Santonio Holmes: Just Another Character in Rex Ryan's Plot

Now that the Steelers have traded their former Super Bowl MVP to the Jets for a measly fifth round pick, where do the pieces fall for this Jets’ team?

It’s no secret the Jets have been loud this offseason, maybe even taking the Redskins' usual offseason championship title involving the most offseason transactions. But I can't get over how deadly this team has become for such a cheap price since head coach Rex Ryan has gotten to town. 

The acquisitions of Braylon Edwards, Jim Leonard, Antonio Cromartie, LaDainian Tomlinson, Bart Scott, and Santonio Holmes, not to mention drafting Mark Sanchez and Shonn Greene have completely changed this team. These are all guys that Rex has brought in, all with character and swagger, just the way he likes them. 

Coach Ryan took this team to the AFC Championship game, a year after this same team failed to make the playoffs with Brett Favre. He did it with a rookie quarterback in Mark Sanchez as well. I understand he’s a defensive guy, but he made it clear to everyone on that team that Sanchez was the man and everyone believed in him. 

With all these new acquisitions and new faces in the Jets locker room, some are questioning if there are too many ‘characters’ on this team. Some analysts think this has the Cowboys of ’08 written all over it, a team that was highly talented but greatly underachieved due to too many personalities in the locker room. 

There is one huge difference between that Cowboys team and this team now: Rex Ryan. You think happy-go-lucky, I-have-a big-‘ole-belly, Pillsbury dough boy Wade Phillips can handle adversity and characters? Hell No! He’s too nice a guy, too much of a pushover. 

Rex Ryan, on the other hand, is a different story, he has more swagger and life in him then any of the players on his team, let alone Wade Phillips. The Jets players absolutely love to play for him too, and will obey him like little dogs. 

All off these characters and this one alpha dog remind me of one classic Disney movie that everyone saw when they were a little kid—Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I know, you must think I’m crazy, but hear me out for a second and let me introduce you to the characters:

Snow White-Rex Ryan

Snow White is eloquent, beautiful, kind, and gentle just like Rex Ryan. No, not real-life Rex Ryan, but hard-nosed, hard-hitting, tough guy, football Rex Ryan.

He’s eloquent with his genius defensive schemes that give quarterbacks fits. Beautiful with the way he carries himself for his team and fans of New York. I mean the guy is cocky as hell and his personality is through the roof. 

This is the same coach that before the playoffs designed a schedule for the rest of the postseason through his team winning the super bowl and super bowl celebration.  How can you not want someone like that as your football coach?  He instills the confidence in his players to make them believe its feasible.

He’s kind and gentle because his players believe in him and love to play for him, just like the dwarfs loved Snow White.

Happy-Mark Sanchez

In his rookie season he helped lead his team to the AFC Championship game and enjoyed a season with 15 total touchdowns. If you ever watched this kid play he always played with a smile stretched across his face, similar to a little kid on Christmas morning. Every big play he celebrated like he was having the time of his life and it made watching him an absolute joy.

Grumpy-LaDainian Tomilnson

Ever since Norv Turner and his passing-oriented offense came to San Diego, LT has been upset and his production has slowly declined. LaDainain constantly looked unhappy in San Diego and was never thrilled with the new coach. 

The Jets signed him as a free agent this offseason to replace Thomas Jones, and I thought the former NFL MVP would finally be a little more joyful, instead he continued to whine about his former team. 

"The things that happened in San Diego, everything was taken away from me," Tomlinson said. "There wasn't an emphasis on running the football anymore, my best fullback was gone, the linemen were pass blocking, and it was a passing quarterback and a passing coach. So, the situation's kind of misleading when you look on film."

I guess once a grump, always a grump, huh? The great thing about this though, he’s with a new team who ran the ball a little over 37 times per game last season.  I think Snow White has Grumpy under control.

