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A few different things to get into from Florham Park . . .
I asked a Jets player, who used to play for Detroit, if the Jets coaches tried to pick his brain about the Lions’ offense. The reason I focused on the offense is that new coach Matt Patricia kept offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter from the previous staff, so they are using the same system as the last couple of years. The defense is new with Patricia, and the Jets have a decent feel for that facing his New England defenses the last few years.
The player told me that nobody had talked to him (as of Thursday). Remember, the first game is game-planned for several months, since the schedule comes out in the spring.
It’s very surprising that the Jets defensive coaches haven’t looked to pick this guy’s brain about Cooter’s system.
This interview was done on the record. This isn’t an unnamed player like you see in the Daily News.
The reason I made him unnamed is that to me, this makes some Jets coaches look bad, and that wasn’t his intent.
How do you not pick his brain?
You should use every resource at your disposal to gain an edge.
How often did we see Mike Tannenbaum bring in players from the upcoming opponents to get intelligence?He did it all the time. Remember Andrew Sendejo? The Jets claimed him off waivers in September, 2011 from Dallas with the Cowboys next on the schedule. He was released shortly after the Jets-Dallas game. He told the media the Jets coaches picked his brain.
The Miami Dolphins claimed QB Luke Falk last weekend who was with the Tennessee Titans who they open with.
And looking ahead to Week Two, they signed former Jets center Wesley Johnson earlier this week after he was released by the Lions (where I’m sure they picked his brain about the Jets before his released last Saturday).
I find it strange that nobody picked this former Lions’ brain . . .
I’m not making any predictions, but if the Jets aren’t careful, Monday could be a long night for their defense.
First off, I’m not sure where the pass rush is going to come from.
The Jets edge-rush was underwhelming this summer, and the Lions have two superb offensive tackles – left tackle Taylor Decker (2016 first round pick) and right tackle Ricky Wagner (paid a ton to sign with Lions in free agency last year). This is one of the better bookend tackle combos in the league.
So it’s going to be very, very hard to get edge pressure, so they might have to blitz a lot.
Or, perhaps new Jet OLB Jerry Attaochu can come out of the gate quickly and help them immediately.
It’s not like he has to learn the entire defensive scheme to rush the passer off the edge on third down.
I asked a Jets player what Attaochu adds, and the word he used was “speed.”
The former George Tech star ran a 4.58 at the combine . . .
Safety Marcus Maye isn’t going to play, but the Jets should be fine here with Doug Middleton, who is one of the toughest AND smartest players on the team. Not only is he an intimidating hitter, he’s great at helping get things lined-up in the secondary. He’s very assignment-savvy and is good at getting guys in the right spot before the snap, which has been a problem at times for the Jets the last couple of years . . .
The Jets practiced inside their field house today, and it wasn’t due to bad weather. Yes, it was a little overcast, but the rain held off. They practiced there so they could simulate the noise from Ford Field (a dome) better. They were pumping deafening crowd noise in their field house throughout their two-hour practice. The place was vibrating.
The noise inside Ford Field Monday night is going to create quite a challenge for a rookie quarterback making his first start.
Historically, rookie quarterbacks tend to struggle on the road, and loud stadiums are one reasons why. It’s hard enough for veteran quarterbacks to communicate in these kind of environments, so you can imagine the challenge a rookie faces.
September 7, 2018
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