10 Reasons the New York Jets Should Give Current Roster One More Shot in 2012

I refuse to concede that the Rex Ryan era in New York is over. I reject the claim that these coaches with these players are incapable of getting over the conference championship hump they approached in both of the last two seasons.

In all honesty, why would any Jets fan who was forced to endure the devastation that was the 1980’s and 1990’s hope for anything but complete recovery from this Jets team in 2012? Would you rather see Mike Tannenbaum ring Richie Kotite or Bruce Coslet to see if they are interested in taking back their team?

I thought not.

Here are 10 reasons why all Jets fans should give this Jets roster incarnation a second chance next season.

Mike Pettine's Potential Exit

It is not merely a coincidence that at the exact moment head coach Rex Ryan declared that he had relinquished final authority over his team’s defensive squad in favor of the autonomous control of coordinator Mike Pettine, Gang Green’s defense lost its backbone.

In the final weeks of the 2011 campaign, the Jets defense surrendered some of the longest drives in team history and in the case of the 21-play, 94-yard slap in the face delivered by the Miami Dolphins, longest in league history.

Pettine has quickly regressed the Jets defense into a bend-and-sometimes-break squad that no longer blitzes with the reckless abandon that made it a top defense in 2009 and 2010.

Increasing interest in Pettine as a potential head coach for the 2012 season may be another blessing in disguise for the boys in green. Perhaps then, with the solid core of stars the Jets have on their roster, the Jets can reclaim their swagger on defense.

Brian Schottenheimer's Potential Exit

I do not think I have ever seen a more transparent (and hilarious) example of an employer supporting the relocation of a current employee to another company. I can envision GM Mike Tannenbaum calling potential Schottenheimer suitors on an hourly basis to confirm interview times.

I have no pity or compassion for the ills that will befall the team that makes the inauspicious decision to make Brian Schottenheimer their head coach, just as I have no sympathy for a headache caused by a self-inflicted hammer to the skull.

Where one team will effectively volunteer for Schottenfection, it is clear that the Jets offense will benefit greatly from a new play caller. The Jets offensive potential next season becomes a complete wild card once a new coordinator puts on the headset.

Bill Callahan's Potential Exit

I have the utmost respect for offensive linemen and their coaches. From youth to professional, the sport of football does not function without its most under-appreciated participants. The millions upon millions of dollars spent on marquee offensive weapons are moot without the beef up front.

That being said, the primary cog in the Jets machine malfunctioned this season. The Jets offensive line, in spite of producing two Pro Bowl entrants, failed to provide quarterback Mark Sanchez with the protection he enjoyed in his first two seasons.

Because of this, the Jets play-action pass strategy often resulted in Sanchez on his backside rather than completing passes down the field. Much of the reason why Sanchez was not able to stretch the field vertically this season as he did in years past was the pressure he felt all season.

The Jets inability to bring the horrendous performances of right tackle Wayne Hunter up to speed is a result of a lapse in coaching. Hunter continued to make the same fundamental mistakes throughout the season, appearing to make no corrections or chance in technique that should have put him in a better position to succeed.

For these reasons combined, both the Jets and offensive line coach Bill Callahan may be better off entertaining some of these Head Coaching rumors swirling around him.

No Derrick Mason

He came and went like a speeding yellow cab on Broadway, staying for nothing more than a brief cup of coffee, but his influence on the New York Jets in 2011 may have caused the crack that eventually became a crater.

The Jets of 2009 and 2010 comprised an organization that successfully banded together, personifying Rex Ryan’s us-against-the-world image that bonded them as a solid, cohesive unit. Stars like Braylon Edwards, Antonio Cromartie and Santonio Holmes were virtually silent all season long as the Jets pursued championship glory as a team.

A short visit from Derrick Mason and suddenly the entire Jets locker room is by all reports, in utter shambles. Most of the Jets roster remains from that 2010 squad, how can this be? Mark Sanchez was cannot be to blame, he was not some phenomenally spectacular quarterback last season. The coaches are the exact same as last season, so the likelihood that they are to blame is limited.

There is only one common denominator and while he may have vacated Atlantic Health months ago, the damage Derrick Mason caused, perforated the Jets organization all season long.

Free Agent Wish List

At first glance, this upcoming free agent market appears to be comprised of a whole lot of wishful thinking as the Drew Breeses, the Wes Welkers, and the Ray Rices of the world are most likely staying put.

A closer look though, shows that with a few savvy additions to an already competitive Jets team, this free agent class might be the re-fire Gang Green needs.

With father time bearing down on LaDainian Tomlinson, the Jets will be in the market for a strong compliment to tailback Shonn Green. There seems to be a disgruntled superstar in Cleveland who is scheduled to become available that would be a ridiculous addition to the Jets ground-and-pound scheme.

There is also a substantial pool of receiver talent in this year’s free agent market, with speedsters Dwayne Bowe, Marques Colston, and Vincent Jackson entering the fray soon, the Jets passing attack may add some needed weapons.

For this roster to improve upon its poor 2012 performance, a complete makeover is not needed. A hasty demolition of a two-time AFC championship contender as it has been suggested by some is irresponsible and would be disastrous. This team simply needs to be repaired, nothing more and nothing less.

Something to Prove

The most unfortunate part of the Jets collapse this season is the damage it has done to the memory of their success over the past two years. For now, 2012 stands as the final chapter in a promising story of reinvention.

Cynics and doubters of the Jets viability as a legitimate Super Bowl contender have gorged themselves this blooper-filled season, giving them ample ammunition to suggest that the Jets two AFC Championship game appearances were a fluke, nothing more than fortunate circumstances.

