Clemens should start. No, seriously

by Rothstein on Jun 30, 2009 12:22 PM EDT Comment 11 comments

I know everyone, including me, is clamoring for a chance to see Mark Sanchez in action. And we do only have him for 5 years, although if he pans out I can't imagine we don't give him a Brady/Manning-esque extension. I also know that recent history might suggest that starting a rookie QB can work out, especially with a Rex Ryan defense. I will not be furious or up in arms if Sanchez does get the nod, but I think we should hold off, and here's why:

From all accounts I've heard, Clemens has been killing it in minicamps and drills, and Sanchez, although he's maintained a great attitude and seeing everything but the kitchen sink from Ryan, hasn't blown anyone away yet. Clemens knows this offense after playing under Shotty for a couple of years now, and he has had plenty of game experience, which is the main knock on Sanchez.

When Clemens played a couple of years ago after Chad went down, he looked overmatched. But in reality, the Jets had no running game to speak of because of a horrendous offensive line that didn't excel in pass protection either. He was getting pressured on 3-step drops immediately, and no one can survive under those conditions. Now, we have one of the better lines in the league, a running game to boot, so things should be a little easier for any quarterback.

However, do we want to throw our prized rookie into the fire with this group of receivers? We know that if the Jets do pick up Bulletproof Burress, our receiving corps will look infinitely better. But as it stands, I don't want Sanchez's first NFL experience to be throwing to these guys. Sanchez also doesn't have the cannon that Clemens does, and if there's anything that can help these receivers out, it's a guy who can stretch the field and hit Clowney for 40 yards down the sideline.

I'm just not sure that Sanchez is there yet. When he is ready, I feel like he'll be Pennington 2.0, a great leader, smart, accurate, who can throw farther than Pennington but won't be able to rear back and fire like a McNabb or Manning. For the present and future, I think start Clemens now, and let Sanchez clipboard-up for a while.

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May the best man start!

I agree with you completely in terms of giving Clemens a real chance despite all the buzz from Sanchez, but I don’t think the job should be handed to anyone. Whoever plays the best during training camp and preseason starts Week 1, whether it’s Sanchez, Clemens, or even Eric Ainge. Forget about every intangible. Trust performance.

by joey d on Jul 1, 2009 12:43 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

From Clemens to Favre

Klemens: 4-12
Favre: 9-7

I always wonder if Kellen Clemens could have gone frome 4-12 to 9-7 if the Jets didn’t have Brett Favre for 2008. That’s the only thing that worries me about having Clemens as the Jets QB.

2009 Dallas Cowboys: 10-6

by Grady90 on Jul 1, 2009 4:37 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

To be fair – Clemens only played in 10 games and only started 8 games that year if I remember. He doesn’t deserve to carry around the 2007 record of 4-12.

by Chrebet's Da Man on Jul 2, 2009 6:37 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I know this...

But I found out about five minutes after I posted that and hoped no one would notice! :P

2009 Dallas Cowboys: 10-6

by Grady90 on Jul 3, 2009 6:21 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

That's one thing that sucks about SB Nation....

The inability to go in and delete or edit your mistakes after posting.

by The Brain part II on Jul 13, 2009 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

I tend to agree. Sanchez has a lot of pressure on him. Letting him sit makes sense to me.

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by John B on Jul 1, 2009 8:26 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Clemens deserves a shot

If he turns out to suck it up we pull him and send in the kid. Simple as that. 07 was bad all around…the line was not getting it done. Jesus, Allah or the reincarnated corpse of Johnny Unitas could have been taking the snaps and it would have been just as bad.

What did the 5 fingers say to the face?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7CBwX1891A
HaHaHaHa!

by Lord Smackington on Jul 6, 2009 3:45 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Clemens should be the starter period

I am going to say this as nicely as I know how. Sanchez played high school football in sunny southern California and then went on to play for the University of Southern California. Now I will not argue about his accomplishments at USC as he was part of a winning program with elite talent all around him and he made the most of it and it shows in his passing stats. The problem that I see with Sanchez is that he he does not have a cannon and he has never played a game in bad weather. I doubt he will be able to loft his pretty Pennington like touch passes with any effectiveness or consistency in December when he may have to play games in Buffalo, New England or New Jersey late in the season.

Clemens played fairly well when he was given a chance to start a few years ago. He almost upset the Ravens. Justin McCareins dropped what would have been the game winning touchdown and he brought the Jets back to force overtime with the Redskins that same season. He did that with a team that had no running game, half of an offensive line and Justin McCareins dropping passes. That is a pretty good accomplishment for a new quarterback. His stats don’t tell the whole story because he was thrown into a lot of games that had gotten out of hand and he had to force the ball in to coverage and had his share of interceptions in mop up duty for Pennington. You really can;t fault those interceptions on Clemens.

Clemens has the arm strength to force defenses to cover the entire field. I am not talking about the 50 or 60 yard bomb. The 20 yard square out and the 20 yard square in are more important than the bomb especially in December and January againt the elements in the Northeast.

The Sanchez pick was the marketing pick to get people to pay for the PSL’s. Woody has run this team in that manner since day one. Just look at his crappy history of first round picks with the exception of Ferguson and Mangold. Most of those picks were made for the purpose of selling tickets and last I checked workout warriors rarely amount to anything and they rarely win championships.

by Raider90 on Jul 9, 2009 12:41 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

With Schottenheimer back on and Sanchez’s limited playing time during 2 out of his 3 college seasons, I’m going with Clemens and since the offensive game plan will obviously cater to Clemens and Sanchez’s collective strength the transition to Sanchez (if needed during his first year) should be easy.

by The Brain part II on Jul 13, 2009 12:22 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

We are having this same discussion at the Detroit Lions Site [Pride of Detroit]

I see a world of difference between your situation and ours. in the end, I think that you go with the QB who gives you the best chance to win….initially. If you go with the veteran and the season falls apart, you make the change mid season to prepare for 2010, but I think you owe it to the team and the fans to play the best QB.

The best scenario, in our case, is Stafford winning the job decisively in training camp. Bring on the future!

by NorthLeft12 on Jul 13, 2009 10:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

defense wins championships!that being said I think Clemens should have replaced Favre during his slide when he didn’t realize he was hurt.That is why Mangidiot got the pank slip

by dreaux on Jul 21, 2009 3:41 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs