New York, N.Y. During this offseason and all throughout the summer, it would be hard to argue that any NFL team has gotten more attention than the New York Jets. Everyone knows why, as the deal this past March that sent Tim Tebow east also seemed to send all of the cameras and reporters with him. The Jets had to know this was going to happen before they agreed to acquire #15, but apparently felt the reward outweighed the cost and thus pulled the trigger with Denver. It has been a media circus ever since, as Mark Sanchez has had to deal with this mess even before taking a meaningful snap in 2012. It seems as though all of the pundits have been asking the same question for months now….When will Tim Tebow become the starting quarterback for the New York Jets? In all honesty, this is a situation where probably nobody really knows the answer. Not even Rex Ryan knows, but if there was ever a head coach in the NFL who loves some attention on his team, it’s gotta be him. The fact of the matter is, this Jets team is gonna be must-see TV for probably all of this upcoming season. The weekly drama of the outcome of the games, combined with how Mark Sanchez plays, combined with how they end up utilizing Tebow, combined with the words that come out of Rex Ryan’s mouth, combined with Santonio Holmes trying to keep his mouth shut, combined with…..you get the idea. Whatever happens, it is gonna be some of the best reality TV anywhere this fall. What won’t happen though, is more wins than losses for the New York Jets. Although this will be a fun situation to monitor all season long, it will ultimately result in a lot of headaches for everyone involved and a team which doesn’t come close to making the playoffs.
How the Jets use Tim Tebow will be very intriguing. Will he run the “Wildcat” offense, and how many times during each game? Will he be the punt protector and be a threat to take the snap on various fourth downs? Will he actually play quarterback and be the starter at some point because of an ineffective Mark Sanchez? All of these things and more could realistically happen this year. But the problem that the New York Jets will run into, and already have during this preseason, is scoring points. The bottom line is, there isn’t a single player on offense who scares opposing defenses. The NFL is a league where skill players are counted on to make plays and are also counted on to make the defense think about the various things that they may have to adjust to. The Jets have none of these. Yes, how Tebow is used will make teams think at times, but he isn’t someone who is a precise passer or a guy with blazing speed. Mark Sanchez is still mistake-prone and will most likely be looking over his shoulder all year. At running back, Shonn Greene has been somewhat disappointing in his three seasons as a Jet, and has been very inconsistent as well. He isn’t a fast guy, but more of a plow ahead type of back. Joe McKnight has plenty of speed, but is unproven at this point with just 82 career carries under his belt. At receiver, Santonio Holmes is their top option, and could definitely be on the downside of his career at this point. In the last two years, he has just 52 and 51 catches respectively, and didn’t surpass 750 yards in either season. The other receivers are Stephen Hill, Jeremy Kerley, and Chaz Schilens, who are all unknown commodities heading into 2012. Tight end Dustin Keller may actually be their best receiving option, which is not something you want to be the case in the NFL today. This New York Jets team has the look of a squad which will struggle to score. The defense is still very good, but may be under an enormous amount of pressure because of how bad the offense will be. The Jets are going to have to find ways of winning low scoring games in 2012. Unfortunately, in this offensive driven league, that is not a recipe for season long success.
So what kind of record can New York Jets fans count on for 2012? Anything more than 8-8 would be foolish, as the Patriots should dominate the AFC East, and Buffalo looks to be a factor. Simply put, the talent just isn’t there, and a sub par season seems to be a reality. A third place finish at 7-9 seems fitting, and a wakeup call to add more talent for the future will be in the cards.
Denver Sports by J Simp
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