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The Fourth Estate is often driven by narratives. A lot of times in the sports world, they make for easy stories, even if they are inaccurate and don’t make sense.
A narrative that came out of Jets camp yesterday was that Bryce Petty is a “gunslinger.”
Chan Gailey and Petty were asked about it yesterday.
This narrative stems from that 26-yard completion to Robby Anderson in overtime, where Petty rolled left to avoid the rush, and threw it down field into a somewhat congested area, and the receiver came down with it.
Perhaps the play fits the narrative, but overall I don’t agree with the premise that this guy is a “gunslinger.”
In fact, I think it’s a ridiculous premise.
How can you be a gunslinger when you consistently cock your gun, but don’t fire it?
How often have we seen Petty about the pull the trigger on a pass, but pull his arm back in, concerned about pulling the trigger?
Doesn’t sound like a gunslinger to me.
And don’t get me wrong. I don’t think gunslinger is an especially good thing at that position. Brett Favre is the poster child for this word, and he threw the most picks in NFL history. How is that a good thing? It’s not. It’s a bad thing.
But Petty is about the furthest thing from a gunslinger you will find. He’s consistently hesitating to pull the trigger. He’s not trusting his eyes. He’s checking down a lot.
Another foolish narrative came out of the Jets loss to Los Angeles where they scored just six points.
Some in the Fourth Estate (a fancy term for the media), were pushing the narrative that Gailey was too conservative and wouldn’t let Petty good down field more.
This is totally untrue.
It was Petty who refused to pull the trigger on some plays where he had a chance to throw mid-deep throws. He was having trouble processing certain defensive looks and didn’t want to throw picks. So he checked down a lot, and the Jets punted a lot.
We will see what Petty does in the last few games. If he moves up the growth curve and has the wherewithal to make more throws.
But to call him a gunslinger essentially based on one play is a just a reach.
It’s not accurate . . .
There is a good chance that Brandon Shell will start at right tackle this week for the Jets.
Breno Giacomini and Brent Qvale are both hurt.
First off, it’s good that he is playing right tackle. That is where he belongs. Throughout the summer, he played left tackle, and struggled. He was beat around the edge a lot in camp.
Most scouts felt he was going to be a right tackle on the NFL level.
So it’s good for him that he’s making his first start on the right side.
The tough part will be facing Cam Wake, an excellent pass rusher; Very tough assignment in his first start.
The Jets might want to get Shell extra tight end help.
This could be a very dangerous game for Petty, with a backup left tackle, and a third string right tackle as his bookends, against a very good pass rushing team.
February 15, 2016
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