Ken O'Brien

[Biggs]

He wasn't the most mobile guy and our O-line flat out sucked. O'Brien was sacked before the ball was fully in his hands, most of the time. It's hard to pass from flat on your back.

I have always believed that if the Jets had drafted Marino and Miami had drafted O'Brien, they would have had each other's careers.

I don't see it Marino's mechanics and the speed of his delivery were just flat out better than OBrien's.

[JoeWillie]

He wasn't the most mobile guy and our O-line flat out sucked. O'Brien was sacked before the ball was fully in his hands, most of the time. It's hard to pass from flat on your back.

I have always believed that if the Jets had drafted Marino and Miami had drafted O'Brien, they would have had each other's careers.

Respectfully disagree.

Dan Marino was one of the 10 greatest quarterbacks to ever play ... More accurate passer, better footwork, tremendous poise and pocket presence, much quicker release, and downright scary with the game on the line.

O'Brien was a good player, probably the 2nd best QB the Jets have ever had up until this point.

But to say he could have had the career Dan Marino had if he was in Marino's situation is, in my opinion, a HUGE stretch.

Marino "carried" the Dolphins for most of his career.

O'Brien never "carried" the Jets.

[SoFlaJets]

I don't see it Marino's mechanics and the speed of his delivery were just flat out better than OBrien's.

how old are you Biggs? Man I'll tell you Kenny was on his back a lot of the time before he even got to set up-we're talking 2005 bad O-line bro-you had to see it to believe it

[Biggs]

how old are you Biggs? Man I'll tell you Kenny was on his back a lot of the time before he even got to set up-we're talking 2005 bad O-line bro-you had to see it to believe it

I was in my early teens when Namath was signed.

Kenny was a real nice passer but he was more than slow footed in the pocket if he had to move laterally at all he was meat. He delivered a nice ball but he didn't get rid of the ball like Marino did, not even close. Marino also while slow footed moved laterally allot better than OBrein.

[bobbyjet69]

how old are you Biggs? Man I'll tell you Kenny was on his back a lot of the time before he even got to set up-we're talking 2005 bad O-line bro-you had to see it to believe it

i seen it, and it was definately more than the O line. he held the ball way too long. i beleive if Marino was our qb, we would've won a SB or 2!

[SoFlaJets]

I was in my early teens when Namath was signed.

Kenny was a real nice passer but he was more than slow footed in the pocket if he had to move laterally at all he was meat. He delivered a nice ball but he didn't get rid of the ball like Marino did, not even close. Marino also while slow footed moved laterally allot better than OBrein.

yea he did slide well in the pocket-like Brady does now...but he would have definitely taken a lot of shots-which he hated as you will well remember-and he NEVER threw a pass on the play after he was hit-always handed it off-Kenny was one tough Irishman

[Biggs]

yea he did slide well in the pocket-like Brady does now...but he would have definitely taken a lot of shots-which he hated as you will well remember-and he NEVER threw a pass on the play after he was hit-always handed it off-Kenny was one tough Irishman

Kenny was tough but that might have been part of his problem?

Kenny also had some great WR's. I've seen a ton of great WR over the years and while he isn't going into the HOF nobody was better than Al Toon when he was healthy. Marino didn't have anyone close to his talent to throw to.

[SoFlaJets]

Kenny was tough but that might have been part of his problem?

Kenny also had some great WR's. I've seen a ton of great WR over the years and while he isn't going into the HOF nobody was better than Al Toon when he was healthy. Marino didn't have anyone close to his talent to throw to.

The Marks Brothers (Duper and Clayton) were monsters out there for him for years bro

[bobbyjet69]

The Marks Brothers (Duper and Clayton) were monsters out there for him for years bro

they were no Walker and Toon! and throw in Mickey Shuler, Freeman Mcneil! i'm telling you, if Marino was our QB we would've won atleast 1 SB!

[SoFlaJets]

they were no Walker and Toon! and throw in Mickey Shuler, Freeman Mcneil! i'm telling you, if Marino was our QB we would've won atleast 1 SB!

