Tannenbaum all but spells out what the FO is thinking on Chad if you read between the lines: http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-1/1192769215316930.xml&coll=1 GM Tannenbaum Keeps 'Big Picture' In View For Jets Friday, October 19, 2007 BY DAVE HUTCHINSON Star-Ledger Staff HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Mike Tannenbaum's cool exterior belies the pain the Jets' general manager is feeling these days as his team is off to a 1-5 start. Critics are screaming for coach Eric Mangini to bench veteran quarterback Chad Pennington and insert strong-armed second-year pro Kellen Clemens. There are rumblings that Mangini's hard-driving style is causing him to lose his grip on the locker room because players aren't getting results. Through it all, however, Tannenbaum insists he and Mangini have a plan and they're not going to deviate from it because of their first taste of adversity. Tannenbaum, in his second season as the team's GM, says he's in it for the long run and the continued development of young players such as left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson, center Nick Mangold, cornerback Darrelle Revis, linebacker David Harris, running back Leon Washington, wide receiver Brad Smith, wide receiver Jerricho Cotchery and Clemens will pay dividends sooner rather than later. "We're really looking for consistency from a long-term, big-picture standpoint," Tannenbaum told The Star-Ledger yesterday. "None of us are happy with a three-game losing streak and we're all disappointed being 1-5. "With that said, there are some things that are going well. I think the offensive line has clearly improved throughout the season and you can look at individual performances on both sides of the ball. The hallmark of our program long term is player development." The long-term answer at quarterback, though, appears to be Clemens. Tannenbaum admitted Clemens impressed the organization with his gutsy performance in Baltimore in Week 2, engineering a fourth-quarter rally, but suggested the organization owes Pennington the benefit of the doubt right now. An eight-year veteran, Pennington, who has battled back from two career-threatening rotator cuff surgeries, has thrown six interceptions in the past three games, all losses. He said it's the worst slump of his career. "Chad needs to play more consistently, just like everybody else," Tannenbaum said. "He's being evaluated, just like everybody else. The best players will play. Chad has done a lot of good things for us over the years but he needs to be playing at a higher level." While Mangini has steadfastly supported Pennington, the 1-5 start might mean the organization's patience is wearing thin. Sunday's game at Cincinnati will be critical to Pennington's future. The Bengals (1-4) rank last in the NFL in points allowed per game (31.2) and 30th in total defense (393.2 yards per game), and if Pennington can't generate any offense against them, it could be the final straw. The Jets haven't scored a touchdown in the past six quarters. Notes: Rookies Revis and Bengals CB Leon Hall were considered the top two cornerbacks in the draft. Revis, taken 14th overall, has no interceptions and 43 tackles. Hall, selected 18th overall, has two interceptions and 18 tackles. Both are starters.... Nugent and Mangold, former Ohio State stars, will enjoy a homecoming of sorts on Sunday. Mangold is expecting 20-25 family and friends while Nugent's contingent could reach 50.
so I "read between the lines"......seems like everone knows penny suks but mangnini doesnt have the balls to start clemens yet.....so?
That is a terrific article. I can live with that.....for now. I think he has earned that right. Throw Kerry Rhodes name in there as well. The only thing lacking out of that group is the DL. Let's keep the big picture in mind, they are making progress which is a good sign of things to come. 43 tackles!!! Wow! Have we ever had a cover corner who could tackle like Revis? So far I've only seen him miss one tackle. Need to get an INT though.
Well, I don't think I've ever heard Tannenbaum (or anybody from the organization) refer to Chad's situation quite this way before: "Chad needs to play more consistently, just like everybody else," Tannenbaum said. "He's being evaluated, just like everybody else. The best players will play. Chad has done a lot of good things for us over the years but he needs to be playing at a higher level." It almost sounds like he's being the point man for Mangini for what's to come. Maybe it's my imagination on overtime, but it's almost like he's softening the blow that may be coming soon, perhaps as soon as Monday morning. Also, he says, "the continued development of young players such as...... (listing a bunch of young players) and Clemens will pay dividends sooner rather than later." The article also says that, "Tannenbaum insists he and Mangini have a plan and they're not going to deviate from it," so I'm thinking there's some kind of pre-set date they have in mind for Chad by which he either plays well or gets benched. Something like, "We give him until the Bye. If we see no improvement, we've given him all the leash we owe him." I don't know, just surmising. But I did think it was interesting that Tanny spoke out about Chad in the way that he did. He's letting everyone know Chad's on a short leash and I'm not sure I've ever heard him phrase it quite that harshly.
Interesting article, if anyone is an ESPN insider check out Chris Mortensen's chat this week, he thinks that Kellen is the guy and even though Mangini won't admit it Kellen is very close to being the starter. I think this article is going to make this game against the Bengals this week really interesting. I expect Thomas Jones to have a big game, but if Chad can't get it done against this defense this will prove once and for all he just can't get it done because if this Bengals defense doesn't force turnovers you could argue they are the worst defense in the league.
My guess, is Chad gets the first half. If we don't put points on the board (regardless of turnovers) Clemens will come in at the start of the 2nd half.
Chad's been washed up for several years now. Nice to see that management is finally realizing this. As usual, the brass is working with a time delay.
