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Antonio Cromartie – “”And (people) say I’ve lost a step. Only thing I can do laugh at you all. Ran 4.34 and 4.36 in the 40 today after a workout and I’m only getting faster.”
Speed isn’t the reason the Jets had to move on from him.
It had nothing to do with it.
It was the physical aspects of the position, like bump-and-run and tackling.
He too often eschewed physicality, and that was unacceptable. The Jets did the right thing moving on.
I’m sorry, if you don’t want to get physical at the line of scrimmage with receivers, in a defense that plays a lot of man-to-man coverage, you need to go.
It’s as simple as that.
And as I’ve mentioned before, his tendency to bail on press coverage right before the snap, at times, to me, is shocking.
Quite frankly, it was a dereliction of duty.
If the play calls for you to play bump-and-run, to jam the receiver at the line, you do it. There is no wiggle room here. You don’t decide you aren’t going to do it. Do your job!
Cromartie could be SO good at press coverage if he was into it. He’s 6-2, 210 pounds with arms like vines. Long arms is so helpful in this matter, and he certainly has the size you look for in a press corner. Just look at the Seattle Seahawks stable – tall corners with long arms.
And we all know he has never been a fan of run support. Shonn Greene can attest to that. Remember that play when the Jets beat San Diego in the playoffs. It was probably that play that was the final straw with the Chargers’ brass, and led to the trade of “Cro” to the Jets.
The Jets now have a stable of corners, including guys like Dimitri Patterson, Dee Milliner, Ras-I Dowling, Dex McDougle and the exceedingly tough Ellis Lankster, who are willing to be physical at the line and throw their body around in run support.
The reason I keep writing about “Cro” is that I keep hearing proclamations from Cromartie about his game, and some in the media, that the Jets will miss this player.
“Cromartie remains an extremely nimble NFL player, with much to prove,” wrote Dan Hanzus on NFL.com. “Come the regular season, that speed might leave the Jets feeling the sharp pang of regret.”
No it won’t.
Unless he decides he wants to jam receivers at the line and improve his run support.
And also, cut down on penalties. Too much jersey grabbing.
I don’t care if he ran a 4.2 forty at that workout (by the way, that time he claimed can’t be verified), the Jets still needed to move on.
And it had nothing to do with speed.
Let’s not forget, they essentially moved on from him twice. First they cut him, and then despite claims they had interest in bringing him back, they put very little effort into making that happen.
It was time for a divorce.
Look, he will make some spectacular plays in coverage for Arizona. He’s a gifted athlete, who runs like a gazelle, jumps out of the gym, and has terrific hand-eye coordination.
But there is more to the position than that.
June 30, 2014
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