How did the Jets go from one kick away from the AFC Championship game this time last year to the current debacle.
What was once one of the top teams in the AFC a mere year ago now. Look at this mess:
1. Embarassing coaching debacle with no solid replacement in sight
2. Terrible GM who has been humiliated in trades and negotiations
3. $60M QB who has 2 rotator cuff surgeries on the same arm - which sucked to begin with
4. GM's first Pro Bowl pick makes it on the Skins
5. Decimated aging and overpaid OL which reminds people of an open gate.
6. Aging and brokedown Curtis Martin owed millions
7. Smurf WRs that are all considered #2/#3 at best.
8. No consistent TE on the roster for yr
9. A former #4 pick from a few years ago owed millions had a arthritic knee condition.
10. $30M over the cap next year
11. Will lose its best DB in Ty Law who is owed $12M in 2006
12. Owner who cares more about Yacht racing and stadiums than the winning in the NFL
Get ready JEt fans - we are about to enter another dark era - Coslet, Carroll, Kotite on deck!!!
Oh quit yer cryin'. In the NFL, you're never as bad or as good as people say you are. I will agree that the Jets have a subpar GM (and a generally subpar front office that was unable to accomplish its stated goals of building a new stadium and creating stability in the coaching and front office). That's the real problem here. Everything else is window-dressing. Pennington's injuries were not the fault of the front office, and every now and again, a team gets unlucky like that. The cap damage won't be so bad, since Chad will have to renegotiate now. Bradway's draft picks have been a mized bag. Moss, Jordan, and McKenzie were all good picks, but none are still with the team. Dewayne Robertson is disappointing, but he's still a high-quality DT who I think will still make the Pro Bowl. Cotcherry was a good pick, as were Adrian Jones, Brandon Moore, Erik Coleman, and Brooks Bollinger. The jury is still out on a bunch of picks, including Nugent, Justin Miller, Derrick Strait, Kherry Rhodes, Andre Maddox, Joel Dreesen, Sione Pouha, BJ ASkew and Cedric Houston, but many of them look good. Rhodes is already a starter, and Askew and Houston both looked good late in the season. And of course, this is without Jonathan Vilma, who is terrific.
Btw, for all those guys who think Moss was so great, it's worth remembering how injury-prone this guy is. He put up a great year for the Jets once too, but he is inconsistent and fragile. Lamont Jordan's departure was as much Herm Edwards' and Curtis Martin's fault as it was Bradways' - if Martin was a little less awesome last year, and if Edwards had found more time for Jordan, maybe he stays.
Anyway, the O-line did fall apart, but it also lost its two top players, the C and the LT, plus the run-blocking TE. But Testaverde and Bollinger made it look a lot worse, and teams blitzed to get pressure more than they simply got it with 4-man rushes. I don't know that the O-line is overpaid... when Mawae played, he sure seemed like he was worth every penny.
Curtis Martin will restructure or will be gone. Coles, McCariens and Cotcherry are far from smurfs. Coles is the shortest, at 5'11", and is consistently considered one of the toughest WRs in the game. McCareins and Cotcherry are both over 6'1". Coles is a regular 90-ball/year guy whom nobody thinks is a #2. Baker looked like a pretty good TE until he got hurt, and besides, lots of teams don't have full-spectrum TEs.
Way I see it, the Jets don't really have a cap problem. They will clear cap space by letting Law go, renegotiating with Martin and Pennington, and most importantly, signing Abraham to a long-term deal. But none of that will matter much either until they fix the front office, and I'm doubtful that they will.
, those will still be your options.