Mangini and Tannenbaum are just inexperienced at handling player changes in general and QB changes in particular. When Mangini said "every job is open from a week to week basis" he was accurately stating what the situation should be on a mediocre rebuilding team. His "loyalty" to Chad is actually bad for the Jets over the long run because it tells the players that factors other than performance are just as important. That position is leading us to losses right now. If the Jets locker room won't let go of Chad yet then we have a real problem because that kind of blind loyalty is one of the things that leads to a culture of losing.
Great post. While I firmly believe that Peennington is done, he has earned the benefit of the doubt. Still, there IS no doubt about his arm being shot. He simply cannot get it done physically. A lot of people allude to his head not being in the game, but I think it's all physical. Chad just cannot get the ball where he wants, and it ends up in bad spots he never meant the ball to go.
This is a very good point. If what he said about competition and the best players will be playing every week he is looking a little shady right now.
dude something is up...i am all for the QB change at this point but i am no going to lie to you i am a huge chad fan...and there is no way this team should of regressed the way it did this season!!! i know chad is not the MAN but he was our best player last year...won ten games with absolutly no running game and until the fourth quarter we had a tight game in new england....so were are all the play actions..were are all the slants ?? i dont know man...something is real fishy is going on with the play calling...its consistently bad...antoher point that i will make is why is a guy in there with absolutly no shoulder tossing the football with a high ankle sprain????? i mean you can see the man cant push of his back foot has no arm power....I said it last year this manginin guy i dont like , then he started winning and you cant help but jump on the wagon, but i really think coaching is a huge reason why we have lost 5 this year..and alot of those games were in our favor...you give jones 15 touches against a bills team that has given up 100+ yards on the ground 8 times in a row..i dont get it!!!!!DOWN WITH MANGINI!!!I HATE THE FK
Good points, Br4dw, and I think we shouldn't be too hard on Mangini and Tannenbaum for the reason you state in your first sentence. These two guys are in a VERY difficult position for two guys basically still "learning the ropes." We're talking about an irreversible (probably) decision about a guy who is IMMENSELY popular on and off the field and who's given 150% to the team. This is probably the most gut-wrenching decision even an experienced coach has to make, much less guys who are new and trying to build. I know all the cliches about, "Well, that's what they get paid for," etc., but I still wouldn't want to be the guy who has to call Chad into my office, look him in the eye, and tell him he's done.
This scenario right now is how we find out if Tangini has what it takes to be in the Nfl. Parcells, Beli or Shannahan would not have waited a minute, second or hour to bench Chad at this point. They made an even bigger mistake because Chad will probably have a decent week against the weakest defense in football and continue torturing us fans for another month.
Maybe the 'plan' is to suck real bad and pull a San Antonio/Tim Duncan. David Robinson faked an injury that year they had the worst record. Go Miami! :lol:
Well, I don't know, but I'm thinking this is not a mistake (letting Chad play this week) for several reasons: 1) If you put Clemens in and he wins, everyone (including the team) will say, "Anybody under center could have pulled it off. They should have given Chad the benefit of the doubt and given him the chance to get his rythm back against this team." 2) If you put Clemens in and he loses, everyone says, "Well, see? I knew he wasn't ready! How could he lose against such a miserable defense? Bring Chad back!" 3) If you leave Chad in and he wins, it probably only proves that he's capable of pulling off a victory against a poor defense and still doesn't help his status. You also have the benefit of putting every one of his executions under an intense microscope. If he wins but doesn't move the chains well, for all practical purposes, he's still proving why he needs to be benched. 4) If you leave Chad in and he loses, it puts to bed the notion that he has to go and has been given every opportunity. This dispels the "you benched him too soon" crowd. I think Tangini is leaving him in this week specifically to see what happens against this putrid defense. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if that's "The Plan" they keep talking about.
For everyone in the Mangini press conference thread, who didn't understand why people were complaining about how bland Mangini's press conferences were, this is an example of a perfect interview... Tannenbaum doesn't say anything that will give the opponents a competitive advantage, but he gives the fans and media plenty of tid-bits to ponder concerning the future of the team... As for what he said, it's great to finally see someone in the organization do something other than ignore Chad's poor play thus far this season.... Acknowledgment is the first step on the road to change...
parcells stuck with bledsoe in dallas too long, and bledsoe had to nearly die to get brady in the game in NE. joe gibbs waited too long with mark brunell, herm waited too long with vinny T we are just people posting on a message board, benching your qb isnt like not starting a rb week to week.
I agree. You can't fix something if you don't first acknowledge it as a problem. I just wish it were Week 3 and we still had some time to turn things around for this year. But in all fairness to Tangini, I also think the schedule masked Chad's problems. New England, right out of the box, was so strong it was like, "Well, any QB is going to struggle against that," (and that is the genuine case). But between them and the Ravens and the playcalling and the lack of execution, it was hard to tell whether Pennington had underlying problems or if it was just the team as a whole. And a lot of it was the team's fault and not Chad's. But subsequent games revealed a lot of inadequacies in Chad's performance, so this week, against the Bungles, everything Chad does is going to be under a huge spotlight. Huge. It's just too bad it took this long for somebody in the FO to come out and say, "Hey, there's a problem."