I always envied Miami fans for having had him for that era-hey don't forget Johnny Hector and Derrick Gaffney

[GREENBEAN]

Interesting thing about O'Brien, he was a great passer, but when the Jets drafted him Dan Marino was still on the Board... I hated the pick...He seemed to have his best games against the Dolphins. I was in college when the Jets played that overtime game in Miami. The defenses stayed home and let the QB's play catch...

At that time the Jets had a very bad o-line and K.O. took alot of punishment, which shortened his career. What I did not like is he was at best unceremoniously let go. If I remember correctly, the press conference where the Jets annouced the signing of Boomer Esiason, included him holding up a number 7 jersey. The only problem was K.O. was not released yet.

The other thing about that video, is how good was Wesley Walker. We have not had a receiver that can get behind the defense like that in a long time, hell since he was on the team with Toon. Maybe Rob Moore, but I think Walker was better. He was legally blind in one eye and could still catch.....

That was a great video...thanks for the memories.

I still remember the back of the Daily News with Boomer holding up the #7 jersey with Kenny still on the team. My heart broke that day. It's breaking right now remembering that.

[Biggs]

The Marks Brothers (Duper and Clayton) were monsters out there for him for years bro

They were monsters because of Marino. Average guys and not even close to being in the same class as Toon. Walker and Toon with Marino would have been sick.

[Stonehands]

I have a lot of respect for Kenny O. When he would drop back, set his feet and pat that ball, you knew he was going to have a completion. A very acurate passer. The problem was that he couldn't handle the pass rush or anything other than the way the play was drawn up on the blackboard. Not a great improvisor and would not throw the ball away.

[Kentucky Jet]

I have a lot of respect for Kenny O. When he would drop back, set his feet and pat that ball, you knew he was going to have a completion. A very acurate passer. The problem was that he couldn't handle the pass rush or anything other than the way the play was drawn up on the blackboard. Not a great improvisor and would not throw the ball away.

The problem really was that his OL was not that good. If Marino played behind that OL, I wonder how good he would have been? I also wonder how good Kenny would have been with Miami?

[Matt39]

Aaron Rodgers reminds me a lot of Obrien

[Mentos]

Respectfully disagree.

Dan Marino was one of the 10 greatest quarterbacks to ever play ... More accurate passer, better footwork, tremendous poise and pocket presence, much quicker release, and downright scary with the game on the line.

O'Brien was a good player, probably the 2nd best QB the Jets have ever had up until this point.

But to say he could have had the career Dan Marino had if he was in Marino's situation is, in my opinion, a HUGE stretch.

Marino "carried" the Dolphins for most of his career.

O'Brien never "carried" the Jets.

I totally agree with you, JoeWillie.

One thing to add was leadership.

Marino was a leader.

O'Brien? Ehh.

Marino had a presence about him. For our younger readers, think about the presence and leadership that Peyton Manning and Drew Brees possess.

O'Brien compares to Jason Campbell or Marc Bulger in this regard. O'Brien was a bland guy like those two are. That extra special quality was not there with O'Brien.

[Mentos]

fun fact-

Ken O'Brien is #3 on a dubious list.

most career rushing attempts without scoring a rushing touchdown

247- Emmett Mortell, tailback/defensive back, Eagles 1937-39, 30 career games

188- Dean McAdams, tailback/defensive back/punter, Brooklyn Dodgers 1941-43, 30 career games

174- Ken O'Brien, quarterback, Jets and Eagles 1984-93, 129 career games

Those first two players were from the two-way era. Primarily, they were tailbacks in single wing offenses.

Look at what McAdams did in 1943-

2 catches for 6 yards

40 rushes for -38 yards (yes that is a minus sign you see there)

37 of 75 passing for 315 yards, 0 touchdowns, 7 interceptions

4 punt returns for 54 yards

5 kickoff returns for 102 yards

3 interceptions for 34 yards

36 punts for 1354 yards (37.6 average)

[shawn306]

O'Brien was a very good QB who spent most of his career playing for a sh!tty head coach. (Walton)

He had ALOT of weapons too.

