Wilcots: Chad is a winner Chad Pennington's most vocal skeptic was transformed into a believer Sunday in Tennessee. CBS analyst Solomon Wilcots, who expressed doubt (and concern) last spring about Pennington's ability to return by opening day, worked the Jets-Titans game and came away impressed. "I'm not stunned by how far he threw it; I'm stunned by how far he threw it with accuracy and touch," Wilcots said in a phone interview. "His ball placement was remarkable. It looked like he never had surgery. It was remarkably impressive. That guy is a flat-out winner." Wilcots, explaining the comments he made last May on a radio show, said he felt Pennington wouldn't be ready until midseason. He thought Pennington rushed back in 2005, and would be making a potential career-killing mistake if he did it again. Those comments touched a nerve with Pennington. His response at the time was, "We'll see who's going to be right and who's going to be wrong. If I was a betting man in Vegas, I'd put money on No. 10 before I put money on Solomon or anybody else." Pennington answered questions about his arm strength by completing his only two attempts over 30 yards. The most eye-opening throw was the 41-yard completion to Laveranues Coles. He rolled to the right hash mark and threw diagonally to the left sideline, unleashing a pass that carried approximately 53 yards in the air. "For him to show he's capable of making that throw, it's amazing," Coles said. "It does great things for me, and the other teams have to respect him." On the sideline, after the long pass, Pennington was beaming. "You should've seen the smile on his face," Coles said. Wilcots, who claimed everything is hunky-dory between him and Pennington, said: "His accuracy is back. That should be really encouraging for Jets fans." LOW & BEHOLD: Look for Kevan Barlow's role to increase in the coming weeks, perhaps this week. As a show of support, the Jets quietly re-negotiated Barlow's contract, guaranteeing $1 million of his $2.5 million base salary. It lowers his 2006 cap number by $666,000, but it adds $333,000 in each of the next two seasons.
How easily people forget how good Chad was before any of these shoulder procedures. I agree that it's impressive that he's been able to come back the way he has (so far). However it shouldn't shock people that the guy is accurate, makes good decisions and moves the chains. This is the same guy that lit up the Colts in the playoffs in 2002. This just in: Chad's pretty good.
