sunday, July 6, 2008

Buzz up!

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- Steelers linebacker James Farrior was drenched in sweat, his muscular upper body sagging from physical exertion in the sweltering central Florida heat at Disney's Wide World of Sports.

And then something magical occurred.

Farrior recovered quickly after running several "gassers" while wearing a weighted vest and pulling a parachute. The chute popped open and billowed behind him upon reaching top speed while offering 30 pounds of resistance.

Upon catching his breath, Farrior eagerly proclaimed himself ready for the next stage of the football boot camp better known as Tom Shaw Performance Enhancement.

story continues below

"It's the Fountain of Youth down here," said Farrior, at 33 the second oldest player on the Steelers. "This is probably the biggest key to my offseason and my training program, as far as me playing at a high level. A guy my age, it takes a little bit extra. You've got to do a little bit more, work a little bit longer, just to keep up with the younger guys."

Farrior, a 12-year veteran and the Steelers' defensive captain, was the oldest NFL player who attended Shaw's popular speed-and-conditioning camp. Having endured the camp for several years, he glided through the myriad of drills as though he was in his mid-20s.

Membership has its privileges.

"James wants to play four more years -- that was our last conversation," Shaw said. "This is the only job in the country that you're not trying to retire. These guys don't want to retire. They want to play as long as they can."

Steelers flock to Orlando

Bypassing an opportunity for some rest and relaxation in the final weeks leading up to the start of training camp at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Farrior and three of his Steelers teammates -- wide receiver Santonio Holmes and cornerbacks Ike Taylor and Bryant McFadden -- made the trek to Florida in what has become an annual event.

According to Holmes, who led NFL receivers in yards per catch last season, it's a sacrifice that more players should make.

"Coming here to work out is a lot of fun," said Holmes, who was roundly criticized in the local media last month for saying that the Steelers conducted too many voluntary workouts. "It brings a lot of excitement. It's way different than having to sit in a classroom all day, studying plays, watching film and then going out to football practice.

"It gives you a totally different mind-set because you know you're coming out here with about 15-20 other guys from different teams in the NFL that want to compete a lot harder than you.

"When you have teammates, throughout practice you're gonna get that urge to take a step back," said Holmes, who also led the Steelers in receiving yards and touchdowns in 2007. "You don't want to hurt your teammates. You don't want to go too hard. But down here, you're going to get guys working at 100 mph every time."

Said Taylor, who purchased an offseason home in the Orlando area so he could be closer to Disney's training base: "We all have one goal as a team. Just to have a few teammates come in and work out with each other, it definitely helps. We know how hard we work down here. I'm sure other guys are working hard wherever they're at. Today this workout felt like a training camp day. I don't think you can really get that from anywhere else."

There's little that can duplicate the heat at Wide World of Sports, which averages around 90 degrees in the summer.

"They like this heat to get the sweat going," said Frank Beyer, one of Shaw's assistants who is from Bradford, Pa. "We are in a huge steam/sauna bath. Hell, it's not really all that hot yet."

Asked to compare the weather on a typical summer day in central Florida and Latrobe, Farrior snorted his response.

"It doesn't compare," Farrior said. "It gets hot at Latrobe, and we might have a couple of hot days, but down here it's humid every day."

In addition to the unique running exercises, position-specific drills and intense weight lifting that have become staples of the program, the players also play football.

During 7-on-7 passing drills, Taylor and McFadden were often matched against Holmes, just as they will be when training camp opens July 28.

"Me and Tone go against each other almost every day in practice, and we're doing the same thing here," said McFadden, who's entering his fourth season. "He's getting better, he's helping me get better, along with going against Ike. For us to be successful as a team, individually, we need to have successful guys also."

Shaw a 'speed guru'

Leading the players through their paces is Shaw, a former speed and conditioning coach with the New England Patriots and New Orleans Saints and an assistant track coach at Florida State. Nicknamed "The Speed Guru," Shaw popularized the SPARQ (speed, power, agility, reaction, quickness) training method.

Among the first coaches to train college players for the NFL draft, Shaw moved to Florida in late 2005 after Hurricane Katrina damaged his facility in Kenner, La., near the airport in New Orleans. He has trained dozens of NFL stars, including the past six Super Bowl MVPs.

"In New Orleans, we had a great facility, but guys were killing me because they had $6 million or $7 million facilities," Shaw said. "Now when I recruit athletes to come train at Disney's Wide World of Sports, it doesn't seem like they bring up facilities any more.

"This is a $100-million facility. We're building a 100-lane bowling alley. We have 10 full football fields. We have a full weight room. We have training rooms. The same thing they can get (with) their NFL team is here."

On the field, Shaw's mantra to the players is speed kills.

"The No. 1 thing is we try to enhance speed and explosive power," Shaw said. "We try to work on vertical jump and standing long jump. The more explosive you are, the more powerful you are, there's a good chance that you're still going to be able to keep your speed. Every technique that we work on is to increase explosiveness."

Shaw was asked about the number of Steelers he trains - more than any NFL team.

