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The guy is a warrior . . .
George Fant has some kind of knee issue he has been battling.
It’s not a secret. He’s on the injury report and limited in practice. He had off-season surgery and was eased into training camp practices.
But there still seems to be an issue. Not sure if it’s something new, or the same issue.
However, when the team runs sprints during stretching, he’s running with a limp.
You have to give the guy credit, he’s pushing through something, and answering the bell on Sundays.
This guy is the consummate team player, bouncing between left and right tackle, and playing hurt.
I forgot what game it was last year, but he was carted into the locker room with some kind of injury, but ended up coming back in the game . . .
The “All Gas, No Break” approach is good in many ways, but one area it can be problematic at times is on defense. The Jets’ super-aggressive approach on defense led to them giving up a number of big plays on screen passes in Cleveland.
In the first quarter, on 2nd-and-6, a screen left to TE David Njoku went for 13 yards. In the fourth quarter, a screen left to RB Nick Chubb went for 15 yards. On a blitz late in the game, the Browns hit RB Kareem Hunt for a gain of 11 on a screen to the left.
Then there was another play that wasn’t a screen, but an example of overaggressiveness leading to a big play.
In the third quarter, QB Jacoby Brissett started to scramble, stopped on the line (perhaps by design), and threw to a wide-open TE Harrison Bryant for a gain of 30. Both linebacker Quincy Williams and safety Jordan Whitehead ran up to the line to go for the QB, and nobody covered Bryant. Without being privy to the playbook, it is still fair to assume that one of them should have stayed with Bryant, and not run at Brissett, leaving the tight end open.
So the point is “All Gas, No Break” is a great slogan in so many ways, but on defense, it’s an attitude that can get you in trouble sometimes. Sometimes you need to pump the breaks and play with more discipline.
There is no doubt that opposing offensive coordinators dial up certain plays to take advantage of the Jets’ defense being too aggressive at times . . .
As we mentioned yesterday, the Jets did a poor job setting the edge against the run. Jeff Ulbrich admitted it on Thursday.
“The edge setting, it’s just got to be better,” Ulbrich said. “The edge setting, it’s got to be better.”
Ulbrich added, “There was a disconnect there, and that ultimately falls on my shoulders.”
Ulbrich always falls on the sword, but perhaps it’s not all his fault, and some of the issues are related to who is playing, which might be coming from others.
For instance, the Jets two rookie defensive ends had issues setting the edge last week against the run.
I’m not going to go over every instant, but here are two examples from the first quarter: Jermaine Johnson got handled by OT James Hudson on the right edge and Nick Chubb went for 14 yards. Michael Clemons got pushed inside by David Njoku and Chubb took the left edge for a 4-yard TD run. There were several other examples with these two promising players with big upsides.
But like I wrote the other day, some rookies are instant coffee, like Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, but other rookies aren’t.
Just because you pick guys in the draft, high or relatively high, doesn’t mean they instantly have to have a prominent role. It should be on a case-by-case basis. Are they ready for it or not?
As Parcells used to say, “Put away the anointing oil.”
Not blaming the two rookies solely, they have plenty of company last week, but the Jets’ run defense was a big problem against Cleveland, so maybe it’s time to make some rotation changes on the defensive line (and to get Kwon Alexander out there more).
September 23, 2022
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