The entire Jets organization has something to prove in 2012, both from a personal and professional perspective. Coach Rex Ryan may have his entire career as a head coach on the line. Some may consider this to be a bit of an exaggeration, but when you weigh the value of credibility in a leader, it is clear that this trait has all but run out for the Jets bulbous General.  

If the Rex Ryan experiment eventually fails in New York, where would the boisterous coach spout all of his championship guarantees next? We hear constantly about teams achieving success only after “Buying In” to the system established by their coaches, conforming only after they are convinced that their coaches way, is the right path to victory.

The bosses in New York went all in with this team; they built a courageous all or nothing philosophy that needs to pay off and needs to pay off now. They might not have too many other options if they fail.

2012 Draft Class

Similar to the 2012 free agent market, this year’s draft class is extremely deep, offering solid talent two to three rounds deep and providing many teams with the players they need to patch holes in their team.

Fortunately for the Jets, many early forecasts including mine, suggest that the Jets will have the opportunity to fulfill a few pressing needs this April in New York City.

In my estimation, the Jets will have the option of plucking one of several potential starters in the first round. Quarterbacks Nick Foles and Ryan Tannehill should still be on the draft board when the Jets are on deck, and so should Doak Walker Award finalist and Alabama running back Trent Richardson.

Add to them the declaration of receiver prospect Justin Blackmon and Oregon phenom LaMichael James, the Jets are looking to add some serious offensive talent in the draft, adding to the existing Jets corps.

Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum

As the final minutes ticked away in Miami and the Jets season faded away, it became glaringly obvious to this viewer that many adorned in green that day did not realize the potential fallout of their shameful meltdown.

It is obvious to even the most casual NFL fan that the turnover in head coaches, and to a slightly lesser degree General Managers, has reached historic proportions. One day perched upon the podium with a Lombardi Trophy in hand, a championship coach can find himself on the unemployment line in the blink of an eye. He can also take members of management with him if the situation permits.

Just a season ago, Rex Ryan was heralded for his reconstruction of the New York Jets culture. Twelve months later, he walked off the field of a division rival as a butt of a yearlong joke.

The fans of large market teams do not tolerate too many swings without a home run before calling for a coach’s ouster; just ask Joe Torre, Terry Francona, or even Tom Coughlin, a coach who seems to be on the hot seat every moment he is not wearing that year’s Super Bowl ring.

The missteps taken by recent Jets free agent acquisitions puts GM Mike Tannenbaum directly in the cross hairs should things not pan out for Gang Green in 2012.

The frantic reshuffling of players before this past season seems needless in hindsight as the chemistry within the Jets locker room was tainted by the introduction of characters rather than teammates. Responsibility for moves like these fall solely on management, and in order for the GM mad scientist to keep hold of his coveted position, his next decisions need to be home runs.

Santonio Holmes

Santonio Holmes is rapidly approaching a level of untouchable on the Terrell Owens scale, an interesting label referring to a sort of bipolar character description.

Santonio is easily one of the most effective receivers in the game today, but as countless professionals with a diva complex have similarly shown, is only elite when he chooses to be elite.

When Santonio Holmes arrived to New York among great fanfare, he guaranteed Jets officials and Rex Ryan himself that his history of attitude and legal troubles were far behind him. He quietly outperformed his one-year probationary contract with the Jets last season, producing strong play at the most opportune moments and earning himself a hefty contract renewal prior to the 2011 season.

Once paid, Santonio crossed over. His attitude was uncontrollable and inexplicable for the majority of the season and left the Jets almost literally grabbing for each other’s throats by season end.

In the blink of an eye, Holmes has reinstated his reputation for being a locker room cancer. At 27 years of age, Holmes untied all of the binds he built while casting doubt as to the sincerity of his behavior last season.

Holmes is on the verge of becoming unmarketable, he has devalued his talent to the point where his behavior negatively outweighs against his skill. He will undoubtedly receive every cent that his guaranteed him by the Jets, but should he decide to continue the temper tantrums and otherwise juvenile behavior next season, he could find himself quite the island onto himself.

Yet everything can be made right again if Santonio Holmes shows a genuine change of heart. His stock could rise once again if he regains his focus on being one of the best receivers, one of the biggest game changers, in the league.  As he stands on the razor’s edge, Santonio has a decision to make in 2012.

Mark Sanchez

Plain and simple, there is no one on the NY Jets roster that has more to lose and more to prove in 2012 than Mark Sanchez. It seems at times that the entire free football world is cheering the former USC Trojan to fall flat on his face, and at least in 2011, he fed them plentifully.

Volumes have been printed about Sanchez’ difficulties this season, but the fate of Sanchez’ career as an NFL quarterback does not rest in past failures, but perhaps in potential gone unreached. Next autumn will surely be his last opportunity to fulfill this potential.

Sanchez’ woefully poor decision making, his wildly inaccurate passing, and his indifferent on-field disposition leads me to think like some evil twin of a Broadway tune; if Sanchez can’t make it here, he can’t make it anywhere.

I could not foresee Sanchez plying his trade anywhere else after this upcoming season should he perform as he did this season. Perhaps the only potential Plan B would be as some sacrificial lamb in Arizona, Cleveland or Washington. Even then, he would only be in demand if these teams did not fulfill that role through the quarterback heavy draft.  

Mark Sanchez needs to put the 2012 season into the perspective it deserves. Either the performance he puts forth in the 16 or more games as a Jet will validate him as a legitimate NFL talent, or will be his last.