Inside the NFL: Be Like Bill From the Belichick stylings of their new coach to the front office's draft tactics, the Jets are looking like New England South Mangini was coaching position by position during New York's minicamp. John Iacono/SI By Peter King If you had been at the Jets' practice field during minicamp last Saturday and seen the coach in the gray sweatshirt roaming from drill to drill, micromanaging as he went, you would have thought you were watching Bill Belichick. The first time he was on the field with his new team, Eric Mangini, 35, had the look and coaching style of his mentor, Belichick, of the three-time Super Bowl- champion Patriots. Midway through the morning workout Mangini joined the defensive backs and taught Eric Smith, a 2006 third-round pick out of Michigan State, how to chop a running back's stiff-arm. Smith ran to wrap up a straight-arming ballcarrier, and Mangini barked, "Break it, break it, break it! Don't let him get on you!" Listening to Mangini's postpractice remarks to the media, you would have sworn you were hearing Belichick. The subject was running back Curtis Martin's rehab from off-season knee surgery. Belichick, famously, says less than nothing about injuries. So how did Mangini, who had coached under Belichick since the two were with the Jets in 1997 and was the Pats' defensive coordinator in 2005, respond to a question about Martin? "Curtis is rehabbing," he said. "He's part of the medical program. We have a program in place for him. As soon as he's ready, we'll let you know." Trying to draw out Mangini one-on-one with softball questions in his office afterward, you would have known you were dealing with a Belichick disciple. You're running the 3-4 this year but will be able to flex into the 4-3, right? "All I can say is, we'll do what gives us the best chance to win," Mangini responded. "Eric's installing new plays," owner Woody Johnson said on Saturday. "He's also installing a new culture." But it's not only Mangini who's following the New England game plan. First-year Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum, a longtime Jets staffer, learned plenty about the importance of evaluating a draft prospect's character from his friend and counterpart Scott Pioli, the Patriots' vice president of player personnel. For instance, one of Pioli's questions to his scouting staff is, How important is football to this player? That was one of six measures Tannenbaum and Mangini used to evaluate the personalities of this year's prospects. The Pats staff also puts a premium on player intelligence; for example, no starter on their offensive line scored lower than 26 on the 50-question Wonderlic test. The Jets' draft class, according to the New York Daily News, averaged a 28 on the Wonderlic, the highest of any team. And during its recent run of success, New England has relied on strong leadership from linebacker Tedy Bruschi and quarterback Tom Brady. Last month the Jets drafted a linebacker, Anthony Schlegel, who was a captain at two Division I programs -- Air Force in 2002 and Ohio State in 2005 -- and a quarterback-receiver, Brad Smith, who was a three-year captain at Missouri. It's important to remember that Belichick was a disappointment in his first head-coaching job, with the Browns. And Mangini has a monstrous rebuilding job on his hands. Only three teams scored fewer points than the 2005 Jets, and just nine allowed more. Martin is coming off major knee surgery at 33. Quarterback Chad Pennington is rehabbing from his second shoulder surgery in 15 months. Before he jumped to the Chiefs in January, former coach Herm Edwards said he thought the Jets needed seven new starters on offense alone. Drafting tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson and center Nick Mangold in the first round was a start, but New England and Miami are well ahead of the Jets in the AFC East. Still, a struggling team like New York could do worse than model itself after a franchise whose methods have proved so successful. "What I learned in New England about teamwork, discipline, how an organization should be run, how a team should be coached, I wouldn't trade for anything in the world," Mangini said. "What I learned is that even when you're on top, as we were, it wasn't good enough. You always had to work to stay ahead of the curve."
nice read. I like everything i'm hearing about mangini. You think he can get us in playoffs in 2007 season??
your a lil bit more optimitic than i am. The afc is the better conference hands down. with our o-line being young, we may lose some games in the trenches, but they will learn and get better as a crew in '07. I personally think playoffs in '08 the earliest......MAYBE in '07 if everything progresses well, big maybe on my part.
copying or imitating better teams is one thing, but how do we beat them? Better to make leave the crystal ball under wraps until september, and yes nothing is impossible, the jets could make the playoffs in 07, just don't bet the house on it today...........
I dont know why but i have alot of faith in our CS. I've never been 1 to agree with alot of the things that the Jets organization used to do but so far i like how were trying to image the pats. We desperatly needed a change for this team and i think Mangini was the right place to look for a spark. Young, hungry coach trying to turn a franchise around and is doing a good job ATM. I can see playoffs for this team in 2007 if we find our QB this year. I think the CS will have no problem building the rest of the positions up in 2006 to be ready for 2007 but thats only "IF" we can find our QB this year.
By bringing in the youngest coaching staff in the NFL plus getting more involoved with the team (eg, going to watch perspective draft pics), Woody has embraced the concept of starting over. This was evidenced by the selection of OLine and Clemens. Plus the new "team first, blue collar, tough guy" culture we are becomming is awsome. We will have a team of Joe Klecko's.
I don't really care for all the Belichick comparisons. Actually it makes me a little uneasy. I just hope the guy can coach, and this young coaching staff knows what they're doing. We'll see.
