SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 QBs and moving camp March 27 The moment Brett Favre left, Kellen Clemens and Brett Ratliff knew they were in a good spot. As the leading in-house candidates, new coach Rex Ryan has continuously voiced support for the pair during interviews. So when the Jay Cutler rumors started, it was deja vu all over again for Clemens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Rhodes no fan of c*o*c*k*y Cutler FLORHAM PARK — There has been a lot of talk recently about Jay Cutler, the disgruntled Denver quarterback whom many believe would be a good fit for the Jets, who have yet to pencil in a starter at that position in 2009. But don’t ask safety Kerry Rhodes to lead that bandwagon. In fact, it’s probably best if you don’t ask Rhodes about Cutler, period. Rhodes declined to talk about Cutler after Denver’s 34-17 victory over the Jets on Nov. 30. When asked about Cutler’s performance after the game, Rhodes said, "I don’t want to talk about him. I don’t like him." When asked again Thursday about Cutler, Rhodes didn’t back off, saying, "Me and Jay don’t get along too well right now. ... You can be confident, but when you’re too confident for your own good, that can be a little tough." Rhodes acknowledged that he hasn’t been a fan of the ****y Cutler since the Vanderbilt product entered the NFL in 2006. Cutler demanded a trade from Denver after he felt he was disrespected when first-year coach Josh McDaniels brought up his name during trade discussions for New England quarterback Matt Cassel, who eventually was dealt to Kansas City. Coach Rex Ryan has repeatedly professed his confidence in the three quarterbacks on the Jets’ roster — Kellen Clemens, Brett Ratliff and Erik Ainge. "I’ve met with [Ryan] a few times privately," Clemens said, "and it does a lot for a quarterback’s confidence knowing that the head coach believes in what he’s got in the locker room. "It’s an interesting thing," Clemens said, "preparing to try to be a major contributor to a football team and there’s always all the rumors that are floating around and, at times, can be distracting. "I’m not going to lie. I’ve heard about them, and it wasn’t something where I was like, ‘Oh, good. Jay would be here. That would be great. We can hang out.’ "You try to ignore it. I’m trying to focus on the things that are actually under my control. ... I just try to dismiss it as best I can. It’s a lot easier said than done sometimes." "I try not to focus on things like that because I can’t control that," Ratliff said of the Cutler talk. "I can control how hard I work so that’s what I’m going to continue to do." Right tackle Damien Woody doesn’t think the Jets need to make a trade for a quarterback. "This is the ideal situation to break a young guy in because we have a lot of really good pieces in place," Woody said. Clemens said, "I believe if I’m under center, we have playoff potential." BRIEFS: Running back Thomas Jones continues to be a no-show for the voluntary off-season conditioning program, in its second week. ... Meanwhile, negotiations have begun between the Jets and running back Leon Washington, whose contract is up after this season. "I’d say I’m hopeful" that something will get done, Washington said. "I want to be a Jet." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aec4 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 QBs and moving camp March 27 The moment Brett Favre left, Kellen Clemens and Brett Ratliff knew they were in a good spot. As the leading in-house candidates, new coach Rex Ryan has continuously voiced support for the pair during interviews. So when the Jay Cutler rumors started, it was deja vu all over again for Clemens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 AFC East Needs: the Jets and the Patriots The opening wave of free agency came and went in a flash, and now things have slowed to trot as teams have already been bargain-shopping. Most of the contracts being signed now are for one-year deals at the veteran minimum, which means that most teams have turned their full attention to the draft. By this time, teams would like to have addressed their most pressing needs so they can enter the draft with a plan to select the best available athlete. The truth is, building a football team is like owning a house Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Leon Washington bucking for more money from Jets in extension Leon Washington sounded like an agent - his own agent. The Jets' all-purpose dynamo, entering the final year of his original contract, is seeking a long-term extension. Washington didn't say how much he wants, but it's probably safe to assume that anybody who compares himself to Hall of Famer Gale Sayers is looking for mega bucks. "I'm trying to revolutionize the game, trying to take it to the next level like the guys back in the day, like a Dave Meggett or a Gale Sayers," he