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It was a relatively . . .
. . . warm day today here in Florham Park. During Jets practice it was in the 50’s. So Sam Darnold wore shorts to practice. However, while his left leg was uncovered, his right leg had a black compression sleeve on it, so clearly there is something banged up on his right leg. However, it’s clearly not something that will keep him out of action because he practiced full today.
Let’s be honest, every player in the NFL has something wrong with him this time of year after 11 regular season games and some preseason action . . .
When the Jets’ linebackers participate in individual drills, they have two coaches, and right now, they only have six players. So if this was a school, they have an outstanding student-to-teacher ratio.
The six players who were practicing with the linebackers today were James Burgess, Neville Hewitt, Frankie Luvu, Brandon Copeland, B.J. Bello and practice squad player, Ukeme Eligwe.
The two coaches are Frank Bush and Joe Vitt.
Bush is the inside linebacker coach and Vitt is the outside linebacker coach, but who are the outside linebackers in this group?
What is my point here?
My point is the Jets aren’t playing a 3-4 defense anymore. Or let me put it this way, they aren’t playing it very much. Gregg Williams mixes in a lot of different fronts, so there will be some 3-4 looks on occasion.
In the spring, it came out that Williams was going to keep the Jets in a 3-4 defense, the same system run by Rex Ryan and then Todd Bowles.
This seemed odd because Williams doesn’t have much of a history with that front.
It was obviously something Mike Maccagnan wanted because that’s what he was drafting for during his time as the team’s GM.
The Jets picked Jachai Polite in the 2019 third-round with the intent of playing him as a 3-4 OLB.
And in the spring, before Maccagnan was fired, Vitt was coaching guys like Polite and Jordan Jenkins as outside linebackers, and they were in a different group, not practicing with the inside linebackers.
Polite is gone, but Jenkins has been practicing as a defensive end, along with former OLB Tarrell Basham, under the guidance of D-Line coach Andre Carter.
The Jets just signed former Boston College OLB Wyatt Ray (Nat King Cole’s grandson). He is listed on their roster at a linebacker, but he was practicing with the defensive ends today. He was not working with Vitt.
To make a long story short, it seems like the Jets bagged the 3-4 defense once Maccagnan was fired.
Guys like Jenkins and Basham are now defensive ends, not outside linebackers.
And this is another reason, in retrospect, the Jets probably should have picked 4-3 end Josh Allen with the third pick in the draft. Allen has eight sacks playing the 4-3 end position for Jacksonville. But at the time, Maccagnan was picking with 3-4 in mind, and took Quinnen Williams, and then Polite.
This is one contributing factor to the Jets’ rough season, though they have improved in recent weeks.
You had a GM in place until May, picking for a system they are no longer using, or using very little . . .
Jamal Adams was asked today about this being a “trap” game. How can a 4-7 team have a trap game? That’s crazy, and now with the Bengals starting veteran Andy Dalton, instead of rookie Ryan Finley, this game is now a much bigger challenge for Gang Green . . .
Very uncomfortable moment in today’s Sam Darnold press conference when he was asked about the New York Post story that he was “wasted” and “hooked up with a girl” at a New York bar after the Jets win over the Raiders.
Why ask him about that?
Then again, why report it?
Did he break the law?
November 27, 2019
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