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After calling two prominent Jets officials “liars,’
this ESPN analyst goes after the Jets for being reluctant to do “Hard Knocks.”
After the Jets signed Randall Cobb, ESPN’s Ryan Clark accused Aaron Rodgers of “lying” about giving the team a “wish list” of players they should sign.
“Aaron Rodgers does a good job of like lying that doesn’t make him a liar,” said Clark. “‘Your acting like I write down a list on a piece of paper and texted it. You are acting like I said you have to sign these guys. We have a conversation.’ That is the best way to lie by averting the eyes to something else.”
This is the second time in the off-season Clark accused a prominent Jets figure of lying.
On January 27, Clark said Robert Saleh was lying when he said the team didn’t hire Nathaniel Hackett to be the offensive coordinator to attract Rodgers.
“Let’s bring [Hackett] to the Jets because of the quarterback he’s connected to. Robert Saleh (says), ‘Everybody in this league is connected.’ At least lie better. We know why you went out and got [Hackett],” Clark said.
And now he’s coming after the organization about their clear reluctance to do “Hard Knocks.”
“There’s been a huge buzz around the @nyjets and “Hard Knocks,” Clark tweeted on June 30. “Apparently the Jets aren’t too keen on doing the classic, popular training camp series. The Jets are the NFL’s newest darlings. They have the ever interesting though peculiar QB Aaron Rodgers who recently said his new teammates Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson could 1 day be the best players at their positions in the entire league. So, why wouldn’t the NFL want to showcase them? Hard Knocks has made virtually unknown players into Super Stars & Coaches like Dan Campbell into folk heroes. Unless you’re completely incompetent this show couldn’t possibly make you look bad! So why not do it Robert Saleh?”
Some would argue this is a dubious argument and perhaps misses the point on why the Jets don’t want to do “Hard Knocks.”
On June 9, Jets head coach Robert Saleh made it clear he wanted nothing to do with “Hard Knocks” this summer.
“I know there would be some teams who would love to have Hard Knocks in their building — we’re just not one of them,” Saleh said.
This really has nothing to do with hiding competency. It has more to do with “making the main thing the main thing” as Saleh often likes to say, channeling Stephen Covey.
The Jets have missed the playoffs 12 years in a row, a current high for any pro sports league.
This has got to end, and they need to be focusing on what really, truly matters in this extremely important upcoming training camp. They have so much to work on, they don’t need HBO cameras in their meetings and on their practice field.
They need laser beam focus on getting ready for an important season in a very challenging AFC East.
As much as the NFL and HBO want them on the show with Aaron Rodgers in town, it’s just not a good idea.
And surely Rodgers, whose voice matters, has a seat at the table about this decision.
There is clearly a battle going on behind the scenes here because Mike Florio announced on June 26: “Per a league source, the Jets are bracing for the preseason Hard Knocks assignment, despite making known publicly (and privately) their lack of interest in serving as the focal point of this year’s show.”
So what is the delay in the announcement unless there is a tug-of-war going on behind the scenes?
July 3, 2023
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