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Here is another dose of Dan’s training camp Whispers from Cortland – Among the items covered are Ducasse’s rough practice, Allison getting it done, the practice fight and the undercard, L.C., J.T. and so much more . . .
The Jets spent a big part of the afternoon practice working on-side kicks . . .
In the afternoon practice, Andrae Allison was getting a lot of work as a kick returner, behind Brad Smith.
In the morning practice, he continued to look good at receiver. He has always been known for his blazing speed, but the thing that has been the most impressive about him this summer are his hands. I can’t remember the last time he dropped a pass.
Henry Ellard has had a huge influence on him . . .
Vlad Ducasse jumped off-sides twice in the morning practice.
He’s going to be very good. You can see that by all the pancake blocks he has even while he learns. He threw Sione Pouha to the ground in a morning drill.
But his biggest problem now is learning the playbook.
He’s a very bright kid, but never forget, Creole (the French-based language of Haiti) is his first language, so it’s going to take him a while to learn the playbook . . .
Rodrique Wright and Matt Slauson got into a nasty fight in the morning practice, but then on the undercard, Shaun Ellis and Robert Turner (what a shock) got into each other’s grill . . .
Laveranues Coles made a one-handed catch in the morning practice. I doubt that he will be on the roster for the first game (so they don’t have to guarantee his season’s salary), but I have a sense he will be in the mix this year . . .
Jason Taylor batted down yet another pass, this time a right side throw by Mark Brunell. I’ve lost count of how many passes he’s batted down . . .
Brunell scrambled on a play this morning. I will tell you what, he still runs fairly well, even at 39 . . .
There was a play in the morning practice that perfectly displayed how important LT is going to be to the Jets passing game. Brodney Pool blitzed off the left side, and LT snuck out to the spot Pool came from, and took a short pass on the left side for a nice gain . . .
With Bart Scott rested in the morning practice, Kenwin Cummings started at inside linebacker. This shows you how high they are on Cummings . . .
With Brandon Moore held out of the morning practice, Matt Slauson started at right guard and Vlad Ducasse at left guard . . .
Don’t believe the hype, Vernon Gholston still struggles mightily getting off blocks. I keep hearing from people how strong he is. And it’s definitely true. He’s strong. But if he’s so strong, how come he can’t shed blocks? There is a big difference between weight room and field strength.