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Premium – The Jets added safety Ed Reed today. Is it a good move? JC publisher Dan Leberfeld takes a closer look in the following analysis . . .
The Jets signing of Ed Reed might help them a little.
When you have a defensive line as good as the Jets, that constantly puts pressure on the quarterback, it’s going to lead to some “ducks” from the opposing quarterback.
And a guy like Reed, who has a nose for the ball, is likely going to grab some picks. Reed is the consummate ball hawk.
John Idzik had a meeting with Reed and was impressed.
Reed is a very impressive guy – a very good communicator.
He’s going to impress you in a meeting.
That’s a given. I think that is an overrated factor here.
The bigger issue is that he’s 35 with a chronic hip issue.
Now the Jets have two defensive backs with chronic hip issues – Antonio Cromartie and Ed Reed.
But you know what, that point might be moot here.
The Jets only have seven games left in the regular season, and since we are past Week One, when contracts get guaranteed for the season if you are in the roster, Reed is basically on a week-to-week deal.
So that isn’t a big deal. If he gets hurt, they can move on, without a major financial snag.
The point I’m going to make here goes in an entirely different direction.
By making this move, the Jets are acting like a championship contender adding a player down the stretch who can put them over the top.
On the surface, that is very impressive.
But if you are starting a rookie quarterback, and trying to minimize the position, are you really going for the brass ring?
This is a team that got victimized by blowouts of biblical proportions in Tennessee and Cincinnati. Epic blowouts.
And the rookie quarterback was at the center of the storm in each of those games.
They also lost in New England when the rookie quarterback threw three picks in the fourth quarter.
Their only road win was over an awful, very banged-up Atlanta team.
Are they one player (on defense) away from being a champion?
Are they Boston Red Sox or Miami Heat (you pick the team and sport) adding a player for a championship stretch run? You see great teams do that often in all sports.
The Jets are coming off a game where the quarterback was 8-19 for 115 yards and a 62.4 quarterback rating.
How many games do you think they are going to run the ball like they did against New Orleans, especially with a rookie starter at left guard who is struggling.
The formula against the Saints was terrific, but it’s hard to do that every week.
This is a quarterback-drive league
There is no way around that.
Geno Smith is a major project. He has eight touchdown passes in nine games. That is obviously less than a touchdown a game.
He has 13 picks.
Let’s be blunt. The Jets are attempting to win by working around the quarterback position because right now, like a lot of youngsters, he struggles reading defenses. Marty Mornhinweg generally has to dial up brilliant first reads for the Jets’ passing game to have success.
How far can you go doing that in this league?
And by adding a veteran safety now, when honestly, the safety play of the starters Dawan Landry and Antonio Allen has been pretty good, is that going to push them over the top?
The only way the Jets’ current mindset of “going for it” could work is if they are willing to make a quarterback change if the position is holding them back down the stretch?
And I’m not talking about Matt Simms, who is as raw as Smith.
If you add a player like Reed, and you are attempting to go to the Super Bowl, David Garrard has to be in the conversation if Smith has some more games like Cincinnati, Tennessee and at New England.
I’m not being a hater towards Smith, just dealing with the statement they made today by adding Reed.
The concept of developing a rookie quarterback on the job, and taking the lumps associated with that, and making a run at the Super Bowl, are very hard to merge into the same blue print.
November 14, 2013
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