A great article on ESPN's NFL website outlines the true damage done by Kendall's departure and why the signings of Faneca particularly, is money well spent. --------------------------------------------------------------- Faneca provides upgrade to Jets' offensive line By Mike Tainer Football Outsiders.com Updated: March 20, 2008 Forty million dollars may seem like a lot of money to spend on a 31-year-old left guard, particularly for a young team with multiple needs. But free-agent acquisition Alan Faneca doesn't just upgrade one position for the Jets. He upgrades at least four. Two seasons ago, the Jets sandwiched veteran left guard Pete Kendall between two rookies, left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson and center Nick Mangold. The two youngsters had great seasons, and the Jets finished in the middle of the NFL pack with 34 sacks and an Adjusted Sack Rate (explained here) of 6.6 percent, 17th in the NFL. Alan Faneca is going to bring stability to the Jets offensive line. Kendall held out in 2007, forcing a trade. The Jets filled the void with Adrien Clarke, Will Montgomery and Jacob Bender. As a result, the team's sack total jumped from 34 to 53 while their Adjusted Sack Rate climbed to 30th in the NFL. Clarke and company allowed six of those sacks (Kendall allowed just three in 2006), but Ferguson and Mangold also regressed, and the inexperienced Jets line made far too many mistakes. According to our game charting data, the Jets allowed 13 sacks by untouched defenders, tying them with the Seahawks (whose quarterbacks dropped to pass 61 more times) for the highest total in the league. Many of those easy sacks resulted from miscommunication on the left side of the Jets' line. The drop from Kendall to committee was also evident in the team's rushing stats. The Jets finished 11th in the NFL in Adjusted Line Yards (explained here) for runs off tackle in 2006 but dropped to 31st in 2007. The Jets were more effective in runs up the gut, but most of those runs were shaded to the right side, where Mangold and reliable right guard Brandon Moore could apply the double-team. The Jets' running game became lopsided as a result. The team ran up the middle or to the right on 72.1 percent of all rushing plays, the highest rate in the NFL, and the team ran off right guard a league-high 101 times. Ferguson and Mangold were the future of the offensive line, but the Jets were often forced to run away from them last season. So take that $40 million and prorate it across three positions. Faneca won't just fill a gap at left guard; he'll also help two promising, young linemen reach their potential. Faneca allowed just two sacks last year, and the Steelers allowed just seven sacks by untouched defenders, so he'll improve line cohesion while keeping his own man off the quarterback. Damien Woody, who signed a five-year, $25 million deal to replace Anthony Clement at right tackle, provides further reinforcement for the Jets' offensive line. Now that the Jets can field five competent blockers, opponents can't expect them to run most of their plays in the same direction. Jets quarterbacks won't complain about the extra beef. Chad Pennington has lost most of his mobility and cannot endure another season of 2.9 sacks per game. If Kellen Clemens earns the starting job, he'll need even more support. Young quarterbacks, despite their athleticism, are sacked more often than veterans, and shell shock can quickly turn a prospect into a journeyman. With Faneca and Woody in the lineup, the Jets won't endure incidents like their first pass against the Patriots in Week 15: defender Richard Seymour shrugging off Clarke, injuring Clemens, and forcing an interception that led to a touchdown. So take a little bit off the top of Faneca's and Woody's signing bonuses and write it off as a health insurance premium for Clemens. Faneca and Woody won't see the final seasons of their five-year deals, and neither will be very good by 2012. They don't make the Jets Super Bowl contenders this year. But if they stabilize their positions and help Ferguson, Mangold and Clemens become players who can help the team for the next decade, the Jets will be happy they spent the money to get older and wiser on the offensive line.
I will rejoice when I see Woody and Faneca play 16 games this season injury-free, our run game improves 10-fold, and our QB doesn't eat turf on every 3rd play like last season. Then I will be prepared to agree with the "money well spent" statement. Not trying to be pessimistic...just stating the obvious
Great article indeed. Again, I will revert back to one of my posts, it's a shame if DMC is gone at #6. With that line, and a TJ-DMC-LW tandem...on paper...sounds like we should have a pretty flashy offense for years to come. (Adressing the QB situation next year).
