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FLORHAM PARK, N.J. – It’s time for “The Buzz” from bucolic Florham Park with note on Connor, Hilliard, Dowtin and more. Let’s get started . . .
First a preseason knee injury limited John Conner during training camp and the early portions of the season. Then a hamstring injury derailed his return to the field, leading the Jets on Wednesday to announce an injury settlement with the young fullback.
Conner was often hyped, but struggled to consistently produce during what was now his third year with the team.
In addition, the emergence of the recently signed fullback Lex Hilliard seems to have sealed Conner’s fate.
Hilliard played for offensive coordinator Tony Sparano in Miami for the last three years, and has done a nice job since his arrival.
On Wednesday while honing in on him specifically in practice, he moves very well laterally. He also has very good footwork for a fullback and that could make him a better option to carry the ball in short yardage situations; Conner seemed always to have difficulty getting into gear when he had the ball in his hands . . .
Nick Mangold rode the stationary bike as did Eric Smith and Kenrick Ellis. Joe McKnight watched much of special teams practice and alternated viewing the drills along with tossing a football into the air . . .
With Conner no longer on the team, the Jets signed rookie linebacker Marcus Dowtin from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
“It’s not really about the talent, I feel like I’ve got the talent,” Dowtin told Jets Confidential. “It’s about me growing and acting like a football player. Coming to meetings, being on time, staying late when I need to, being here in the facility and becoming a professional football player.” . . .
During the early portion of practice when much of the team was involved with special teams work, Jason Hill and Stephen Hill caught balls out of the Jugs machine.
In an interesting twist, a staff member stood behind them with his arms around the receiver chopping up and down in a running motion, mimicking a cornerback motion going stride for stride with a receiver. Neither player dropped a ball, even as their hands were forced away from their bodies by the presence of the staff member.
All that time catching balls seemed to work for “JHill” as he made a nice leaping grab on a short out route that Tim Tebow overthrew during drills . . .
Stephen Hill delivered a crushing block and earned praise from the coaching staff during drills. Watching him up close, he lowers his shoulder very well and transfers his weight to his hands to push off. Impressive stuff . . .
Wide receiver Clyde Gates also did some drills with the wide receivers despite a shoulder injury. He cuts very well – likely the by-product of his being a college basketball player – and seems to be finishing his routes much better.
His shoulder injury happened in the Monday night loss to the Texans when a defender pulled on his arm while he was running down the field and popped it out of place.
“It’s good. I don’t know percents (sic), I don’t deal with percents,” Gates told Jets Confidential. “But it feels good and if I wanted to play I could and I do. It’s just up to the trainers now though.” . . .
Tight end Konrad Reuland has turned into a nice pickup for the Jets. He’s becoming versatile on special teams and he has better than advertised hands. He also has solid footwork for a player listed at 6’4 and 270 lbs. . . .
One overlooked component to the Jets secondary this year has been the leadership of LaRon Landry and Yeremiah Bell, who both were very vocal in practice on Wednesday in encouraging better execution from the cornerbacks in drills . . .
It is clear that both players are here to win but they also help a Jets secondary that in years past has struggled against New England’s tight ends.
“They use a lot of different guys. I’m not sure exactly what we’ll get, but we’re preparing for all of it,” Patriots head coach Bill Belichick said of Landry and Bell and the rest of the secondary . . .
On Tuesday, the Jets signed defensive lineman Matt Hardison, an undrafted rookie free agent out of Delaware, to the practice squad. He tells Jets Confidential “I had no idea if it was going to happen.”
“I was just training and working out back at my school,” Hardison said. “That’s one thing the Jets liked about me, that I’m always ready every time they’ve brought me in.”
October 17, 2012
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