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JC editor Dan Leberfeld checks in from the heart of Morris County in Florham Park with a heaping helping of Training Camp Whispers . . .
One thing I’ve noticed over the first week of training camp practice is that David Harris doesn’t run as well as he used.
I have really noticed him laboring trying to cover people in the passing game.
Don’t get the wrong idea. I’m not writing him off. I still think he can help the Jets a great deal especially in the box and with his leadership, but his coverage issues definitely make the selection of Darron Lee that much more important.
Even if Lee doesn’t play full-time, his 4.4 speed and loose hips to change direction in the open field, are going to come in handy in terms of linebacker coverage on passing down . . .
As far as I’m concerned, both Jets outside linebacker jobs should be wide open.
Look, I think Lorenzo Mauldin is talented, but I’m not seeing anything in camp that leads me to believe he should be handed a job.
As Bill Parcells used to say, “Put the anointing oil away.”
I think he’s being overrated by the coaches and media.
He has not put a lot of pressure on the quarterback over the first week, and his coverage skills are pedestrian.
I love his motor, and he certainly has starting potential, but he shouldn’t be handed anything . . .
Julian Vander Laan, the college QB the Jets are making a TE, is really struggling. He had a bad drop today over the middle.
This is another example of why the NFL has a lousy player development set-up. I’ve written about this a lot, and if I was granted a meeting with Roger Goodell, I’d say, “Dude, you are making a big mistake not having a developmental league.”
In Jets practice, Vander Laan hardly gets any reps, so when they throw him a pass, basically when it’s a leap year, he presses, because it almost never happens.
Look, I’m not making excuses for him, just dealing with reality.
The only way a guy like this is going to make a successful transition from QB to TE are a ton of throws in scrimmage or games situations, and that isn’t going to happen the way things are set up now.
Baseball and hockey have much better player development landscapes then the NFL with extensive minor league systems for players to move up the growth curve and get the kinks out . . .
I might have been the only reporter to see this based on where I was standing compared to other reporters. I was behind the offensive line, and the others were behind the defense.
Darron Lee had a nice stop on a run by Romar Morris off right tackle, and after the play was over, with Morris on the ground, Lee slapped the running back’s helmet.
Not sure why he did this. Morris was pissed, but didn’t do anything. The last thing the long-shot running back needs is to get into a fight with the team’s first round pick and risk hurting Lee.
What Lee did would have been a 15-yard penalty in a game.
Perhaps he was trying to show his toughness after getting stoned by a running back yesterday on a goal line drill, which got a lot of press.
August 4, 2016
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