You know what I mean. After visiting several threads and reading up on the Coles situation, it seems we're almost on lock to pick up a WR in the 2nd round. We could draft a QB in the later rounds, but I'd rather use those picks to pick up a CB, FS, RT, or LB, depending on how the Draft unfolds. So basically what I'm saying is, it looks like we're going to back stuck with CP or KC (in hopes it's KC) driving this team down the field at least for another year.
I really enjoyed the insights in this article -- thanks for bringing it to our attention. The defense lives off of discovering and mercilessly exploiting the offense's tendencies. I can remember in one game where Thomas Jones was running right and cutting back during the first quarter and part of the second with good success. Then the defense adjusted in the second quarter and cancelled out TJ's cutback lanes and his yardage was done for the day. Why? Because there was NO RUNNING to the left side, just as this article explains. QBs don't have to be sacked to effect their choices or the accuracy of their throws either. They just have to be forced to move in a direction or to a degree that disrupts the called pass patterns. I think both Kellen and Chad will have a different experience behind this OL this year.
I almost wish I could slip into a coma and wake up opening day, I am just too excited for us next year.
the guy is a field general...very smart QB that can read defenses quite well...so yeah, I'll agree with that...he could be the next Jason Garrett.
Right after we pick Gholston with #6, right? Good lines make good teams. Tom Brady's line disappeared during the SB, and guess what? He was bouncing balls down the field in attempts to Randy Moss (sound like anyone?) and misfiring on far more passes than his normal. Hopefully, the front 7 on D will be a little less muddled by opening day and we should see tremendous improvement. I'm especially excited for our secondary that did so well this past season once we field some decent players up in the front 7 besides Harris.
I think Jenkins is really a big signing for our D. A big NT will make a huge impact for the rest of the defense. I would like to see another ILB with a Gholston or similar OLB. This year is a whole new year and I can't wait to get it started Roll TIDE!!!
while mike tainer never came right out and said it, he made a very strong case for cp winning the starting qb job. 1- with a far more devistating, unpredictable running game, cp's main weapon, the play action pass, will come to life. 2- new pass catching TE target for the short, over the middle game (cp's favorite) 3- cp is a true field general adept at reading defenses and making adjustments. with the .5 to 1 seconds of extra time per snap, cp will actually have time to exploit what sees. a rookie could have 10 minutes in the pocket and still never figure it all out. cp will see it, get it, and this season, have time to exploit it. 4- cp is still one of the the most accurate passer in the nfl. every receiver that has played with him says he throws the most 'chachable' ball, in stride, and over the correct shoulder. given time to step into his throws, cp's velocity and accuracy will be much improved over last years 'picketts charge' through our ol. 5- summary: all the improvements mike tainer just glorified will favor cp MUCH more than a 'shell shocked rookie'. while both qb's will do better, cp will do 'much better', and regain his starting job without breaking a sweat.
You make a great point... but i'm in the mood to play devils advocate as i watch the NCAA tourney: A running game is a QBs best friend and it can work for anyone. The short over the middle game has not been working for a while now, and i'm not relying on Bubba Franks to dominate the short over the middle game.. i would like to play action and hit Cotch on a 25 yrd skinny post. Also, that 24 yd pass shouldn't take 3 seconds to get there. His reads are very good, thats what made him worth of a 1st round pick. BUT, after what i saw last year with CBs waiting for the out route getting pick 6's... when Chad played against NE this year i heard BB scream at his secondary about sitting on the route and picking the ball off. The CBS microphones picked it up. I can't watch that anymore. Accurate yes, most catchable yes-- which also means most dangerous ball. The nice little passes are cute but they are the reason for concussed WRs that mean alot to this team. His velocity will never change because his leg drive sucks. And yes, throwing a football has as much with your leg drive as it does arm- ask Vinny T. Its the same with baseball pitchers. Shell shock may have set in already with Clemens. I wouldn't doubt it. But it being the total truth can only be seen in the coming season.