said Thursday at the team's offseason program. "They did so much and did it so well. I want to bring that style back at a high level. In my opinion, that, plus the leadership I give in the locker room, is priceless." The Jets, too, would like to hammer out a new deal by the start of the season. Washington is believed to be seeking at least $4 million a year. He is due to make $535,000 in 2009. It will be an interesting decision for the Jets, who are dealing with an unhappy Thomas Jones. The defending AFC rushing champ, skipping workouts, wants a new contract. Washington, coming off his first Pro Bowl season, is hoping to finalize a deal before training camp. "The Jets traditionally have done the right thing with guys that play well," he said. "I put the work in and, hopefully, it pays off for me sooner rather than later." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Jets' Scott wants discipline, but not silly rules FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - Bart Scott believes in discipline. But he said Rex Ryan, whom Scott knows well from their days in Baltimore, isn't the type to implement rules for their own sake. "[Ryan's] not going to rule you to death, just put in a rule to put in a rule like 'Pull your socks up when you walk around the building,' " Scott said yesterday. "How does that hurt me or help the team? Let's not stress each other out with stuff that has nothing to do with winning. If it has something to do with winning, then I'm all for it and I'm sure Rex is all for it ... But if it's just something to do to do, then what's its purpose?" Scott seems incapable of speaking in cliches. He was asked about coaches such as the Giants' Tom Coughlin, who requires players to be five minutes early for meetings; the implication being that five minutes early is actually "on time." "If you want me five minutes early, then tell me to come [then]," Scott said. "If you want me there at 6:55, then set the meeting for 6:55 and I'll show. Just tell me what you want." QBs enjoy support in room A sampling of players showed support for the quarterbacks - Kellen Clemens, Brett Ratliff and Erik Ainge - slotted to compete for the starting job, despite the rumors of the team's interest in Jay Cutler. "This is the ideal situation to break a young guy in because we have a lot of really good pieces in place," Damien Woody said. "We have a really good running game; I think the defense is really going to take off this year. With Coach [Mike] Westhoff we always have good special teams. I'm really optimistic about everything that's going on. To me, this is the perfect time to really break in a young guy. Let's see what they can do." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Rex's Training Camp May Be a Road Show 03/26 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Jets QBs not thinking about Cutler FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - The moment Brett Favre left the Jets, Kellen Clemens and Brett Ratliff knew they were in a good spot. As the leading in-house quarterback candidates, new coach Rex Ryan has continuously voiced support for the pair during interviews. So when the Jay Cutler rumors started, it was deja vu all over again for Clemens. "It's an interesting thing preparing to try to be a major contributor to a football team and there's always all the rumors that are floating around," Clemens said. "And at times they can be distracting, I'm not going to lie I heard about them. And it wasn't something like, 'Oh good, Jay'd be here, that'd be great. We can hang out!' I'm trying to focus on the things that are actually under my control." The injection of Denver's disgruntled quarterback into the Jets' discussion is awfully reminiscent of last season, when Clemens and Chad Pennington were vying for the starting role before Brett Favre arrived. The two addressed Favre rumors, without thinking they would actually come true. Ryan said earlier this week he doesn't think the Jets need to go for a veteran quarterback given the players they already have. "Everyone seems to think we have major issues there," Ryan said. "I don't think the situation is what people think it is. I think we're going to be just fine." All three quarterbacks, including dark-horse candidate Erik Ainge, spoke yesterday as the Jets opened the locker room to the media after players worked out. Everyone but running back Thomas Jones, who is in the middle of a contact dispute with the team, has been in for workouts four days a week. Ratliff, acquired as an undrafted free agent in 2007, has been coming in since January, and appears to have added some muscle. "Trying to, trying to gain a little weight," Ratliff said. Last season, Ratliff impressed a lot of Jets watchers with his performance during the preseason, but his regular season stats read zeros all the way across. Drafted in the second round in 2006, Clemens was given