"The Steelers have a really good program, and they always have," he said. "Garrett Giemont is a really good strength coach. It's just I give them an opportunity to get away, to come to Florida, to come to Disney World with their families. They work out, they do everything they can to get better as football players during the morning. In the afternoon, they get an opportunity to go to the different theme parks. That's the big thing."

Farrior adds longevity

The amenities are nice, but hardly the only attraction. Players train with Shaw because his system produces results.

"I feel like it extended my career and enabled me to play at a high level throughout the whole season," said Farrior, who started all 16 games for the fourth time in five years while leading the team in tackles the past two seasons.

"I feel like when I'm down here, I get in tremendous shape, and my body's always at its best. Tom does a good job of not overworking us. When we go to training camp, we'll be in our best shape."

In addition to those Steelers currently training with Shaw, Pro Bowl linebacker James Harrison was expected to join his teammates at Disney World late last week.

Other Steelers who have trained with Shaw include wide receivers Hines Ward, Dallas Baker and rookie Limas Sweed, linebacker Larry Foote and safety Anthony Smith, who is expected to return to central Florida to work out before the start of training camp.

In a surprising revelation, Shaw said former Steelers quarterback Kordell Stewart was a visitor a few months ago.

"At the beginning of the offseason, Kordell came down because the Atlanta Falcons told him to get in shape because they were looking for somebody," Shaw said. "Kordell came down and worked out for four weeks."

Stewart didn't sign with Atlanta. But the fact that he sought out Shaw after being inactive for several years speaks volumes about Shaw's reputation among NFL players.

Impressive list of players

Among the players working out last week at the Wide World of Sports complex were Minnesota safeties Darren Sharper and Michael Boulware, New Orleans defensive end Charles Grant, Jacksonville fullback Greg Jones, Buffalo cornerback Ashton Youboty, Carolina cornerback back Ricardo Colclough (formerly with the Steelers), Minnesota quarterback Tavaris Jackson and St. Louis tackle Alex Barron.

"This is my eighth year working with coach Shaw in the offseason," Sharper said. "I came here before my fourth year in the NFL. The end result was that I had a great season and went to the Pro Bowl, so I was pretty much sold."

Sharper's success resulted in Farrior, a long-time friend from their native Virginia, joining him to train in the offseason.

Holmes and McFadden began training with Shaw upon leaving college and preparing for the draft. Taylor has trained with Shaw since he was in the sixth grade.

"To me, (Shaw) is the best," said Taylor, who led the Steelers in interceptions and was second in tackles last season. "He always comes up with something new, year in and year out."

Shaw's methods differ from other trainers. A former sprinter at Central Michigan, he has a master's degree in exercise physiology. He puts players through a battery of drills that are position specific.

Then there's the running. Shaw's players run wearing vests weighing between 17 and 22 pounds. Running with a parachute ensures that players assume a forward lean while remaining on the balls of their feet. The goal is to prevent hamstring pulls while preparing players for the rigors of training camp two-a-days. Lifting weights after the workouts helps prevent injury.

"We have the total program," said Shaw, a native of New Port Richey, Fla. "We do the running drills for speed. We do the football-specific stuff. And then we lift weights. The whole reason you go to the weight room is to keep guys from being injured."

Said Holmes: "A lot of people think we just go to coach Shaw, work on our running drills and go home. It's probably something that nobody sees us do, use weights, but we get in a group and really work our tails off. I felt drastic improvement after my (last) year in college to my first year in the NFL after working out with coach Shaw. I'm going to continue training with him every year that I can."

John Harris can be reached at jharris@tribweb.com or 412-481-5432.

Back to headlines

[BroadwayJ667]

Sounds to me like Bill O'rielly wrote the first article, most of it seems made up and the facts are wrong

chad never had knee surgeries, he had rotator cuff surgeries.

chad has never been a jerk, he's always been a professional. i've met him so i have first hand experience to prove it.

chad has always been a winner until last year when the whole team just stunk.

now all that being said, Kellen should be the starter,

if you can't throw a 10 yard out route with zip, you are in trouble

[Sperm Edwards]

Sounds to me like Bill O'rielly wrote the first article, most of it seems made up and the facts are wrong

chad never had knee surgeries, he had rotator cuff surgeries.

chad has never been a jerk, he's always been a professional. i've met him so i have first hand experience to prove it.

chad has always been a winner until last year when the whole team just stunk.

now all that being said, Kellen should be the starter,

if you can't throw a 10 yard out route with zip, you are in trouble

The knee thing I'm sure he mis-wrote. Everyone knows he had two shoulder surgeries.

I wouldn't say Chad has never been a jerk, but he does come across generally as a pretty nice and decent person.

Disagree on Chad "always" being a winner. He's been a loser quite often.

Clemens should be given a shot because there is zero chance of Chad taking us where we want to go. If he's no better than he was last year, then the acquisition of someone better is no longer subject to opinion.

[#27TheDominator]

The knee thing I'm sure he mis-wrote. Everyone knows he had two shoulder surgeries.

