This is meaningless

People are so hungry for hits, so hungry, they are constantly trying to concoct things to drive people to their websites. This is an example of that . . .

And for some reason, many in our sports society are interested in lists, no matter how bogus or irrelevant they are. Lists are put out, they often get a lot of clicks, and then people knock themselves out debating these things.

It’s all childish and a waste of time. What do lists have to do with winning on Sunday? These lists are Kabuki Theater.

The latest waste of a carbon footprint is something from the USA Today website yesterday. A writer named Steven Ruiz ranked the head coach-quarterback combos in the NFL, 1-32.

The Star-Ledger which blogs like there is no tomorrow, wrote about this list.

“NFL teams that have good head coaches and quarterbacks generally win a lot,” wrote Darryl Slater for NJ Advance Media for NJ.com “No great revelation there. So where does the Jets’ coach-quarterback duo rank?

“Well, we know the Jets’ coach is Todd Bowles. And right now, their starting quarterback is Geno Smith, because Ryan Fitzpatrick remains an unsigned free agent. It’s not clear yet if Smith actually will be the Jets’ starter in 2016.

“Anyway, USA Today’s Steven Ruiz is out with his rankings of all 32 NFL coach-quarterback duos. And the Jets’ duo of Bowles and Smith is 29th, ahead of only the Rams (who are last), Titans, and Browns.”

Here is Ruiz’s take:

“Just so you know, the Jets aren’t any higher on this list if Ryan Fitzpatrick is on the roster,” wrote Ruiz. “New York needs to give Smith a shot with this loaded offense; Fitz has already proven he can’t get the team to the playoffs.

“If Fitzpatrick doesn’t re-sign, Bowles will have no choice but to give Smith a shot with wide receivers Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker.”

This whole thing is ridiculous. First of all, I find it a little intellectually dishonest to claim that the Jets would have the same ranking whether Geno Smith or Ryan Fitzpatrick is the quarterback. That comes across to me as an attempt to make his list work. Since the Jets’ QB situation is unclear, it seems like the writer conveniently claimed it made no difference who the quarterback is, so he could rate the Jets without an asterisk.

The Jets finished 10-6 last year with the Fitzpatrick and Todd Bowles. I understand they had a mild schedule, but when a combo goes 10-6, how are they the 29th rated combo?

And no, Geno’s problem isn’t weapons – it’s pocket presence and locking on his primary receiver (he did that a lot this spring). The Jets don’t think Geno is a better option than Fitzpatrick. I can assure you of that. Smith is a good #2.

I don’t know Mr. Ruiz. I’m sure he’s a nice guy. But keep in mind he has a very limited frame of reference. He graduated from the University of Maryland in December of 2013. He hasn’t been around the NFL very long.

This isn’t Peter King or Vic Carucci. This is a young writer who hasn’t been around the league very long.

I’m not saying you can’t be a good writer right out of college. I’m not talking about the writing. I’m talking about experience covering the league. He has a very limited scope.

And why would the Star-Ledger quote a newbie like this?

Because the sports website editor there is on a mission to get hits, and pushes his two Jets writers to blog about everything, whether it’s legit or not.

June 28, 2016

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