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Dan checks in with some more nuggets from Jets camp. Check it out for just $7.95 a month or grab a combo deal. Good stuff.
Longtime Cincinnati Bengals right tackle Willie Anderson is now working as a tutor for young offensive linemen in the Atlanta-area.
He believes that the lockout is going to hurt all players, but especially young offensive linemen.
He feels the spring camps are essentially for guys learning the nuaces of being an NFL offensive lineman, the footwork, hand placement, sets, things of that nature.
With that being said, you have to start to wonder about Vlad Ducasse’s ability to start in Week One against the Dallas Cowboys.
This was a huge off-season for Ducasse.
He needed to be working with the Jets brilliant offensive line coach Bill Callahan has much as possible. It didn’t happen.
Remember, not only hasn’t he started in the NFL, right tackle is a new position for Ducasse. He was a left tackle at UMass, and training mostly as a left guard last year.
I think Ducasse has Pro Bowl potential at right tackle.
We all know NFL teams love to run right, and want a dominating run blocker at right tackle, and this guy has road-grader written all over him.
He’s a little under 6-5, and about 330 pounds with a thick, powerful lower body. At times, last summer, and in his appearance against Buffalo late in the year, you could see him tossing people around. He’s a brute.
And now he’s a lot stronger than last season.
From what we hear, Ducasse, working the trainers in Martinsville (at the complex Bart Scott utilizes), Vlad got in great shape, re-shaped his body.
But with that being said, with a lost off-season devoid of Callahan’s guidance, do you want him starting at right tackle against pass rushers DeMarcus Ware and Anthony Spencer in the opener?
Jets might be better served signing Wayne Hunter to a reasonable contract ($1-1.5 million), and having him hold the fort until Ducasse is truly ready.
Hey, maybe he will be ready for the opener. While he didn’t work extensively at right tackle last year, he did get some reps when he moved to the backup swing tackle role when Hunter started for Damien Woody.
Also, while Ducasse isn’t working with Callahan, he has received some teaching from offensive line coaches outside of the Jets realm, including his agent Joe Linta, a former Yale offensive lineman.
But there is only one Callahan, and Ducasse needed to be practically living with the former Oakland Raiders coach this off-season . . .
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have upper deck season tickets for $35 a game.
Being in this market, you lose sight of the fact that ticket prices like this still exist . . .
While they are saying all the right things publicly, the people up in Cortland aren’t happy.
From what I hear, they have been working on matters like the fields and fencing for some time, and were just about ready to roll.
But it’s hard to criticize the Jets on this one.
This summer is going to be a free-for-all, with camps possible starting late, and free agency being a feeding frenzy. It’s going to be wild, and it’s easier to handle this uncharted territory out of your home base.
By the way, while Cortland takes it on the chin, the town of Madison is going to flourish.
Madison is one of my favorite towns. It’s five minutes from Jets camp, and is a classic Old American main street, with stores, restaurants, galleries and such . . .
Jim Leonhard (broken leg) feels he’s 100 percent and ready to roll in training camp.