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Should Dustin Keller start at TE?


DMaynard

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I think he should. I know his blocking is not as good as Baker's (hopefully it will be improved in his second year), but I think it would be a huge advantage to the offense to have him in the lineup on 1st and 2nd downs where the Jets could either run or pass. That way he gets receiving opportunities against the standard defenses and will usually be covered by a LB or a SS. When he came in off of the bench last year, it was often in passing situations, and the defenses focused on him with either a nickel back or the quicker safety. He still created mismatches because of his size. But I think starting him he can be a Tony Gonzales type and really give defenses fits. Especially play action where the defense has to respect the run. Baker could still be used in 2 TE formations and short yardage situations.

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Yeah I think it's a good idea to start keller so he can get open on 1st and 2nd, so we can get those 2 drops out of the way and move on to 3rd down.

Is this Eric Mangini? Exactly how many drops did he have last year? Besides the one that Mangini went out of his way to point out?

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Is this Eric Mangini? Exactly how many drops did he have last year? Besides the one that Mangini went out of his way to point out?

He actually had a bunch.. he's a rookie,a nd hopefully he's better this year, but it wasn't just one.

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I'd love to see him win the job, but I don't think it'll be easy. Baker's a better blocker with capable hands in his own right, and the Jets will likely be much more run first this year than last. If Keller wins the job, it'll mean he's really stepped up in the blocking department.

I'd like to see more two TE sets, but that'll probably be dependent on whether Tony Richardson comes back for another year or not.

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Yes he should start but I think we will still see more of him in the slot than on the line of scrimmage. Chris Baker will be used more on the L.O.S. if he's kept around.

I could see a lot of that, especially if no one develops as the 3rd WR (Chancey, Smith, Clowney, other?). The key is getting Keller on the field as much as possible. Right now, I think he is there best receiving threat with a lot more upside.

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He actually had a bunch.. he's a rookie,a nd hopefully he's better this year, but it wasn't just one.

I remember a few, but it was not like McCareins or even Coles last year. I remember the 48 he caught in part time duty as a rookie. Especially against the Pats in OT.

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I could see a lot of that, especially if no one develops as the 3rd WR (Chancey, Smith, Clowney, other?). The key is getting Keller on the field as much as possible. Right now, I think he is there best receiving threat with a lot more upside.

Exactly. We don't really have a 3rd receiver right now (although everyone loves Clowney, we have to see him do it in a real game more than just one nice grab against Buffalo). Put Keller in the slot and leave Baker on the line to block.

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I think he should. I know his blocking is not as good as Baker's (hopefully it will be improved in his second year), but I think it would be a huge advantage to the offense to have him in the lineup on 1st and 2nd downs where the Jets could either run or pass. That way he gets receiving opportunities against the standard defenses and will usually be covered by a LB or a SS. When he came in off of the bench last year, it was often in passing situations, and the defenses focused on him with either a nickel back or the quicker safety. He still created mismatches because of his size. But I think starting him he can be a Tony Gonzales type and really give defenses fits. Especially play action where the defense has to respect the run. Baker could still be used in 2 TE formations and short yardage situations.

Good point.

It's a big playbook, I'm sure starting Keller on some downs doesn't mean there's no place for Baker. Keller can actually pick up his yards as you described, then in passing situations, Bakers slides off his blocking assignment and gets a nice opening, they'll won't even be thinking about him if keller's in the slot.

i think we have to start looking at Keller as a slot receiver diguised as a TE. Just like Gonzalez is a KC reciever and Winslow and shocky...they are TE's second.

Then when teams get "hip" to the fact, they will get a little less sleep thinking about #81.

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Good point.

It's a big playbook, I'm sure starting Keller on some downs doesn't mean there's no place for Baker. Keller can actually pick up his yards as you described, then in passing situations, Bakers slides off his blocking assignment and gets a nice opening, they'll won't even be thinking about him if keller's in the slot.

i think we have to start looking at Keller as a slot receiver diguised as a TE. Just like Gonzalez is a KC reciever and Winslow and shocky...they are TE's second.

Then when teams get "hip" to the fact, they will get a little less sleep thinking about #81.

Not to beat a dead horse, but the other thing I like about Ratliff over Clemens is Ratliff appears to be more mobile and able to throw on the run better. Keller should be an ideal target on a play action rollout. As much as Favre liked Keller, the Jets didn't run this play much because of Favre's lack of mobility. Ironically, Chad would have been great with Keller (calm down Chadophiles, I am just making a point). Chad is very good at the play action fake and rolling out and hitting the TE, as he did so well with the Miami TEs this year. He didn't have as much success with the Jets because Becht was way too slow and Baker, though better, is no where as quick and agile as Keller.

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Yes he should without a doubt. He's one of the few offensive threats on this team and he can make plays. Chris Baker simpy does not offer the same sort of threat.

It is a shame that Baker is not faster. He has very good hands and his size gives QBs a big target. He just can't get any separation and he certainly is not much of a threat running with the ball after the catch.

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I remember a few, but it was not like McCareins or even Coles last year. I remember the 48 he caught in part time duty as a rookie. Especially against the Pats in OT.

He was extremely solid in the Pats game. Showed a lot of potential. It was after that game and the TEN game w here all of a sudden he got butter on his fingers.

McCareins also wasn't as bad as this site depicts. He was quite bad, but not like Worst of All Time bad.

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He was extremely solid in the Pats game. Showed a lot of potential. It was after that game and the TEN game w here all of a sudden he got butter on his fingers.

McCareins also wasn't as bad as this site depicts. He was quite bad, but not like Worst of All Time bad.

It was just the timing of that drop against Baltimore. Kellens first start, leading a comeback against a tough defense and J-Mac drops the game tying TD. I can't blame Jet fans for turning on him to be honest.

As for Keller, he may be our best downfield threat on offense. Which is a sad thing and doesn't say much for our WR's. I just think he needs to be utilized more effectively than he was last season. He has tremendous upside as a reciever.

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I think he should. I know his blocking is not as good as Baker's (hopefully it will be improved in his second year), but I think it would be a huge advantage to the offense to have him in the lineup on 1st and 2nd downs where the Jets could either run or pass. That way he gets receiving opportunities against the standard defenses and will usually be covered by a LB or a SS. When he came in off of the bench last year, it was often in passing situations, and the defenses focused on him with either a nickel back or the quicker safety. He still created mismatches because of his size. But I think starting him he can be a Tony Gonzales type and really give defenses fits. Especially play action where the defense has to respect the run. Baker could still be used in 2 TE formations and short yardage situations.

Glad my 20,000th post is in your thread D. I'm in agreement here. He's a great target as a receiver. He should be the starter next year. The blocking aspect of the position will come with drills.

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