Saturday, September 03, 2011

Same Ol' Same Ol'





September 2, 2011

2011 New York Jets Season Preview
The fan of the 2011 New York Jets is an interesting creature. He has seen his team reach the penultimate game of the NFL season for the last two years. Some people might say that he has been spoiled by such recent success, and they might have a point if they have no grasp of the history of this franchise. For the long-suffering Jets fan, this recent success has come at the price of drowning in mediocrity for most of the last 30 years. Although they call the largest media market in the United States home, the Jets have perennially played second fiddle to the more established, more storied, and simply, more successful New York Giants. Multiple losing seasons (1-15, 3-15, 6-10 win-loss records have been the norm more so than outliers) have jaded fans so much so that any glimmer of success has been accompanied by an impeding anticipation of disaster. So while the past few trips to the AFC championship game have definitely provided hope and small sense of pride to the supporters of the Green and White, most fans over the age of 20 have learned not to build their hopes too high. For years, the phrase that would come to most fans to describe their squad would be “Same Ol' Jets” (or “Just End The Season”, if they were masochistic and had a hankering for acronyms). Starting quarterback injured on the first drive of the first game of the season? Same ol' Jets. Using your first pick in the NFL draft on a kicker? Same ol' Jets. Having the first player in the history of the NFL to win the Comeback Player of the Year award twice because he suffered season-ending injuries twice? Same ol' Jets. High draft picks like Blair Thomas and Vernon Gholston being claimed “savior” and never even sniffing the hype thrust upon them? Yep... same ol' Jets.

This most recent incarnation of the Jets, however, has given its fan base a new outlook on their team. Third-year head coach Rex Ryan has turned the football punchline of New York into a consistent winner. The first draft pick of his tenure, QB Mark Sanchez, has displayed a penchant for late-game heroics, and he has formed his defense into one of the most feared units in the league. Between the acquisitions of big-name playmakers (RB LaDanian Tomlinson, LB Bart Scott, and CB Antonio Cromartie among others) and classic press conference soundbites (“I never came here to kiss Bill Belichick's rings”), Ryan has created a team with the talent and motivation to compete for a championship.

The 2011 team enters the season looking to continue on the success of back-to-back trips to conference championships. With the exception of DE Shaun Ellis, replaced in the offseason by rookie DE Muhammad Wilkerson, the defense returns its entire starting lineup. This continuity in Ryan's complex defensive scheme will ensure that the Jets remain at the top of the league in defensive efficiency. Star CB Darrelle Revis, hampered by a hamstring injury early in the 2010 season, comes into the year completely healthy and ready to lead his team. His take: “Last year holding out and coming in late, yeah, my game wasn’t where it needed to be. The first two games and then I pulled the hamstring against Randy [Moss], and then I came back too early. I wasn’t 100 percent, but that’s no excuse; I wanted to be out on the field and play. I picked up the second half of the season and finished strong, but this year is kind of like a revenge thing: I’m coming back and I’m coming back strong.” Along with veterans Scott, S Jim Leonard, and LB David Harris, the Jets should make good on that promise of revenge.

While the defense is clearly the strength of the team, an improved offense is going to determine if the Jets can improve on past years' successes. Ryan has continually espoused the philosophy that the key to success in the league, along with a stellar defense, is an offense which can control the tempo of the game with an efficient and bruising running attack. To that end, the Jets' offense has been an complete success; statistically, it has been the most dominant unit in the league under Ryan's tenure (averaging 2565 rushing yards in the past two seasons). In order to prevent teams from using that obvious run-bias to their advantage, the Jets have also made it a point to improve their passing game as well. Sanchez has organized multiple team activities over the last two offseasons to improve his rapport with his receivers, and working WR Santonio Holmes and the underrated TE Dustin Keller at his “Jets West” camps have clearly helped with his development. In addition, the Jets replaced WRs Jerricho Cotchery and Brad Smith with WRs Plaxico Burress and Derrick Mason, reasoning that adding experience (Burress and Mason have a combined 23 years in the league and over 19,000 receiving yards) can further increase the firepower of the Jets passing attack.

A strong, if not slightly insane head coach, stability on a top-tier defense, a more potent offense, and the best special teams coach in the NFL (ST coach Mike Westhoff has made the names Leon Washington and Brad Smith synonymous with “kick return studs”) give fans of the New York Jets a serious reason to believe that their team will once again be a serious contender for the AFC crown. Sure, the Patriots bring back an all-time great QB Tom Brady, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens are regular participants in the postseason, and the Chargers finished last year with the top-ranked offense and defense, but Ryan said it best last season: “Yeah, same ol' Jets... going to the AFC championship two years in a row.”...

...Third time's a charm, right?



(cross published at FnB.com)

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