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Madison – Time for some Website Whispers from the heart of Jets Country in New Jersey. A few different things to get into today, so let’s get started . . .
The Jets decision to claim safety Dion Bailey off waivers from Seattle was a smart move.
The Seahawks waived Bailey to make room for Kam Chancellor, but hoped to move Bailey to their practice squad, but the Jets took advantage.
Bailey is clearly further along in his development than Ronald Martin, another former Seahawk, who the Jets moved to their practice squad. Bailey was on the Seahawks’ practice squad last year. Martin is a rookie this year.
And Pete Carroll is a secondary guru, so the training Dion got from Pete over the last year has benefited him a great deal.
Bailey is still developing. He made a mistake leaving school early in 2014. He got some bad advice and went undrafted.
He’s still only 23. The arrow is pointing up . . .
The Jets released seventh round pick Deon Simon today to open a roster spot for tight end Wes Saxton, with Jeff Cumberland out this week due to a concussion.
I don’t know if any player improved more over the course of training camp than Saxton.
He came in raw as can be, but worked his tail off, and the arrow was pointing up all summer.
Saxton was one of the Jets top undrafted free agent signings, a players who easily could have been picked in the fifth round.
He a 6-3, 250-pound tight end who runs under 4.7, and can stretch the field. He’s very athletic. One knock on him coming out of South Alabama was his blocking, but throughout the summer, he continually improved in this department. He has a great desire to really get after it as a blocker, which is half the battle. You need to want to stick you face in there, and the Hueytown, Alabama-native really gets after it.
I was really impressed with this kid in the summer, and I think he can help the Jets . . .
I think a lot of people got ahead of themselves, including me, with where the Jets were at after their 2-0 start. While this team has a lot of talent, it’s a major work-in-progress, and not all the players are entirely comfortable with all their assignments just yet, with new playbooks and coaches.
The Jets’ run fits in the first half against Philadelphia were terrible – a lot of guys out of position.
John Lynch made a great point, that I should have brought up before. Rex had the defensive linemen two-gapping, and Todd wants them to just shoot up field. It could take some time for the big fellas up front to get used to the transition.
And on offense, people wonder why the Jets didn’t play at a faster pace down 24-7. It’s because they are still getting comfortable with a new offense and a new quarterback, and this would have been tough to do. There were times in the game where Devin Smith needed help on where to line-up.
So the fact they are 2-1, isn’t awful, considering all the newness at One Jets Drive.
September 30, 2015
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