Star-Ledger- Jets holding a pair of aces

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Jets holding pair of aces
Friday, August 03, 2007
BY DAVE HUTCHINSON
Star-Ledger Staff
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. -- Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery want nothing to do with the antics of Terrell Owens and Chad Johnson. You won't see them doing sit-ups in their driveways or river dancing in the end zone.

It's a blessing and a curse for the Jets' starting wide receivers. Their unassuming demeanors and workmanlike styles have helped to make them one of the NFL's best pass-catching duos -- but it's the brash, trash-talking receivers who grab the headlines.

"The type of people they are, they're similar to Curtis (Martin)," said quarterback Chad Pennington, referring to the Jets' recently retired running back. "They don't talk a lot, they don't put themselves out there a lot. They love the game of football. They love working. Sometimes those types of guys stay under the radar, and sometimes that's a good thing."

Coles and Cotchery embrace their low-profile existence. They don't spend time choreographing touchdown celebrations that would get them national exposure on the 24-hour-a-day rotating sports highlight reels. If bravado and showmanship are the keys to fame, they'll do without.

"I don't think that (attention) is what we go after when we're playing," Coles said. "When Jerricho and I come out of the tunnel, you know you're going to get some hard-nosed guys. Teams respect us. We're not flashy. You don't see us making a lot of noise and trying to cause controversy.

"We're just two blue-collar guys who work hard, make the tough catches. At the end of the day, everything is said on the field."

Last season, the pair set a single-season club record with a combined 173 catches. They finished fourth in the NFL behind the Colts' Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne (181), the Lions' Roy Williams and Mike Furrey (180) and the Bengals' Johnson and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (177).

"We had a lot of fun out there," Cotchery said of last season. "If one of us made a great play, we would come to the sidelines and joke about it. We just had fun. ... We're going to continue doing what we've been doing. But we'll never be the big-name guys. It's just our styles."

While many starting wide receivers complement each other with differing styles, Coles and Cotchery are very similar. They're aggressive going after the ball ("Anytime the ball is in the air, it's theirs," said Pennington). They're fearless going across the middle. They can get deep. They can run with the ball. They can block.

"We're complete wide receivers," Cotchery said.

Coles, entering his eighth season, had a career-high 91 catches (third in the AFC) for 1,098 yards and six TDs. He played through a laundry list of injuries, including a head injury that left him in a semi-fog for two weeks. Still, he didn't miss a game and is the only receiver in the NFL that has started every game from 2001 to 2006.

"I respect LC's game so much," Cotchery said. "It just gets me even more excited when I see a guy who has played this style of play so long and he's just content with the way he plays. That's the way I play and that's the way I'm going to continue to play."

Cotchery, in his fourth season, finished with a career-best 82 receptions (he began last season with only 25 career catches) for 961 yards and six TDs, including what was one of the great catches in Jets history and perhaps the catch of the year in the NFL.

Against the Patriots in Week 2, Cotchery jumped high to catch a Pennington pass. He was hit low by safety Eugene Wilson and high by cornerback Chad Scott. Incredibly, he managed to keep his knees and elbows off the turf before running 47 yards to complete a 71-yard touchdown reception.

"Every time I meet someone, that's the play they bring up, even little kids," said a smiling Cotchery, who had a club postseason record 77-yard TD catch, also against the Patriots.

Said Coles: "For Jerricho, I think it's just the tip of the iceberg. You're going to hear a lot more from him in the years to come."



Dave Hutchinson may be reached

at dhutchinson@starledger.com