By Tom Rock
That was such a bad performance, Steinbrenner is thinking of firing a few Jets coaches too!
The historical significance of the 41-0 loss to the Jaguars was enormous. Worst loss since 1986, worst shutout loss since 1975. Ugh. The only good thing is that Florida is sending its second-string up to face the Jets on Sunday, and the Dysfunctional Dolphins should be an easy target for the Jets to right the ship. Sorry, Lance.
While it was a whuppin’, it was also a game Jets fans had no right to expect victory in. When you look at the schedule and tick off wins and losses, this game was always a loss in my book. It turned out to be an ugly loss, but the end result is far from unexpected. The Jets are 2-3 with three winnable games in a row. That’s a pretty good position. I think if that had been presented leading into the regular season, most fans would have taken it.
Funny moment in the press box during the game: Dan Leberfeld of Jets Confidential approached an official and asked if we could send a pool reporter to speak with the officials about those two calls. “Which two calls?” was the response. Of course it was the Vilma and Barton plays. Those two should pick on somebody their own size. Someone a little smaller than Leftwich.
Comments (7)
Say what you want, but Mangini has to take a hit for this one. The team was clearly and painfully outcoached and wasn't prepared to play. No Jets fan in their right midn expected them to win, sure, but they could at least be competitive.
Two points:
(1) Switching to the 3-4 with this personnel was tantamount to ramming a square peg into a round hole;
(2) The platoon at running back needs to end. Blaylock has been terrible; Houston is out; and Barlow has actually succeeded in being worse than he was in San Francisco, and that's saying something. LEON WASHINGTON has to be the guy.
I had the haunting feeling even before the Jax game that this Jets team was playing really well so far only b/c they just didn't know that they were bad yet. Over 16 games, our D-line is going to be pretty exposed for what it is, undersized and outmanned. I think we're tapped out as far as potential there. Hopefully we can squeak out a .500 season.
Agreed- there has to be some adaptation of the defense if the personnel does not suit. As someone pointed out this has been done with the offense, so why not the defense as well? And yes, give Washington the ball. Barlow and Blaylock are terrible.
It seems as though they are going to 4-3 more in the last couple of games, I think supporting yourpoint about the personnel not being suited for the 3-4. The results haven't been any better though. There are so many new factors on this team that it may take weeks for them to really start to jell.
On another note. I haven't seen much written, but does anyone else think something is up with Pennington? I know he never had the strongest arm to begin with, but seems to be getting worse as the season is progressing. There seem to be more than the usual amount of under 10 yards passes, especially at the end of the Colts game. Sorry, I'm breaking the 5 second rule. How many more 3rd and 8's is he going to throw 2 yards and hope for the RAC?
Maybe the coaches don't have the confidence in him throwing beyond 20 yards?
Frank
Pennington is fine. I simply think the league might be adjusting to the Jets' offense. At the beginning of the season, the league mantra seemed to be "force the guy with a questionable shoulder to beat you."
But through the first few games, Pennington proved that he can beat teams through the air, so the strategy might have changed to account for that. Certainly, that was the case with Jacksonville, which schemed almost exclusively for the pass by dropping five and six guys into coverage.
When a team drops that many guys, you're not going to throw the ball effectively regardless of whom you have at quarterback. The Jaguars dared the Jets to run it early; the Jets couldn't; the Jaguars built a big lead; and that was the game.
They opened in the 4-3 and got anihilated. The problem IS the personnel, not the scheme. Ellis and Robertson have been terrible since the beginning of last year, and Van O looks over the hill and maybe overrated to begin with. I would bench them all and play the big nose tackles they have signed, along with Ball who looked good at times, and maybe move Thomas back to DL. Then you could move Vilma outside where he belongs in the 3-4.
The best this defense was ever rated under Herm was in the teens, and most of that was due to the conservative nature of the offense. The talent is not there regardless of the scheme.