New York Jets Team Grades Week 5

nytimes.com

By Nick Ziegler (@Ziggy26x)

October 7^th, 2013

Week 5 New York Jets vs Atlanta Falcons Team Grades

The New York Jets headed into Atlanta to play the Falcons as 10 point underdogs, but surprised the country on Monday Night Football with a season changing 30-28 win. The victory improves the Jets to (3-2) on the season.

Passing Offense Grade (A)

Rookie Geno Smith was able to bounce back from a bad game in Tennessee with a great game in Atlanta, as he was able to protect the ball and make some big plays for the Jets passing offense. Smith was in a bit of a game manager mode in the win, but really excelled when throwing the ball. Smith threw for 199 yards on 16 for 20 passing, with three touchdowns. Without Santonio Holmes, Smith was able to utilize his Tight Ends very well especially in the red zone, as Jeff Cumberland, and Kellen Winslow each had a receiving touchdown. Jeremy Kerley had a big game in the absence of Holmes, as he caught a team-high five passes for 68 yards, and a touchdown.

New York Jets Draft Review

By Ryan McDonald (@RonnieMac90)

2013 NFL Draft

Dee Milliner, Alabama CB (R1 P9)
Sheldon Richardson, Missouri Dline (R1 P13)
Geno Smith, West Virginia QB (R2 P39)
Brian Winters, Kent State G (R3 P72)
Oday Aboushi, Virgina OL (R5 P141)
William Campbell, Michigan OL (R6 P178)
Tommy Bohanon, Wake Forest FB (R7 P215)

Things started off smoothly in the draft for the new regime of the Jets. Grabbing Dee Milliner, cornerback out of Alabama. Widely considered a top 5 talent, Milliner dropped due to injury concerns. At 9, getting this talent was great value and it filled a need at corner after trading Revis. Make no mistakes though, he won’t be Revis, but he’ll be better than Kyle Wilson for sure.

Next up was the defensive tackle out of Missouri, Sheldon Richardson. At first, this was a head scratching pick. Richardson was undersized to play DT in a 3-4 and the this extended the Jets streak of selecting a defensive linemen in the first round to 3 years. It was suspected that the Jets would move to a 4-3 or at least use the front more often than in past years, but they decided to go into a different direction entirely. A huge need for the Jets was OLB which was not addressed in this draft, but the plan was to have Richardson play defensive end and move last year’s 1^st round selection, Quinton Coples, to outside linebacker and play the pass rushing role. Coples played OLB going into his draft and teams looked at him for that position. Coples led the Jets in sacks last year at a meager 5.5 sacks but note this is from the defensive end position. Expect production to increase for Coples as a pass rusher with this move. As for Richardson, not a true nose tackle, defensive end seems like the perfect place for him, making this pick less head scratching.

Next up is the quarterback from West Virginia, Geno Smith. Projected to go in the top 10 of the draft, and even considered by some to go 9 to the Jets, getting him 30 picks later is excellent value. After round 1 ended, the Jets had looked desperate to try and trade up in the 2^nd to go get Geno which would’ve been a huge mistake as he fell to them anyway. It’s good that they didn’t lose another pick just to get Geno 5 picks sooner. But it also begged the question of why the best QB in this draft fell to the 2^nd round. This was answered with how he interviewed and his persona. Apparently, Geno Smith is a diva and was texting and tweeting from his phone during interviews with NFL teams. Geno’s drop also caused him to fire his agents which was another diva-ish move. It comes to question if you can lead when you blame others for your bad interviews though and should be a red flag for the Jets. Also keep in mind that if this was the 2012 draft, Geno would’ve been a 2^nd-3^rd round pick anyway and was only projected as a top 10 pick due to being the best of the worst of the QB crop this year.

With their 3^rd round pick, the Jets selected Brian Winters from Kent State. An offensive linemen, Winters brings versatility to the position. Winters played right tackle in college but was drafted and looked at as a guard. Anytime a player can play multiple positions makes him an attractive pick, and although the Jets need a guard desperately, Winters can also fill in at tackle if needed.

The Jets traded their 4^th round pick for Saints RB Chris Ivory. As many positions, RB was a need for the Jets. Ivory was the 3^rd RB on the depth chart in New Orleans behind Pierre Thomas and Mark Ingram. Ivory did see the field seemingly a lot despite this, and played quite well when given the ball. Ivory is a power back that likes to run over people which fits well with Rex Ryan’s ground and pound mentality. Overall, this was a very good trade for the Jets as they acquired their starting RB for only a 4^th round pick.

With their 5^th and 6^th round picks, the Jets continued to address their offensive line depth. Oday Aboushi and William Campbell were both drafted as offensive linemen. This seems to be only for depth with only Aboushi being able to see the field if he switches from left tackle to right tackle and current Jets starter Austin Howard does not produce. Campbell was a defensive tackle in college and only played guard in 2010 briefly. With all the Jets needs, this was a bad pick as taking a project for offensive line doesn’t seem like a smart idea.