the starting job during the 2007 season and played 10 games, throwing five touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Both players said they learned from the starters who they backed up. Clemens said he has spoken to both Favre and Pennington this year. Ratliff said Favre's effect on the Jets will linger. "One of the biggest things I learned about him is that the game is meant to be fun," Ratliff said. "He always had a good time. It's crazy to see how much one guy could affect a team." But the arrival of Favre didn't mean the end of Pennington's season. Just the Jets part of it. "Him working hard and being the guy he is, (Pennington) went down to Miami and won 11 games and went to the playoffs," Ratliff said. "His hard work paid off. It wasn't necessarily with the Jets, it was with the Dolphins. He went down there and he was lighting it up down there." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFlaJets Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 DESPITE CRITICS, KELL HAS NO FURY Kellen Clemens, as much as he tries to close his ears to all of it, cannot help but hear the litany of negative opinions and analysis about the Jets' unsettled quarterback situation. And it has him fired up. JETS BLOG Clemens is astute enough to know that -- fair or not -- almost universally fans, media and football people everywhere don't believe the Jets have a starting-caliber quarterback on their roster. "Yeah, it's like the end of the world," Clemens said yesterday during a break in the offseason strength and conditioning program at the team's facility in Florham Park, NJ. "I've heard it. I try not to listen to it, but some of it always leaks through. It certainly is a motivating thing to think that myself and the two other guys in the locker room playing the position [brett Ratliff and Erik Ainge] are getting overlooked." Overlooked might be a bit of an understatement. Disrespected is more appropriate. Yet Clemens, who started eight games in 2007 (going 3-5) and is locked in an open competition for the starting job in 2009 with Ratliff and Ainge (neither of whom have played in an NFL game), remains confident. At one point, he was asked this question by a TV reporter: "If you're the No. 1 quarterback for the Jets this year, are you a playoff team?" "I believe that if I'm under center we have playoff potential; yeah, absolutely," Clemens said. After a pause, he added, "I said it . . . (but) I'm not going pull a Namath on you." Part of the chatter Clemens has heard this offseason has been the endless speculation that the Jets might acquire disgruntled Broncos quarterback Jay Cutler. "It's an interesting thing preparing to try to be a major contributor to a football team and there's always all the rumors that are floating around," Clemens said. "At times they can be distracting. I've heard them and it's not something like, 'Oh good, Jay will be here. That's great. We can hang out.' "You try to ignore those things. I try to dismiss it as much as I can, which is a lot easier said than done. My job right now is [to] go out and prove that we don't need to go outside of what's already in the locker room." There are a number of players in the Jets' locker room who'd like to know as soon as possible who the starter will be. "The sooner the better we get that position settled," wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery said. "I'd just like to know, to establish chemistry with the quarterback." Asked if having a new starting QB might be a "step back" for the offense, Cotchery said, "I'm kind of scared of that." * RB Leon Washington, who's entering the final year of his contract and is scheduled to make a $452,000 base in 2009, said he's "hopeful" the team will sign him to a new deal before the end of this season. "Bottom line is I want to be a Jet," he said. "I love playing for New York. I feel like my career should start and end here." * One player who wants no part of Cutler coming to New York is S Kerry Rhodes, who was irritated by ****y comments Cutler made to some of his teammates when Denver beat the Jets last season. "Me and Jay just don't get along too well right now," Rhodes said. . . . RB Thomas Jones, who's apparently seeking a renegotiation of his contract that still has two years remaining, remains a no-show at the offseason conditioning program. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sperm Edwards Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Defensive End — Shaun Ellis' numbers were down in '08 They were? If you're going to base his performance purely on numbers, which is silly for a DE in a pure 3-4 anyway, he had his best "numbers" in 4 years. As in his '08 numbers were UP from 2005, 2006, and 2007. No problem with the perceived needs, other than he left out short-yardage/power RB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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