Walker

Toon

Shuler

McNeil

Rob Moore

In 86 when the Jets were starting the year 10-1 they had a stretch where they were just blowing teams out. Games were basically over by halftime, that is how good the Jets were playing offensively at the time.

Funny thing is is that when the injuries hit the defense. (At one point Klecko, Lyons, Gastineau and Mehl were all out) the offense went in the tank as well.

Walton jerked him around quite a bit as well replacing him with a more mobile Pat Ryan at times.

After 86 though the offensive line detoriated. His last great game was probably the 91 finale against Miami where he got them down the field in like a minute to set up an Allegre field goal to tie the game, and then in OT hit Rob Moore on a huge pass to set up the game winner FG.

Top 5 all time Jets QB and I'm sure people would make an arguement that he might even be in the top 3.

[Bruce Banner]

So, let me ask you all this, for those who were around for O'Brien's days:

What was bad about him? Why did he never become great?

He did become great. But:

1. He played for the Jets.

2. He was drafted ahead of Marino.

[JoeWillie]

I totally agree with you, JoeWillie.

One thing to add was leadership.

Marino was a leader.

O'Brien? Ehh.

Marino had a presence about him. For our younger readers, think about the presence and leadership that Peyton Manning and Drew Brees possess.

O'Brien compares to Jason Campbell or Marc Bulger in this regard. O'Brien was a bland guy like those two are. That extra special quality was not there with O'Brien.[/QUOTE]

Excellent points, M.

I think O'Brien was a much better QB than Campbell or Bulger as far as ability goes, but I know what you mean about the "presence". Somebody else compared him to Aaron Rodgers. I think O'Brien was comparable in ability to Rodgers, but I think Rodgers has that "presence" you speak of.

[JoeWillie]

O'Brien was a very good QB who spent most of his career playing for a sh!tty head coach. (Walton)

He had ALOT of weapons too.

Walker

Toon

Shuler

McNeil

Rob Moore

In 86 when the Jets were starting the year 10-1 they had a stretch where they were just blowing teams out. Games were basically over by halftime, that is how good the Jets were playing offensively at the time.

Funny thing is is that when the injuries hit the defense. (At one point Klecko, Lyons, Gastineau and Mehl were all out) the offense went in the tank as well.

Walton jerked him around quite a bit as well replacing him with a more mobile Pat Ryan at times.

After 86 though the offensive line detoriated. His last great game was probably the 91 finale against Miami where he got them down the field in like a minute to set up an Allegre field goal to tie the game, and then in OT hit Rob Moore on a huge pass to set up the game winner FG.

Top 5 all time Jets QB and I'm sure people would make an arguement that he might even be in the top 3.

If you consider just years playing for the Jets and longevity, I think O'Brien is #2.

Vinny was great in '98, but it was basically just the one year.

Todd was pretty good in the early '80's, but never had the production O'Brien did. Plus, he had to follow #12, which was not an enviable position.

Penny was good, led us to the playoffs a few times, but never really scared anyone.

Esiason & O'Donnell were basically past their primes by the time they came to the Jets.

And Favre was, well ... you know.

[Gastineau Lives]

Because those uniforms are terrible. They are boring as hell and look like semi-pro uniforms.

Dude, I'm talking about the 80's Jets Jerseys, not the blue and gold Titans throwbacks, if you can do anything at least please pay attention to what we're talking about here.

But you're right, those putrid jerseys in non Jets colors the navy blue and guldens mustard yellow, ugh and then the helmets with not even a decal on it, just a sad azz guldens stripe, yeah you're right those DO look like semi-pro uniforms, well not - even worse than semi pro uniforms, so we agree, I think.

At least Joe Klecko looked good in those Titans uniforms when he played, huh?

