Content available exclusively for subscribers
Wide receiver Garrett Wilson is one of the Jets’ best players and has made a ton of big plays since arriving in Florham Park, but some feel there is an aspect of his game he needs to improve.
Some think he catches with his body too much.
In the Jets’ recent loss to New England, with the Jets down 25-22, they got the ball back with 22 seconds left, and maybe they could somehow advance into long-field goal range or at least, mid-field to attempt a Hail Mary.
On first down, Aaron Rodgers threw a pass deep left to Wilson, who dropped it, with the ball bouncing off his chest.
“How do you drop that?” asked Patriots radio analyst Scott Zolak after the play. “That is what happens when you let the ball get into your pads.”
On the next play, Rodgers hit Davante Adams for a gain of 16, but by the time the Jets got to the line, the play clock ran out and the game was over.
This wasn’t the first time a pass bounced off Wilson’s chest.
Wilson is having a strong season, but everyone needs to improve something, and not letting some passes get into his body might be something the Jets’ talented young receiver needs to work on . . .
I’m not a special pleader for Jeff Ubrich and as Bill Parcells liked to say, “You are what your record says it is” and he is 0-3 as Jets coach.
However, it’s really hard to fix a broken culture in the middle of a season – near impossible.
And it turns out, the switch of play-callers at the same time he was hired, perhaps forced by the powers-that-be, was too much change around the same time.
Having Todd Downing run Nate Hackett’s offense has created a lot of dysfunction in the Jets’ offense, like having to call timeout on the first drive of the game in New England, because they were not lined up properly. The first drive is scripted and worked on all week, so it should be your best, perhaps your most organized of the game. And also, having to burn three timeouts in the first quarter, because of issues lining up, is unconscionable.
“This team is in disarray. 1:37 left in the first quarter and you are out of timeouts,” said Zolak.
Whatever you think of Hackett, if you are making a head coaching change to bring more accountability, that is enough. Don’t throw a monkey wrench into the offense to perhaps appease the public by throwing Hackett the bus, and then, to make matters worse, make the play-calling more complicated by bringing in adding another #1 receiver who needs the ball, creating confusion with the progressions.
It was too much change in a short period and it created more dysfunction.
I think Ulbrich knows what needs to be fixed, but to expect him to come in and wave a magic wand in-season was too Pollyanna.
But if you are paying attention, by Ulbrich calling out Sauce Gardner for his tackling, you are already seeing a higher level of accountability . . .
The film doesn’t lie as they say.
You gotta always go by the film.
You can never let your love of the person impact your film study.
How often did we hear the former coach describe a player as “an elite human being.”
That is great. We need more “elite human beings” in this world, but you can’t let them impact your evaluation of that player.
You can’t stick with “elite human beings” in the lineup just because you like them as people and you don’t want to hurt them by pulling them, even if they are hurting you with the performance.
One of the best at not letting sentimentality impact personnel decisions was Bill Belichick. Like when he continued with Tom Brady at QB even after popular QB Drew Bledsoe’s lung healed or when he traded Richard Seymour to the Oakland Raiders.
Go by the film, man, not the heartstrings.
October 30, 2024
Premium will return by 11:59 pm on Thursday.