With their final pick, the Jets took fullback Tommy Bohanon. Bohanon has some nice hands for a FB and can add to the passing game but not much is expected from a 7^th rounder.

Overall, the Jets had a very good draft, but with so many needs at so many positions, it was hard to have a bad draft. With solid picks in the first five rounds, and a very good trade, the Jets started their rebuilding process quite well. Geno Smith will have to change his personality under the bright lights of New York and hopefully he can be the quarterback of the future for the Jets.

Overall Grade: B+

Jets Questionable First Round

By Ryan McDonald(@RonnieMac90)

The New York Jets had two picks in the 2013 draft at 9 and 13. With two good picks to fill needs, the Jets would be on a good start to the rebuilding process. However, it seems they split the picks.

With 9, the Jets selected Alabama cornerback Dee Milliner which was a fairly good pick. Milliner was a top 5 talent but due to an injury fell to the Jets at 9. Milliner I’m sure will have a lot of pressure to replace recently traded Darrelle Revis but he won’t be able to do that. Revis is a once a generation talent, and expectations like that are just unfair. Milliner isn’t Revis, but he can still be a Pro Bowl level corner in a few years and at a reasonable price which was what the Jets were looking for not signing Revis to $16 million a year.

With 13 came all the questions. The Jets selected Missouri DT Sheldon Richardson. With this pick, the Jets have selected a defensive linemen in the first year for the past 3 years. At 291 pounds, Richardson can’t really play the Nose Tackle position, but the Jets acknowledged they drafted him for versatility meaning they have thoughts at defensive end. Rex Ryan also said the Jets would use some 4-3 fronts this season but two better DTs, Shariff Floyd and Star Lotulelei were still on the board. If you had 4-3 in mind when drafting them, why not draft one of them?

Defensive line also wasn’t as pressing need as other areas. The best safety in the draft, Kenny Vaccaro, was still available. The Jets have a desperate need at the safety position. Play making TE Tyler Eifert was also still on the board and pass rusher Jarvis Jones was as well. All three players played a position in which the Jets needed more than defensive line.

We can only hope that the Jets will address these areas in the later rounds.

Jets Must Address Offense In Second Round

By Josef Schaetzle (@Schaetz23)

The New York Jets were looking to land play making wide receiver Tavon Austin with the ninth pick in the NFL Draft. Unfortunately he was snagged by the St. Louis Rams with the eighth pick.

It was anyone's guess who the Jets were going to take now, and they went with Dee Milliner, a highly talented cornerback from Alabama. The Jets are hoping Milliner can step in and fill the void left when they traded all-pro corner Darrelle Revis to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The only concern is that Milliner has had multiple surgeries during his athletic career including surgery for a torn labrum that Milliner is confident he can fully recover from. 

Gang Green also had the 13th overall pick in this year's draft, and once again they drafted on defense. The Jets took defensive tackle Sheldon Richardson out of Missouri. What was the reason behind this pick? Richardson was graded highly during the draft process, but was it really what the Jets needed to go after? They have Muhammad Wilkerson and Quinton Coples, who they drafted in the first round last year, to fill those spots on the field. If the Jets were looking for defense again, why not an outside linebacker who can get to the quarterback? Alec Ogletree was still on the board when the Jets were picking. Ogletree has the ability to be an edge rusher and a cover guy. Ogletree would have only improved a defense that has finished at the top of the league the past four years. 

Hindsight is twenty-twenty we all say, and now it's time to move onto the second round where the Jets must boost their offense. There is plenty of talent in the second and third rounds tonight and the Jets can really help themselves and come out of this draft feeling good.  

Zach Ertz,, a tight-end out of Stanford, would be a smart draft choice for the Jets. With Dustin Keller leaving for Miami, the Jets need a tight-end who can get open in the middle of the field and burn defenses with 10-15 yard routes. Ertz can be that guy for the Jets. Forget what he did at the combine. He ran a forty yard dash that didn't wow the scouts. Last I saw, Jason Witten wasn't blowing by linebackers with his speed, he just runs good routes and shows up to play every day. That is what the Jets will get from Ertz if they draft him. Ertz's numbers may not be what Witten's are, Witten is an elite tight end right now, but he can make the big play when needed, and he is always giving 110%. 

Eddie Lacey is also still on the board. The running back from Alabama dealt with a hamstring injury during the off-season, but has shown that his mix of size and speed make shim hard to tackle. Just ask any SEC team or Notre Dame. Lacey could be a nice fit for Rex Ryan and his ground and pound game. 

The offensive line talent in the draft has dwindled somewhat with nine linemen taken in the first round, but there is still raw talent left for the second and third rounds where the Jets might get a steal. 

First year GM John Idzik has some decisions to make in the second round, but they should not be on the defensive side of the ball. It's time for the Jets to get offensive.