Go Titans next year! (The New York Titans, not Tennessee)

[jimfire]

he did hold the ball too long and took MANY a frustrating sack @ critical times. I'm pretty sure he had a clause in his contract which paid him more $ if he didnt throm ints. So he would eat the ball A LOT, to the teams detriment. Had his moments but not a guy you wanted to go into battle with on a consistent basis. had feet of molasses

[Mentos]

I think O'Brien was a much better QB than Campbell or Bulger as far as ability goes, but I know what you mean about the "presence".

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. O'Brien had better ability than those two but kind of the same blah personality/leadership skills/presence.

[JoeWillie]

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. O'Brien had better ability than those two but kind of the same blah personality/leadership skills/presence.

Couldn't agree more.

[Klecko73isGod]

Dude, I'm talking about the 80's Jets Jerseys, not the blue and gold Titans throwbacks, if you can do anything at least please pay attention to what we're talking about here.

But you're right, those putrid jerseys in non Jets colors the navy blue and guldens mustard yellow, ugh and then the helmets with not even a decal on it, just a sad azz guldens stripe, yeah you're right those DO look like semi-pro uniforms, well not - even worse than semi pro uniforms, so we agree, I think.

At least Joe Klecko looked good in those Titans uniforms when he played, huh?

Go Titans next year! (The New York Titans, not Tennessee)

The 80s Jets uniforms suck bigtime.

I, for one, do not have any interest in honoring the Joe Walton/Bruce Coslet/Rich Kotite era. That's what I think of when I see those uniforms - inept coaching destroying otherwise talented football teams.

[#27TheDominator]

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. O'Brien had better ability than those two but kind of the same blah personality/leadership skills/presence.

Couldn't agree more.

Couldn't agree less. O'Brien may have been bland and he may not have been the ultimate leader but it's a ****ing joke to compare him to those stiffs. The Jets offense always had direction under O'Brien, even with that douchebag coach. Campbell basically seems like Tavaris Jackson to me. He can make plays, but there is no continuity and it doesn't seem like he knows game situations or what is going on from play to play.

[JoeWillie]

Couldn't agree less. O'Brien may have been bland and he may not have been the ultimate leader but it's a ****ing joke to compare him to those stiffs. The Jets offense always had direction under O'Brien, even with that douchebag coach. Campbell basically seems like Tavaris Jackson to me. He can make plays, but there is no continuity and it doesn't seem like he knows game situations or what is going on from play to play.

We both said O'Brien was better than both stiffs, but his leadership and presence were two areas that didn't match his ability.

Not exactly sure what you disagree with?

[Jetfan13]

So, let me ask you all this, for those who were around for O'Brien's days:

What was bad about him? Why did he never become great?

Joe, if he had the O-line we have now, he might have even gotten a few Hall of Fame Votes...the line then was pourous to say the least

[#27TheDominator]

We both said O'Brien was better than both stiffs, but his leadership and presence were two areas that didn't match his ability.

Not exactly sure what you disagree with?

I disagree that his leadership and presence was on par with those stiffs. Maybe he threw better than he led, but he led a whole hell of a lot better than Jason Campbell or Bulger who starting ****ting the bed about 3 plays after he was touched for the first time. You want to say Marino was a better leader, fine. You want to say he "compares to Jason Campbell and Mark Bulger in this regard" I call bull****. The Jets had some solid leadership on offense those years-Walker, Shuler, Marvin Powell, Joe Fields. I don't think they needed much "leadership".

Personally I never had a problem with his leadership. I think his major problem was a complete lack of foot speed and an inability to avoid the rush. He took way too many sacks because of fear of throwing INTs, but I wish Sanchez learned that trait a little bit.

[JoeWillie]

I disagree that his leadership and presence was on par with those stiffs. Maybe he threw better than he led, but he led a whole hell of a lot better than Jason Campbell or Bulger who starting ****ting the bed about 3 plays after he was touched for the first time. You want to say Marino was a better leader, fine. You want to say he "compares to Jason Campbell and Mark Bulger in this regard" I call bull****. The Jets had some solid leadership on offense those years-Walker, Shuler, Marvin Powell, Joe Fields. I don't think they needed much "leadership".

