Chris Baker sure made his presence felt on the first day of mandatory minicamp.

Last season's starting tight end ripped into the Jets Friday, saying the team welched on their promise to rework his contract after the 2007 season.  Baker has two years remaining on his deal and is due to make a base salary of $683,000 in 2008.  That ranks him dead-last on the team's tight end salary depth chart, behind newly singed Bubba Franks ($1.66 million) and freshly drafted Dustin Keller ($5 million guaranteed as the 30th pick overall).

Baker contends that the Jets promised his former agent that the team would look at his contract if he turned in a good year and he finished with a career-high 41 receptions.  GM Mike Tannenbaum didn't come out and say Baker "misremembered" the discussions, but he disagreed with his assessments.

"I just think Chris and I have a difference of opinion about those conversations," Tannenbaum said. "I was part of those conversations. I know what was said."

This is the third player to accuse the Jets front office of reneging on contract talks.  First it was Pete Kendall, who was eventually shipped to D.C., then it was Laveranues Coles, who received a guarantee on the final two years of his deal.

If you follow that pattern, it looks like the Green and White aren't going to budge on Baker.  The Jets claim they redo contracts on a case-by-case basis and it seems like Baker doesn't have much of a case considering the team has a solid veteran tight end and one highly-touted one.  Too bad.  I like Baker and feel the Jets haven't utilized him as much as they could have in the past.  Baker wants to be traded, but so far the Gotham Green aren't budging.

Honestly, I don't know who to believe.  The Jets have had a disturbing pattern of dealing with their own lately and those players have also been somewhat vocal.  Coincidence?  Maybe, but I wouldn't bet on it.  Baker may not have much leverage, but he did come out with this doozy:

"I'm not happy. ... I have a question for you. Imagine coach (Eric) Mangini was the third highest-paid coach on the staff, you think he'd be happy about that?"

Zing!

Posted by Mike at 2:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

I've been a bit negligent in my Jets coverage (after all, it's June), but I caught an interesting article in The Star-Ledger via nj.com and if you didn't catch it, here's the rundown.

Turns out linebacker Bryan Thomas wasn't giving it his all last season.  This shouldn't come as a shock to anyone who watched him play, but he was surprisingly candid.  Here were his quotes:

"It's not hard to realize my numbers were off. My practice habits weren't good last year and those things carried over to Sunday.

"Maybe I got too complacent. In this league, you can't do that. You have to stay on your toes all the time. And now you have competition in here, so you know you can't do it. You have to go out and work hard every day. If not, I'll have my (butt) on the sidelines watching and I don't want that to happen.

"That hurt me, seeing that my numbers were down. I don't want (people to say), 'Okay, you did good one year.' I don't want to be analyzed as that.

"It's a matter of pride. I can't let my numbers be like that again. We have too many good players on this defense to let one guy be the weak link."

In case you forgot, Thomas parlayed his 2006 season (8 1/2 sacks, 77 tackles) into a five-year, $25 million deal.  He fell short of those numbers (and by "short of" I mean "miles away from") last season, finishing with 43 tackles and 2 1/2 sacks.

I read Eric Mangini's reaction to BT's comments from Erik Boland via jetsblog.com.  If you missed them, here they are:

“One of the things we talk about quite a bit, whether it’s after a practice or after a game, after a season, everybody spend some time and be honest with themselves. And that’s the only way you’re going to grow, to sit there and be honest with yourself and how you did. You know whether you did well or achieved to the best of your ability. That’s how you’re going to get better. It’s good that everybody does that … Whenever you have a season like we did, or like we had before (in 2006 when the Jets went 10-6), a lot of people had to do things very well, a lot of people had to do things better. There’s a lot of things I could do better. That’s part of the process. Those are the types of guys that you want, guys that look at it and say, ‘I could do better.’”

A lot of honesty is flying around the Jets so far.

Whether that translates into more wins in 2008 remains to be seen.

Posted by Mike at 1:50 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

The third year of the Tangini draft era wrapped up on Sunday and time will tell if the Jets found any contributors.

Gang Green went into the draft with needs at defensive line, wide receiver, cornerback, quarterback and running back (other than that, things are just fine with the Green and White).  I kid, I kid.  Anyway, here's what general manager Mike Tannenbaum and coach Eric Mangini's 2008 draft looked like:

Round 1. Vernon Gholston DE (Ohio State)
Round 1. Dustin Keller TE (Purdue)
Round 4. Dwight Lowery CB (San Jose State)
Round 5. Erik Ainge QB (Tennessee)
Round 6. Marcus Henry WR (Kansas)
Round 7. Nate Garner OT (Arkansas)

As you can see, needs were addressed (in theory).  I liked the Gholston pick even though he might be the top candidate for biggest potential bust out of the first ten picks.  The story is that Vern gets up for big games, but disappears in others.  Well, I guess every game is going to have to be a big one for The Ghol.

