There is no excuse for being late. None.
And Mo Wilkerson needs to get his act together, whether it’s with the Jets, or playing somewhere like New England next year.
The following blog is strictly football related, and not condoning lateness.
But there are people out there who just don’t understand Wilkerson’s role in the Jets’ defense, and it’s time to ignore those people.
The Jets’ run defense was dominant the previous five games leading into the Saints’ game, shutting down the likes of LeSean McCoy, Jonathan Stewart and C.J. Anderson. In New Orleans, their run defense wasn’t nearly as good.
Wilkerson was playing good run defense during that dominant stretch, and when he wasn’t making the tackle, he was often protecting the linebackers, by taking up blocks, allowing the linebackers to flow freely to the football, especially linebacker Darron Lee.
Lee had his most inconsistent game of the last six games in New Orleans (aside from Kansas City game when Lee was deactivated, but the Jets’ run defense was outstanding against K.C.), and this was the only game during that stretch where Wilkerson didn’t play. You do the math.
The Jets missed Mo in New Orleans.
Lateness is wrong, and Bowles was right for leaving him home. Once again, this blog is strictly about football, so when you respond to it, keep that in mind.
I just want to counter some of the people who think Mo wasn’t playing well.
Wilkerson wasn’t very good the Jets’ first six games, dealing with a shoulder injury and broken toe. Starting in Week Seven, he was much healthier, and has played a lot better.
The problem is lot of the people who criticize Mo’s play clearly don’t understand the job of a 3-4 end. They judge Wilkerson by sacks. They are obsessed with sacks. Yes, Wilkerson had one good sack season, but that was an aberration. Not a lot of 3-4 ends are big sack guys. How many 6-4, 315-pound defensive linemen are big sack guys? 3-4 defensive ends do a lot of dirty work that allow others to make plays.
Don’t listen to the people who judge Wilkerson by his sack total. They clearly need to learn more about football.
