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What do you expect him to say? But you know what, you could make an argument . . .
the Jets let PR get in the way of football pragmaticism.
What am I talking about?
Jets offensive coordinator John Morton was asked on Thursday about his comfort level with the team’s reserve quarterbacks – Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg.
Q)What is your level of confidence in Petty and Hackenberg if they had to play right now?
Morton: I feel good. I feel really good.
Q)Are you confident in Petty and Hackenberg if they had to play in the upcoming game…
Morton: Yes. I sure am.
Not sure how many people bought this, but I’m also not going to criticize Morton for his answers.
If he showed us any ankle, and told us how he probably REALLY feels, it would have caused a firestorm.
There is very little chance he’s confident that Hackenberg could go into a game at this point and be successful.
The poor kid had NINE three-and-out’s in the fourth preseason game playing against Philadelphia Eagles backups, many of whom aren’t with the team anymore.
If he had NINE three-and-out’s against Eagle backups, playing a pretty vanilla defensive strategy, what is he going to do against starting defenders in the regular season, using sophisticated elements of their playbooks?
So I don’t buy he’s comfortable with Hackenberg playing at this stage of the game.
As for Petty, I think people are getting a little too carried away with his second half performance against the Giants. He did some nice things, but there were some blown coverages, and a lot of third-stringers out there who are now in the private sector.
Before that second half against the Giants, he was pretty average in the first two preseason games, not leading the team to any touchdowns.
I’m not writing off either player, but I think both are still major works-in-progress, especially in a new offense this year.
I said something today on a Buffalo radio show that the host got a kick out of.
I said, “If the Jets lose Josh McCown to an injury this year they are in a lot of trouble.”
Think how bizarre that must have sounded to the hosts and audience in Buffalo, the concept that the Jets are in trouble if they lose a journeyman quarterback who has played for like half the league.
But that is how I feel.
I think McCown gives the Jets their best chance to win this year. He looked good managing their offense in the spring and summer.
And I think the Jets made a mistake not bringing in a backup QB with more experience than Hackenberg and Petty, and that is where I think PR comes into play.
How would that look?
In my world, I don’t give a rat’s behind how things “look,” you do what is best for your team, but that isn’t the reality with a lot of NFL teams.
I care so little about what people think in terms of factoring that into personnel decisions, I would have put Hackenberg on the practice squad this year. I’m dead serious. Do you really think anyone is stealing him after the preseason he had? I doubt it, and if it happens, you just move on, and deal with it.
I think the Jets have left themselves very vulnerable if McCown gets hurt.
September 8, 2017
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