Tagged: Mark Sanchez
And so it begins
The long wait is over and the NFL season has officially begun. The Giants were the last team to report to training camp yesterday and officially kick off the NFL season.
It is great time of year for any football fan because it gives us our first real look at our favorite teams and who knows maybe this is the year for your team to win the Super Bowl. As much as people like to rank teams in the preseason, the fact of the matter is that you just don’t know how the season will unfold as far as injuries and strength of schedule.
So as the preseason predictions start flying in from everywhere don’t worry if your team is at the bottom of the list because I can remember just two years ago when the Giants were predicted to come in last place in the division and we all know how that worked out.
A couple of Giants and Jets notes for the start of camp:
? Steve Smith is going into training camp as the Giants’ No. 1 receiver. This will be interesting because we have all seen how well he has played as the third down option for Manning the last two seasons but it remains to be seen if he can be a No. 1 target. Also look for Mario Manningham to get many reps
? The Giants already have problems at linebacker. Michael Boley is out for all of camp and who knows what the legal ramifications will be with Antonio Pierce.
? Osi Umenyiora is back. It is nice to see him out there after last season’s knee injury and believe me his loss was felt last year.
? Mark Sanchez is the talk of Jets camp. Nothing surprising here and don’t believe anyone if they tell you he is not expected to start this season.
? Jerricho Cotchery is the No. 1 guy in Jets camp. Much like the Giants, the Jets are looking for the player who will step up and become the new top target.
Getting closer
I really hate to rush the summer but we are only a little over a month away from training camp and I can’t wait for the 2009 NFL season to start. When I was traveling to Albany with the Giants I would always look forward to the smell of the fresh cut grass and watching the sprinklers go back and forth as the players marched out for their morning practice. I always enjoyed everything from the coaches’ whistles blowing at the end of every play to watching kids’ faces as they lined up for autographs from players at the end of every practice. I know the players hate it, but training camp provided some of the best memories for me when I was a part of it.
Nothing major to report on the Giants as their minicamps wrap up. The main buzz has been the wide receiver situation and the rumors that are still swirling about Braylon Edwards and Anquan Boldin. After they drafted Hakeem Nicks and Ramses Barden, it would be hard for me to believe the Giants would look to make a deal not because of the trade compensation, but rather the huge salary that both will demand. At this point I think we owe it to give Jerry Reese the benefit of the doubt with his moves.
I love the attitude that Rex Ryan has already brought to the Jets; knowing who is father is this should not surprise Jets fans and I think that even though they have not played a single down of football, he is giving his team a confidence that was missing the last couple of years with Eric Mangini. It also looks as if Mark Sanchez will be given the opportunity to start in a competition with Kellen Clemens in camp this summer. I’d also be very surprised if the Jets do not add a veteran wide receiver before camp begins, Edwards, Boldin and Plaxico Burress are all real possibilities.
If anyone has any comments or ideas on the Giants and Jets wide receiver situations or any thing about the NFL, please do not hesitate writing them. We are all fans and there is no right or wrong answers.
QB or not QB? That’s the Jets’ question
Now that Brett Favre has decided to retire, the Jets can make a decision on who will compete to be their starting quarterback for the upcoming season. Rex Ryan knew that he did not walk into a rebuilding situation. This is clearly a win-now team, and Jets fans will not have the patience for them to develop a new quarterback, so it will be interesting to see what they do in the coming weeks to address the position.
There are three ways in which they can address the situation.
? Stick with what they have — The Jets may think that either Kellen Clemens or Brett Ratliff could indeed be the answer. They seem to be very high on Ratliff; he showed some good things during the preseason, but really, how much can we tell about someone in games against backups and third stringers? At only 24, he is considered to be a bright young quarterback, and if successful, he could be the starter for years to come. He is, however, a free agent, but I don’t think it will take a lot of money to retain him, so he should be one of the quarterbacks that they bring to camp this summer.
Clemens, on the other hand, had a chance to show what he had two years ago, and I think that if the Jet’s were satisfied with his performance, they would not have traded for Favre in the first place. So, my feeling is that if they were to stick with both of their current quarterbacks, Ratliff would be the favorite to start.
? Draft a young quarterback — I don’t know how happy Jets fans would be with this move, but keep in mind where Rex Ryan came from, and look at the success that the Ravens had this past season with Joe Flacco.
Matt Stafford and Mark Sanchez are considered the two top quarterbacks this year, and if the Jets want either of them, it will probably require a trade in the draft. This would also be a surprise move to me considering that the Jets have so much invested in the next couple of years, and we can’t expect all first round quarterbacks to have the success that Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco had last season.
? Bring in a veteran — If the Jets think that they do indeed have a championship-caliber team, they may bring in a veteran that could bring them instant satisfaction like Favre did last season. Kurt Warner and Kerry Collins are two guys who had great seasons this past year, and if they are not retained by their current teams, they could be considered. Warner showed that he can still lead a team to the playoffs but it has to be the right situation, and Collins had great success with the Giants and proved that he could throw in the windy Meadowlands. Some other names to keep in mind are Byron Leftwich and Jeff Garcia, and don’t forget Kyle Boller, who Ryan knows very well from his days in Baltimore.
My opinion is that Jets should go after either Marc Bulger or Derek Anderson, neither of which are free agents but are very attainable. Anderson showed that he could start in this league, and I saw him light up the Giants last year in the Monday night game. He has also been a victim of many dropped passes and is now the backup behind Brady Quinn. The Browns do not want to pay two quarterbacks starter money, so I think that they would want to move him. The only problem here is that Eric Mangini is now the coach of the Browns and would not be too eager to do business with the Jets. Bulger, on the other hand, may be released by the Rams and wouldn’t require any compensation. He has proved that he could start in the league and is still young enough to build around.
As free agency begins at the end of the month, it will be interesting to see which way the Jets will go with their thought process.
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