Yup, to the whole thing but I would include RB and DE to the list. At LEAST. But I, for some reason, have faith. I felt similar when we got BP. I NEW the PO's were coming but that took a year. Barely.
hahaha man i like that i like the fact the organization itself is finally trying to establish an MO and a persona. success or failure at least show a plan and show us your trying to accomplish something. but yes i do not like the constant Bellicheck comparrisons, they make it seem as if this guy isnt even his own person. and if he is a success theyll talk about how it all leads back to Bill, even though he jumped ship on us to go to NE.
Great points. As far as the comparisons to BB, thats up to the media to portray that..and you cant blame them. Thats all they have to go on. What I like about the BB...or BP...style of football is that its simply multi-dimensional. For all the talk of BB being a mastermind defensively, for every Colt victory when Manning was made to look mortal...you have a Panther victory where the Pats must outscore people. You can point to the training program and the the way camps are run for comparisons..but gameday coaching is to win the game however..without being so selfish and self absorbed by sticking to what you think wins games..instead of what WILL win the game (see the guy in KC...MR. TAKE A KNEE..IN KC). When Parcells was with the Giants and they had the great defenses..and a very strong running game..they just beat you to death. Simms just ran the machine. When Parcells went to the Pats...he outscored people too...especially early in the program..relying on Bledsoe bombs quite a bit for a "conservative genius". The early days of the Pats were very anti Parcells. Parcells years with the Jets were some of the most exciting offensive years I can remember. Let the media dissect and compare all of these guys...Saban included. The bottom line is that the one thing they all have in common is that they demand accountability...and the one way to make that easier on themselves is by going after very smart football players. Its probably the one thing that Parcells has slipped from...probably because his age and not having nor wanting the time to build a program the way he use to. After 5 years where the definition for accountability was "I think I have a cramp...again", that to me will be the most appeasing thing about the rebuilding process...period. I want players that screw up or dont hustle to sit. I want players that bust their ass to play. I DONT want players that screw up to run off the field and get a nice little pat on the ass and then are told "you can do better.. now go get something to eat."
Also have to agree here. Some people still live by the idea that last year was just a "hiccup". Sure if there hadn't been so many injuries we probably would have won a few more games, but this team was on the brink of a breakdown either way. Lots of veterans running out of gas, and no one on the roster to replace them. The team needs to be rebuilt. Add to that arookie coaching staff and well, let's not get our hopes up too high for a run in 2006.
I don't know, we had potential to go far last year, and we do this year too. I am like a lot of other Jets fans, keep your hopes up, and watch them crash and burn right in front of our eyes! The Jets WILL win the superbowl next year!
Here's what some of you are missing. The Jets will not win the Super Bowl next year. That said, it doesn't mean you are not on the path to serious improvement. Breathe a second, enjoy the rebuilding. The process, as long as it encompasses progress, can actually be fun. A baby can not run before it can walk. So, stop, breathe, and enjoy your road back to respectability, but stop being a child and proclaiming Super Bowl before your time. Man, so many of the new posters are really turning this place into Finheave. Sheesh.
It is amazing that a Pat fan can see everything clearer then half of the people who post on this board. Because he is a realist. When we signed Mangini and handed GM over to Tannenbaum it showed the direction then we wanted to see. It was a positive direction away from the Kotite and Herm era's. We are taking a chance this time around and mirroring the success of someone else. Which is in no way the wrong thing to do. They have showed how to be successful in this league just like the Steelers and Eagles. We are now heading in that direction and this is only Step 1. We have installed new systems on Offense and Defense and promoted two coordinators who will not be getting a head coach job offer anytime soon. Schott has been an excellent QB coach in San Diego, especially after what he did with Brees. He knows the kind of offense he wants to run and it will be very similar to the San Diego attack. This is something I am personally looking forward too. Sutton has been with the likes of good coaches for a long time now and never had a chance to be a coordinator. Now is his chance with a defense that Mangini will be installing brought over from New England. We have got rid of the problems with this team and are starting fresh with the core of our team that we feel will bring us far in the future. Mangini and Tannenbaum are not only installing a new team but they are bringing a new attitude to the Jets. That is something that everyone should be exstatic about. We for once are moving in the right direction in terms of talent, coaching, leadership, and personel. Especially after seeing the way free agency and the draft went down. It has become clear that we want players who want to play and who arn't selfish. Who have a team first and mature mentality. That right there is a strive towards success. Character players are a better investment then selfish and lazy players. The likes of players that we drafted this year show improvement. We are building from the trenches with smart and amazing atheletes. Brick and Mangold will keep this line intact for 10+ years and that makes me excited. But knowing that they wont be selfish about money and will work their butts off for this team and coach. Helps me sleep at night knowing we are on our way to success. It will be a few years but like DW said enjoy the ride. Youth™
I just really don't think we were all that good. That KC game exposed alot of holes. The D was not ready. IMO, it wasn't just an abberation. The only reason why we looked better against Miami and Jacksonville was because they were still finding their way at the time as well. I guess this is just a difference of opinions. In any case, last year may wind up being a huge blessing if this rebuilding process works out.
