The kicking game was pathetic. The secondary, whether you want to blame the scheme or the players, was terrible. Fitz can't throw a long ball to save his life---somehow that still surprises some folks. Somebody somewhere forgot Decker was on this team for a day. Now that everyone has had plenty of time to mourn and lament, here are some good surprises: This McClendon character we have on the D-line is pretty effective. Ijalana and Qvale BOTH looked better than Giacommini. Forte is a fantastic fit for this team --not necessarily a surprise, but a great first outing. ST coverage is massively improved. ST return team is massively improved. And the biggest surprise of all: Winters actually looked really good out there, and against an extremely talented Defensive line.
But thats Todd Bowles, we saw that last year. Love that about him. But that kicker we cut...Can we get him back?
Josh Martin #95 - Where the Hell did he come from? Made a nice play on ST and then made a nice tackle as OLB later in the game.
I didn't watch a ton of the game but it seemed like Lawrence Thomas was wrecking havoc...was he good or did i just see a good series or two?
OL was very good. A pleasant surprise. Marshall and Decker invisible. An unpleasant surprise. This also falls on Fitz.
The Jets look great. The negatives of yesterday are all fixable. Folk is a good kicker. Just had a bad day. Revis and the secondary are good, just have to improve communication. Fitz and the offense are fully capable of scoring more points. The Bengals are a good team and the Jets outplayed them for the most part. Not good enough though. Forte was the biggest surprise to me. Looked great.
A surprise on the other side: Andy Dalton is the real deal. The Jets D-line got to him ALL DAY and he never got rattled. Even after that horrendous start. Give him credit. He is a top tier QB now.
Leo Williams is an absolute beast Enunwa is going to be a big part of the offense Forte is still forte
This was established last year IMO. Bengals were the best team in the AFC when he was healthy. I think he'll get over this playoff hump sooner or later. Would love to have a QB like Dalton.
I agree with most of your points except the secondary. The secondary is good if Revis plays like he used to. If the Revis of yesterday and last year continues to play that way, that is a huge weakness and teams with good receivers will continue to exploit. The Bengals really only had one receiver and Bowles continued to let him hurt the team. Just like last year against the Bills and Texans. Bowles just can't scheme anything up to limit the teams best receiver.
Big Cat finally is getting on the statistical column even though he was good last season. Love his chemistry and bond with big Mo
I was surprised to see Calvin Pryor actually played in 50+ defensive snaps. Never heard his name after he went into the locker room with whatever injury early in the game. A ton of criticism on Revis yesterday, but our safety's didn't play well at all either. Gilchrist's face mask penalty was a killer.
Agree with the OP. To try & look back at the positives, - there were a lot of them. Cincinnati is a good team. Playoff caliber. As devastating the loss is, - there is quite a # of NEW ITEMS. - Picking up FA Steve McClendon & the play of Leonard Williams. Plus, - this undrafted Lawrence Thomas looked great. Very crowded on the D-line, but maybe a trade for future draft picks or an experienced FA CB. - Ben Ijalana & Brent Qvale! REALLY wish we cut bait earlier w/Giacomini &his $4.5 million salary. Again, - could've gone to an experienced FA CB. - Matt Forte. - We have a punter - The youth at OLB. No more Calvin Pace and out of position Coples. Mauldin had a lousy preseason, but elevates his play in the real game. Josh Martin was making some plays. And we still waiting to get back Jordan Jenkins. - And to quote the OP ---- "the biggest surprise of all: Brian Winters actually looked really good out there, and against an extremely talented Defensive line." I hope to heaven this is true. Todd Bowles singled him out as someone making substantial progress this year. I hope he's right as his contract is up after this season & it'd be great to re-sign him on a cheap-avg deal.
Killer pass rush Terrible secondary play on a day with that much pass rush, weren't asking them to cover for 5 seconds Jalin Marshall as a KR, TD waiting to happen Oline held up well Lachlan Edwards was excellent We are wasting Marshall and Decker with a QB who throws like Chad post surgery Enunwa's hands now make him a threat Get Kellen Davis off the field and play Powell and Forte together and get them down the field
I am a Fitz supporter as you know, but yesterday you could just feel something is missing in his game. He isn't bad. He is alright actually. Just not up to Andy Dalton's level and he had plenty of opportunities to be. Should have delivered the win though, even with all the kicking miscues.