I saw some more highlight film of Dustin Keller and the kid doesn't look like a tight end.  And sure enough, he started his collegiate career at wide receiver.  He's been compared to Dallas Clark of the Indianapolis Colts.  Hey, I'm all for that.  The Jets haven't had a reliable, big-play tight end since Mickey Shuler.

The word on Dwight Lowery is that he's better in zone coverage.  That means he has nickel back written all over him.  But he did lead the nation in picks in his junior season. 

Erik Ainge is the nephew of former professional basketballer and baseballer and current Boston Celtics GM Danny Ainge.  Anige threw for 3,522 yards, 31 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in his final year as a Volunteer.  But scouts questioned his arm strength (even though he's a big kid -- 6'5, 223), ability to handle pressure and overall mental and physical toughness.  Other than that, he has the chance to be a real star.

Marcus Henry is the big wide receiver (6'4, 207) the Jets desperately need.  Henry has long arms and could be a real asset in the red zone.  His biggest drawback is that he fails to gain separation and doesn't rack up those important yards after the catch.

Nate Garner is big (6'6, 326), but raw.  It looks like another Jacob Bender "pet project" situation.

There it is -- the Jets Class of 2008.

Check back in a few years to see if the right choices were made.

Posted by Mike at 11:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

It was the easy pick.

Running back Darren McFadden was off the board as was quarterback Matt Ryan (thank Budda) so the Jets chose wisely and selected the speed pass-rusher Vernon Gholston from Ohio State with the sixth pick in the 2008 draft.  Gholston recorded a school-record 14 sacks last year and picked up 22.5 sacks in his last 25 games at The Ohio State University.  Those numbers should bolster an anemic Jet pass rush that generated only 29 sacks last season.

Gholston was a defensive end with the Buckeyes, but his size (6'3, 266) makes him a perfect fit as a 3-4 outside linebacker.  The Detroit native put up impressive numbers during his pre-draft workout  -- running the 40 in 4.67 seconds and performing a scouting combine-best 37 reps on the bench press.

The biggest drawback about Gholston is his passion -- or lack thereof.  Here's what one scout had to say:

"He's a talented, athletic kid, but his instincts and efforts aren't what they should be."

Said an opposing GM:

"When you watch his tape, he's probably a first-round pick. When he works out, he's in the middle of the first round. When he takes his shirt off, he's a top-10 pick."

Gholston didn't want to be a team's second or third or, in this case, sixth choice.  "I want to go where the team wants me," Gholston said when asked about the Jets. "I don't want to be in a situation where [a team says] 'We wanted this guy, but we just pick up Vernon Gholston.'"  That shows me that he has some fire in the belly.  Whether it's always burning remains to be seen.

Gang Green also pulled off a trade and netted themselves another first-round pick.  The Jets sent their second and fourth-round picks in this year's draft to the Green Bay Packers for the right to pick at No. 30.  And the Jets choose ... a tight end.  Strange.  The Green and White selected Purdue's Dustin Keller.  I'm not that familiar with Keller, but here's what the good people at Scouts Inc. had to say about the 6'3, 242 pound tight end:

No tight end in this year's class projected as a first-round pick in our opinion, making this pick a reach. One of the biggest knocks on Keller is that he's probably never going to develop into an excellent in-line blocker. Also, he doesn't have the frame to add a lot of bulk without sacrificing his greatest strength: his speed. However, Keller certainly has the athletic ability, versatility and burst to make an immediate impact as a receiver. He will be a tough matchup for opposing defenses; his size can cause enormous problems for defensive backs and most linebackers are going to have problems turning to run with him.

The Jets are a team lacking playmakers, but Keller gives offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer a lot of versatility with his personnel groupings and matchups. He has good hands and gives them a threat in the passing game, unlike Chris Baker or Bubba Franks. Look for Schottenheimer to move him around and detach him in the formation. The Jets have spent heavily on offensive line and defense in the offseason, and now Keller will help them put points on the board.

Again, it's a strange decision.  The Jets certainly need playmakers on offense, but there were a slew of wide receivers out there who were available.  This could also mean that the Jets are really, really down on current tight end Chris Baker.  Baker is unhappy with his contract status and has stopped reporting to the Jets' offseason program.  The Daily News said Baker recently asked the Jets for a trade, but the team responded with a negative.

So, the first day of the NFL Draft ended with one expected pick and one surprise pick for the New York Jets.

Let's see what tomorrow brings.

Posted by Mike at 11:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

And so the other shoe has dropped.

