Post-Season Thoughts

Welp, its been a pretty miserable month or so, but don't let that get you down. Do we have holes? Absolutely. Are they fixable and correctable? Absolutely.

On Sanchez: I think we can all now agree that QB wins are the stupidest stat in the history of the universe. Shoould we give up on the kid? No. For several reasons, but mostly because there are simply too many factors that could have affect Sanchez's performance this year.

Go back to the Dallas game, when the offensive philosophy was to "air it out". For all the pressure he was under, he played a pretty solid game, save a few plays. The Jets offense continued to appear at least competent, until the fateful Baltimore game. I don't think Mark ever recovered from that. That kid of loss sets you back a lot, and it may take a whole season to get over.

From the general perspective of an athlete, it can be really amazing what just a new season can do for you. I doubt he has the same kind of turnaround Eli Manning had, simply ecause he is not that talented thrower Eli is, but Sanchez can get it done. We have seen him get it done. He just needs to play a certain game to be sucessful.

Which is where Sparano comes in. The Sparano hire is perfect. I don't care about Hue Jackson or the big numbers other offenses put up. Think about this: Mike McCarthy got the Packers job after heading one of the worst offenses in football. On-field performances are not the main point in hiring coaches: Relationhips and philisophies come first.

Sparano will emphasisze and attack the biggest weaknesses on the Jets offensively. He will keep things simple, which is crucial to playing confidently. He will get the playmakers the football and dictate the way the Jets want to play.

Remember how the Dolphins were not afraid to throw at Revis? Probably not the smartest move, but it just goes to show that Sparano is not going to change his philosophy and let the opponent dictate the game.

On Schottenheimer: I don't get on offensive coordinators for play calling as much as most. Play calling is kind of a crapshoot - if you run left instead of right when the defense is bltzing from the right, you look like a genius. If the defense is blitzing from the left, you are "predictable".

My issue with Shotty was 1. His complication of the offense and 2. His stubbornness.

Remember when Sanchez called that stupid timeout at the end of the first half of the second Pats game? To me, that showed a lot. The Jets offense was not playing a football game: They were just trying to execute Shottenheimer's system. Brian's system was so demanding and complicated that there was no time to worry about things like timeouts and game situations. It was like Mark was taking an exam in Shotty's offense every time he took the field.

Sanchez was not trying to win games, he was trying to please his coordinator.

What Rex must do: If you haven't heard Rex's conversation with Mike Francesa, listen to it, because he said a lot fo good things.

For one, I love how he plans on being more hands-on on all aspects of the game. Everyone knows he is a defensive coach, and I don't want him calling plays anytime soon. But, as I mentioned before, Shotty's system was just too complicated for him to learn. He would get his defense off the field and watch helplessly at his inept offense.

When you look at other coaches that are heavy on one side of the ball, the good ones know at least enough about the other side to let the players know that he is interested in what they are doing (its a big reason why special teams coaches like John Harbaugh are effective). Guys like Sean Payton, Norv Turner, Tom Coughlin show that they recognize what they are doing on the other side of the ball is important. You saw Andy Reid call defensive plays at the end of the 2010 season.

Rex is a football guy, and needs to be a football guy and take the time and learn what his own team is trying to do on offense.