Personally I never had a problem with his leadership. I think his major problem was a complete lack of foot speed and an inability to avoid the rush. He took way too many sacks because of fear of throwing INTs, but I wish Sanchez learned that trait a little bit.

I think what we're trying to say, more than anything, is that O'Brien lacked that certain something that all great quarterbacks have ... that "presence" so to speak.

O'Brien did not strike fear into opposing defenses.

When the game was on the line, you never got the feeling that O'Brien was going to take you down the field when we needed it, despite having a number of offensive weapons around him.

To me, that's leadership, that's presence and while he had very good ability, O'Brien didn't exemplify the qualities that separate the good QBs with talent from the difference makers.

So we'll agree to disagree.

[#27TheDominator]

I think what we're trying to say, more than anything, is that O'Brien lacked that certain something that all great quarterbacks have ... that "presence" so to speak.

O'Brien did not strike fear into opposing defenses.

When the game was on the line, you never got the feeling that O'Brien was going to take you down the field when we needed it, despite having a number of offensive weapons around him.

To me, that's leadership, that's presence and while he had very good ability, O'Brien didn't exemplify the qualities that separate the good QBs with talent from the difference makers.

So we'll agree to disagree.

I will agree to disagree.

I often got exactly the feeling that Kenny O was going to take us down the field when we needed it.

Case in point the shootout with Marino. I always thought they were going to win. I watched it in a tux in a limo. We watched it on that tiny screen because we were in my cousin's wedding party. Sunday September 21. That idiot. We made everybody wait until the game was over.

I never got the "same old Jets" feeling until after O'Brien was gone even though Todd had some the biggest SOJ moments. Our difference of opinion may stem from Joe Walton. I think he was a moron and probably blame him for most of what you blame on O'Brien.

O'Brien was good enough to win the Super Bowl and IMO there was a time with him at QB that he had the Jets the best team in football. Alas, timing is everything and they never put it together at the end of the season. O'Brien was not as good as Elway or Marino. I don't see any shame in that. He was a very good to excellent QB and I didn't feel like standing around while you guys threw Bulger and Campbell's names around him!

[Biggs]

I will agree to disagree.

I often got exactly the feeling that Kenny O was going to take us down the field when we needed it.

Case in point the shootout with Marino. I always thought they were going to win. I watched it in a tux in a limo. We watched it on that tiny screen because we were in my cousin's wedding party. Sunday September 21. That idiot. We made everybody wait until the game was over.

I never got the "same old Jets" feeling until after O'Brien was gone even though Todd had some the biggest SOJ moments. Our difference of opinion may stem from Joe Walton. I think he was a moron and probably blame him for most of what you blame on O'Brien.

O'Brien was good enough to win the Super Bowl and IMO there was a time with him at QB that he had the Jets the best team in football. Alas, timing is everything and they never put it together at the end of the season. O'Brien was not as good as Elway or Marino. I don't see any shame in that. He was a very good to excellent QB and I didn't feel like standing around while you guys threw Bulger and Campbell's names around him!

OBrien like the rest of the team tanked in 86. He was awfull in a 3 game stretch right after we won 10 in a row.

He was deadly accurate but if you forced him to move at all he was a deer in the headlights. I used to watch him and marvel at how accurate he was when he was comfortable and I never believed he would take us anywhere because of how shaky he was when he had to slide in the pocket.

In 98 Vinny never gave me the feeling he couldn't get it done and the same was true in 02 with Chad.

[glenn31]

[quote=Biggs;1538962

In 98 Vinny never gave me the feeling he couldn't get it done and the same was true in 02 with Chad.

I'd add '04 Chad pre-shoulder injury to that as well.

[Obrien2Toon]

great video. Made my day.

Always wondered what his legacy would have been if he didn't go to a cursed franchise.

O'brien > Marino