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New Jersey – It’s time for a heaping helping of Jets Whispers right from Jets Country in Morris County . . .
I know they say, “on any given Sunday,” but on this given Sunday, the Jets have no excuse to lose this game. None.
The Texans are starting a quarterback who wasn’t even in the league for basically the first two months of the 2015 season.
T.J. Yates was released by the Atlanta Falcons on September 4, and was signed by the Houston Texans on October 27. So of today, he’s been with the Texans in 2015 for 24 days.
Yes he was with the Texans before, but that was 2011-13, under the previous coaching staff, not in Bill O’Brien’s offense.
And Yates was taking backup reps until this week in practice. So he barely knows the offense, and doesn’t have great chemistry with this targets. Plus he won’t have the luxury of a very good running game.
The only concern the Jets should have is if their cornerbacks played like they did in Oakland, when almost every easy first read was open for Derek Carr, and he was playing pitch and catch with his targets. Yates can do that, if the Jets corners play like they did in Oakland.
Also, the Texans will be without starting cornerback Kareem Jackson.
Like I mentioned before, the Jets had extra rest and prep days, and the Texans played on Monday Night Football – this is a good scenario for the Jets – physically and game-plan wise.
And let’s not forget Mike Maccagnan knows most of the talent on the Texans’ roster intimately. He drafted a lot of their players. He has been an amazing resource for the Jets’ coaches this week giving them insight on strengths of weaknesses of many of the Texans’ players.
One other thing – Ryan Fitzpatrick practiced against that defense most of last year as the Texans QB. He has a great feel for what they do.
If the Jets lose this game, call Chicken Little, because the sky will truly be falling on their world . . .
I’m sorry if this is redundant, but I’m doing another note on the Jets’ kick returning.
Here are their two possible options for this week from what I hear – Antonio Cromartie and Bilal Powell.
I like Mike Maccagnan, and I think he’s done a terrific job, but he continues to get a “D” in my book for his handling on the kick returner job.
This plan, if it’s true, isn’t a great one, and I will tell you why.
Cromartie isn’t a bad kick returner.
He’s a long-strider, so he gets a decent amount of yards, more than shorter returners, just with his running style. I would hazard a guess that with his running-style, he gathers twice the ground, with each step, compared shorter returners, just due to his long legs.
Against Jacksonville, he had a 53-yard kickoff returner, the Jets best return of the season.
However, one part of his skill-set as a returner I don’t love is that he doesn’t change directions smoothly, due to the aforementioned long legs. So if there is a big initial hole, he’s golden, he can shoot right through it. However, if he has to gear down and change directions, he has to gather, instead of cutting smoothly, not an ideal scenario for a returner. Think of Leon Washington smoothly cutting in traffic on a return. That isn’t going to happen with Cromartie due to his long legs.
Also, you talking about a starting cornerback coming off a quad injury, and who consistently has hip problems, so you are going to start him at cornerback AND have him return kicks?
I don’t want to be a hypocrite. I have been critical of his play at corner. He needs to get a lot better. But with that being said, they clearly value him as starter, and he’s battling two injuries, so why are you throwing him back there as a kick returner?
As for Powell, you don’t need to be Dr, Sanjay Gupta to look at him, and see he’s still hobbling a little on the high ankle sprain.
To me, a guy clearly not 100 percent healed from a high ankle sprain (probably 80-90 percent), returning kicks is a bad idea. It’s a really bad play for a player with a high ankle sprain with the high speed cutting and all the hits you take.
Plus, Powell is a very good reserve running back and third down back, but a pedestrian kick returner. He has average speed. This play isn’t ideally suited for him.
Mr. Coffee, for goodness sake, go out and get yourself a kick returner . . .
November 20, 2015
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