The Jets traded defensive lineman Dewayne Robertson to the Denver Broncos Thursday for what appears to be a late-round conditional pick in the 2009 draft.  The Star-Ledger reports Gang Green could land at least a third-round selection if Robertson reaches certain playing requirements -- that would be sweet.  The move should come as no surprise to Jet fans -- D-Rob was almost traded to the Cincinnati Bengals last month for a 4th and 5th round pick and the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles were also rumored to be interested in the five-year veteran.

Robertson was due to collect a $3 million bonus in June and with the acquisition of Kris Jenkins and re-signing of lineman Sione Pouha, the former first-round pick out of Kentucky was made expendable.  The Green and White will save about $8.4 million with the trade.

If you're keeping score at home, that's two former first-round picks the Jets have traded in the past two months.  Linebacker Jonathan Vilma was sent to the New Orleans Saints at the end of February.

Speaking of the draft, it's this coming Saturday.  The Jets own the sixth pick and speculations are running wild.  Running back Darren McFadden is the sexy choice, but I don't think he'll be around by the time the Jets select.  Other players rumored to be heading to New York include: linebacker/defensive end Vernon Gholston, defensive lineman Sedrick Ellis, cornerback Leodis McKelvin and even quarterback Matt Ryan.  There's also the possibility the Jets trade down (or maybe up?).

I've wavered on who the Jets should take, but if McFadden is available it would be almost impossible not to grab him.  There have been questions about McFadden's character (he was involved in a bar fight earlier this year and has claimed responsibility for two children by two different women), but the guy has incredible raw talent.  Still, I wouldn't cry foul if the Jets opted for Gholston.  The Jets had trouble getting to the quarterback last year and the product out of Ohio State should (stress should) help in that department.

But the one guy I do not want the Jets to pick (repeat -- DO NOT) is the QB from Boston College.  The Jets aren't settled at the quarterback position by any means (the jury's out on Kellen Clemens and I'm shocked that Chad Pennington is still on this team), but to bring in another young guy would make absolutely no sense to me.  But that's me.  The Jets have done well in the draft the past few years (the recently traded former first-round picks notwithstanding), let's see if it continues.

Anyway, Arin from Arin It Out will be live blogging the first two rounds of the NFL Draft.

Hopefully, whomever the Jets select won't be traded away in a couple of years.

Posted by Mike at 7:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

The journey begins in Miami.

Gang Green will open the 2008 regular season against the Dolphins -- a team the Jets beat twice last season, which accounted for half of their win total -- on Sept. 9 at 1:00 p.m.  The Green and White will then head to the Meadowlands and renew hostilities with the AFC champion New England Patriots.  It will be the third straight year the Jets open up their home schedule against the Pats.  Coincidence?  I think not!  Oh, I can't wait to hear more about spygate -- can you?  The Jets and Pats will play the second game on a Thursday night (Nov. 13) in New England.

The schedule makers also shocked me (and maybe the Jets) by awarding the team a Monday night tilt in Week 3 at the San Diego Chargers.  The Jets made the playoffs in 2006 and weren't on MNF in 2007 and now they are coming off a horrible 4-12 campaign.  Doesn't make much sense, does it?  Bruce Paine from the Cobra Brigade doesn't understand it either.

The Jets will also work in some frequent-flier miles.  Gang Green will jet (Ha!) to the left coast not once, not twice, not even thrice, but four times.  There's the already mentioned trip to San Diego which will be followed by treks to Oakland on Oct. 19, San Francisco on Dec. 7 and finally Seattle on Dec. 21. 

The Jets will get their bye in Week 5.

If you want to get technical (and I'm sure you do), the Jets will "technically" open against the Browns in Cleveland on Aug. 7.  The rest of the preseason schedule goes Washington, Giants and at Philadelphia.

It's always dangerous to predict in April, but there are a bunch of winnable games on New York's docket.  The Jets will play only five games against playoff teams in 2007 (and two of those games are against the Patriots).  But I'm sure teams will be looking at the Jets the same way.  Time will tell.

The season will wrap up the way it started when the Dolphins visit the Meadowlands in Week 17.

It will be important for the Jets to get off to a good start since they spent a ton of cash this past offseason on free agents.  But fans and media shouldn't go ballistic if Gang Green stumbles out of the gate.  The New York Giants started out 0-2 and were staring 0-3 right in the kisser last season.

How did things turn out for them?

Posted by Mike at 10:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

Who says the Jets don't know how to treat their boys?

Gang Green inked safety Kerry Rhodes to a five-year, $33.5 million extension on Thursday.  The deal includes $20 million in guaranteed cash.

This now makes Rhodes one of the richest safeties in the league.  Indianapolis Colts safety Bob Sanders recently signed a five-year, $37.5 million deal with $20 million guaranteed.  Rhodes isn't in Sanders' class, but it's a smart move by the Green and White to lockup one of their own before he hit the free agent market.  Rhodes had one more year remaining on his contract.

