Smith, for all his raw talent, has been awful in pass blocking when called upon to do it for us and was terrible for the Rams in his time there. Ducasse is a much better prospect for RG than smithj would be.
As long as the developmental OL is past the 2nd round. It seems Ducasse gets slaughtered for being drafted as an obvious project pick in the 2nd round.
Bump "According to Pro Football Focus, in the last five games he has allowed 2 sacks, 0 hits, and 3 pressures in 154 pass blocking plays. That means he is allowing somebody to impact his quarterback on 3.2% of plays he's pass blocking. That's in the neighborhood you see the best tackles in football. It's a vast improvement on the Hunter-ific 10.7% from the first eight games. It's also impressive because a sizable number of these snaps came in garbage time against New England when the Pats could pin back their ears and go after the quarterback, knowing the Jets had to throw. I've also been quite impressed with the job Howard is doing as a run blocker. When I watched the second half against Jacksonville over, I thought he was the most important lineman in the success the Jets had running the ball. I was surprised by his mobility. The Jets pulled him pretty frequently, and he was able to deliver the key block on a number of good gains on the ground. Howard's 6'7" 333 pound frame made him something of a mauler in the run game in the first half also." More here http://www.ganggreennation.com/2012/12/13/3762498/austins-power
I think he has been solid and will only get better. I'm not watching him closely, but I haven't noticed anything out of the norm. Hunter was so bad last year, I found myself focused on him before every snap to see how far he would be in the backfield at the start of any play. I thought he was pretty much responsible for the destruction of the offense last year, and started sanchez craziness in the pocket. Sanchez still is anxious on every snap. Hopefully howards keeps getting better and is the solution to rt.
Austin is young and will only get better, I think that we should not be picking a T on the first. OLB in the first, G in the second.
I'm confused. Mangold is considered for the Pro Bowl this year. I've read that Ferguson hasn't given up a sack. Now I see that Austin statistic. Why then, on more than half of Sanchez's dropbacks, is he dodging sacks, getting sacked, falling over or running into Brandon's ass? I know that Ducasse is slowly replacing Slauson, and that Pro Bowler Brandon Moore is showing his age fast, but is it our two guards that are really dropping the ball?
This can't be true... If Austin Howard is doing well that means there are no more excuses for Sanchez' poor play. That's unacceptable- the O-Line sucks, not Sanchez!!! /sarcasm
I have a valid question. If these stats are showing he is amongst the best tackles in the NFL, then why is he not the solution? What is the solution then, because this puts him amongst the top in the league, according to these stats.
Sanchez takes hits because the receivers can't get open meaning he has to hold the ball longer. I think our OLine has performed well, not great, but well.
So we are moving on from blaming the line, and putting the blame on the receivers instead? When the offense is this putrid, there is enough blame to go around. Sanchez just has 0 awareness of where the pressure is coming from, never calls an audible or communicates with the team on a hot read pre-snap. He also does hold the ball too long when its not necessary, never throws it away, and fumbles or turtles up at first sign of pressure. If i were an opposing team, i'd bring a lot of heat often. Very good chance at generating a turnover. QB is the team's biggest issue..
I am not trying to beat the dead horse here, but Howard is in position in almost all plays. Sanchez is leaving his protection, and giving ups sacks, pressures and hits. On every given play the play is designed by a specific drop count and the blocking scheme is specific to that drop. If Sanchez drops back 5 steps, the OL (specifically the Tackles) are coached to allow pressure deeper than the 5 steps. The problem is that Sanchez will drop back further if his first read is covered, thus dropping back into the allowed path for the defensive player. That is why you always hear about quarterbacks stepping up in the pocket. Also, I am not saying that Sanchez is completely to blame, as several quarterbacks do it.
The upgrade from WFH to Howard has been the biggest improvement in this years Jets team. Howard it not the only Jet to step up his game this season but his contributions towards winning games are up there with any other player. Cro is our best player but Howard = team MVP
Ok... This is my two cents. Unless your RT is one and only WFH, more than 85% of the blame goes to QB on any given sack. Out of the remaining 15%, OC takes the lion's share. OL, not so much. This is because, unless the QB gets pressured immediately, a la WFH, he ALWAYS has an option to throw it away. Moreover, it is HIS job to 1. recognize Mike 2. read the defenses and coverages and 3. adjust the play call at the line if needs be. If OL looks like shit, in part it is because the likes of WFH compromises the integrity of the entire OL - and the play. But, if the OL are doing the job adequately as a whole, then it means the QB fails to recognize the threat and relay that info to the OL with adequate competency. WRs cannot get separation? There are so many ways to force a separation - especially if the defense is playing zone coverage. (i.e. various stretch concepts and floods and whatnot.) Man coverage scheme can get exposed if the defender is slow and the offense uses rubs and picks extensively (like Pats always do against the Jets.) That's both on QB and OC. I would blame the receivers if QB delivers the ball right between the number all the time but still the receiver finds a way to drop it. (Hill has done that consistently this season.)