I wouldn't say Chad has never been a jerk, but he does come across generally as a pretty nice and decent person.

Disagree on Chad "always" being a winner. He's been a loser quite often.

Clemens should be given a shot because there is zero chance of Chad taking us where we want to go. If he's no better than he was last year, then the acquisition of someone better is no longer subject to opinion.

Did you read the rest of that mess? There were plenty of things he "mis-wrote" like calling Erik Ainge a backup "cornerback". I lost all respect by the time I read the "off-season needs" :

8. Interior Line: The cupboard is pretty bare for New York's interior front. They should add a lineman or two for depth purposes

Eight!?!?! Depth purposes?!?! Does this guy realize that the Jets started Adrien Clarke at LG last year? Interior line was #1 by a long shot. Bad as Clement is/was, he is Jonathan Ogden compared to Clarke. Pretty comprehensive piece, but I disagree with much of it. It's another article written from the fantasy football perspective and I find I often get aggravated reading those.

[Sperm Edwards]

I'll be honest, I only skimmed through what was posted here very quickly & didn't click the link until just now. Missed that thing about Ainge as well, but it was probably another mis-type. He rated Ainge in his draft preview and thought Woodson was a better quarterback available to them.

Still, it seems he's not one for editing/proofreading his own work. And it's hard to argue that there were 7 bigger areas of need than LG, being that the Jets didn't have one in between trading Kendall and signing Faneca.

[BroadwayJ667]

sperm there is a thing though if you are a professional, you have to proofread your work and make sure you get your facts straight.

but c'mon chad never had a losing season before last year, the guy could have won the big one for the jets if his arm wasn't made of silly string. he has everything needed from a QB except the physical tools.

so unless he can figure out a way to make his arm stronger, he should step back teach KC to be one of the best and get a ring that way

[#27TheDominator]

sperm there is a thing though if you are a professional, you have to proofread your work and make sure you get your facts straight.

but c'mon chad never had a losing season before last year, the guy could have won the big one for the jets if his arm wasn't made of silly string. he has everything needed from a QB except the physical tools.

so unless he can figure out a way to make his arm stronger, he should step back teach KC to be one of the best and get a ring that way

I'm sure the author knew it was Chad's shoulder and that Ainge is a QB not a CB. I agree it requires more proofreading, but that's the thing with the internet. You post your draft and hopefully correct it as you discover mistakes. I don't think that was really a "professional" piece.

I have more problems with some of his other points, such as: 1. Pennington is a jerk that abuses the media. This appears to be a blatant fabrication. 2. Mangini is an idiot for sticking with the 3-4, but at least it got a good draft pick. How was the draft pick after they went 10-6 in '06? 3. The previously mentioned "offseason needs" list is a total joke. I could continue, but you get the point.

[Sperm Edwards]

sperm there is a thing though if you are a professional, you have to proofread your work and make sure you get your facts straight.

but c'mon chad never had a losing season before last year, the guy could have won the big one for the jets if his arm wasn't made of silly string. he has everything needed from a QB except the physical tools.

so unless he can figure out a way to make his arm stronger, he should step back teach KC to be one of the best and get a ring that way

He was one of the main reasons we didn't even flirt with a .500 record by the time he was benched. A better QB wins at least 4 more games, since I count 4 games he blew towards the end with his back-breaking picks. Even in the Cincy game, as bad as the defense played, it was Chad who gift-wrapped & sealed the Bengals' victory.

2002: 9-6 including playoffs

2003: 4-6

2004: 9-6 including playoffs

2005: 1-2

2006: 10-7 including playoffs

2007: 1-8

-----------

Total: Jets were 34-35 with Pennington as the team's primary QB for the game.

It is a great leap of faith to assume this is the best the Jets could have done. The main rationalization seems to be how useless his backups were (most notably in 2005 with Fiedler/Vinny at age 42/Bollinger). As though Pennington would have surely guided that team to 9 regular-season wins (a task he has accomplished exactly once in his entire career).

Further, I would say a decent QB gets at least a few more wins than Chad got for us last year. No matter how many times people say "Tom Brady couldn't do crap with our team" doesn't make it true. Pennington blew at least 3 games with his own incompetence & panic-in-the-pocket garbage.

In his most successful (and only) full season, the Jets got shut out TWICE. I mean the guy didn't even get us in good FG range for two full games and still people are sucking him off for how he "led" us to 10 wins. He led us to jack squat. The defense that everyone mocked gave up the 6th-fewest points in the NFL and that's why we won 10 games. Not because of that overpaid, rag-armed loser. When the defense didn't create at least 3 turnovers, what was the Jets record in 2006? 5-6. What a winner.

He is and has been severely overrated by Jets fans who see 9 wins as a crowning achievement. And I dismiss any argument of "what if he didn't hurt his shoulder" because he DID. Twice. And his wrist once. And his ankle once. Injuries are part of what he brings to the table. He's just unreliable and has been for his entire career after 2002.