Sleepy-Braylon Edwards

It’s no secret that Braylon Edwards was Sleepy with the Cleveland Browns. With a franchise that has been asleep since, well, forever, Braylon fit right in. Known around the league has a big guy with explosive ability, he failed to simply catch the ball time and time again, even leading the league in drops in 2008. It was a simple issue of a lack of focus. The Jets hopped on this opportunity and traded for the former number three overall draft pick from Michigan.

Braylon had a solid season with the running-orientated Jets team, scoring four touchdowns in 11 starts while tallying an impressive 15.5 yards per catch average. With Dopey coming to town, Sleepy has a new partner and may finally be awakened.

Dopey-Santonio Holmes

It’s no secret Holmes has had major marijuana issues in his time in the NFL. So Dopey the character just fits the script, especially since he first has too serve a four game suspension for substance abuse. 

The fact of the matter, though, is the Jets got a former Super Bowl MVP and major deep threat who can spread the field for a fifth round pick. Just in comparison of how great of a deal this is; the Dallas Cowboys traded first, third, and sixth round draft picks for Roy E. Williams.

Santonio had over 1,200 receiving yards last season and is a playmaker who can take over games. So as long as Dopey can stay off the dope, at least before games and some practices, this team will be dangerous, and for a cheap price at that.

Sneezy-Antonio Cromartie

Antonio Cromartie is an athletic freak. At 6'2", 203 pounds, he has catastrophic size for a corner who flat out has wheels.  He busted on the scene in 2007 with the Chargers and had an incredible 10 interception season.  He’s only 25, and has shown that he can be dominant, so why’d the Chargers trade him?

Maybe they were upset with his production, with only five interceptions in the last two seasons? But, A lot also has to do with his ‘Sneezing’ on double moves that he started to get caught on these past two seasons. 

Rex Ryan is a genius defensively and doesn’t give quarterbacks much time, constantly bringing pressure. Cromartie will benefit from that, not to mention playing opposite the best cornerback in the game in Darrelle Revis.

Doc-Bart Scott & Jim Leonard

Bart Scott and Jim Leonard are a tie for Doc. Both are intelligent football players and solid starters for this team. Rex Ryan loves these players. They are his type of guys.  Coach Ryan showed up to Scott’s house at midnight of the first day of Free Agency in '09 to recruit Scott to come to New York, that just shows his dedication to Scott.

Both are always around the ball and are hard-nosed football players.  Bart Scott had a solid 92 tackle season to pair up with Jim Leonard’s 73 combined tackles.  Former Ravens, now Jets, they are thrilled their old D-Coordinator finally got the head coaching position he deserved.

Bashful-Vernon Gholston

Rex Ryan didn’t draft Vernon Gholston, but unfortunately inherited him from the previous regime. But many believed that Gholston would flourish with Ryan’s coaching after a slow rookie season, similar to how outside linebacker Terrell Suggs flourished after a slow start.

Unfortunately, things haven’t gotten any better and the once sixth overall pick might even be in danger of keeping his job. His bashfulness and shyness in the football world has been thoroughly disappointing, as he only produced 30 tackles and zero sacks in two seasons.  I forgot to mention that he made $9.18 million last season and was a healthy scratch for a pair of games. Can you say bust? 

These new "so-called characters" are the faces of the Jets’ organization and the future of this team. Unlike the ‘08 Cowboys, though, this team has the right man at the top of the totem pole. 

We hardly even mentioned the best cornerback in football in Darrelle Revis.

I didn’t have time to get to Pro Bowl offensive lineman Nick Mangold, Alan Faneca, and D’Brickashaw Ferguson. 

How could I forget playmaker Leon Washington, combined with second year running back Shonn Greene? 

What about Linebackers Calvin Pace and David Harris? 

And old, but not forgotten nose tackle Kris Jenkins?

This Jets’ team is loaded with talent, and have the swagger and confidence that every NFL team admires to have.  Character won't be an issue for this team, but simply a blessing.