Number 25 got off to a slow start in 2007 (along with everyone else on defense) and finished with the worst totals of his three-year NFL career, but came on strong in the second half of the year.  Rhodes had a four-game interception streak that started against the Pittsburgh Steelers and finished with 67 tackles, 2 sacks, 2 forced fumbles, 5 INTs, 10 passes defensed and returned a fumble for a score.

Good, but not great numbers.  However, those totals don't accurately reflect the type of player Rhodes is and can be.  When he's on, he can be a powerful force and a play-maker on D.  But now with the big-time money comes greater responsibility (yeah, I'm working in a Spider-Man reference). He's going to have to bring his "A" game to the table every time out now and help lead the Jets defensive resurgence.

I think he's up to it.

Posted by Mike at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

The saga is complete.

The Jets guaranteed the final two years of Laveranues Coles' $11 million deal Friday, thus ending a potentially long-standing feud.  This really goes to show how fragile an NFL contract is.  In most circles a contract, by its very definition, is guaranteed.  But not in the wacky, crazy world of the National Football League.  That's why I don't usually go off the deep end when a football player wants to rework his contract.  He's always one play away from selling insurance or driving a truck for a living.

Unofficially, the Jets have assured Coles that he'll get the long-term deal he was looking for if he stays healthy and puts up big numbers next year.  If those conditions don't happen, LC will be given permission to seek a trade.  Again, these stipulations seem silly to me, but if No. 87 is happy then so am I.

This agreement also shows that the Gotham Green have learned a thing or two from the Pete Kendall debacle.  Kendall's departure ripped holes in the offensive line and locker room which were never repaired and if Coles was taken out of the picture, it could have been equally damaging to the team.  Coles will never be considered one of the top receivers in the league, but pound for pound, he may be one of the toughest.  And even though he may be a bit unorthodox as a leader, the entire squad respects and looks up to him.

And I'm glad he'll be wearing the Green and White again in 2008.

Posted by Mike at 8:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

Maybe there's a happy ending to this after all.

Disgruntled wide out Laveranues Coles arrived at the Jets' voluntary offseason conditioning program Tuesday after a week long absence.  Word on the street is that the two sides are working toward a new agreement.  What that means is anyone's guess, but it's rumored that LC was promised he would receive a long-term deal next year if he stayed healthy this upcoming season.  That sounds ridiculous if you ask me.  Coles shouldn't have to prove anything to anyone in the locker room or the front office.  But if that's what got him to report, then I'm all for it.  The other theory has Coles seeking a trade on his own.

I sure hope it's option A.  I've heard a lot of fans bash Coles after he tore into the Jets last month, but No. 87 is a gamer and I'd want him on my team anytime.  And the Jets really need his heart and grit on the field.  We all know Gang Green threw a ton of money around during the free agency period and to not take care of one of their own would be borderline criminal.  But that's just me.

That means there's just one missing face in camp for the Green and White.  Nose tackle Dewayne Robertson is still a no-show and his status with the team is still up in the air.  Potential trades to the Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions went up in smoke and D-Rob has a $3 million roster bonus coming to him in June.  The former No. 1 draft pick is also set to earn $9.8 million this season.  I can't see the Jets giving in to those figures so possible scenarios would probably include a draft day deal or a reworked contract.

And the Jets have had a checkered past with veteran players and their contracts.

Posted by Mike at 9:21 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |

Another week, another dip into the free agent pool for the New York Jets.

Gang Green inked tight end Bubba Franks to a one-year, $1.65 million contract Monday.  The three-time Pro Bowler was cut by the Green Bay Packers last month.

The combination of Franks, the No. 1 pick by the Pack in 2000, and incumbent tight end Chris Baker gives the Green and White two quality blockers and receivers along the offensive line.  Franks has been slowed by injuries and finished with just 18 catches for 132 yards and three touchdowns in eight games last season.  But, if healthy (and he's coming off a torn posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee), Bubba is still one of the best inside the red zone.  He's 6'6, 265 pound frame should be another viable option for whoever is manning the offense next season.

The Jets can also now jettison the other tight ends that are clogging up roster space.  The Jets already axed Sean Ryan (who signed with the Miami Dolphins) and I hope to bid a good day to Joe Kowalewski and Jason Pociask soon.  I just don't see the need to have four tight ends on a squad, do you?

The Jets also began their "voluntary" offseason program today at Hofstra University.  All the old and new faces were expected to show up.  All but one, that is.  Laveranues Coles is still unhappy with his contract situation and will not attend.

I guess it's not all peaches and cream for the acquisition-happy Jets.

Posted by Mike at 9:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) |