With all the attention being paid to the quarterback battle between Chad Pennington and Kellen Clemens, the real key to the New York Jets success, at least offensively, appears to be the offensive line and the running backs.
The line that allowed Pennington and Clemens to be sacked a collective 53 times and only helped Thomas Jones average 3.6 yards a carry received a massive upgrade this summer. Damien Woody at right tackle and Alan Faneca at left guard are expected to cut down considerably on the pressure getting through.
Early signs have head coach Eric Mangini trying to focus more on the run. The addition of fullback Tony Richardson along with the two additions at the line should help Thomas Jones bump up his average and take pressure off the quarterbacks to throw the deep ball. Of course, if Pennington wins the starting job the deep ball will simply not be an option.
Pennington would an interesting choice at quarterback because an already suspect NFL arm was further weakened by injury. He may be the best choice to manage a game at the Meadowlands, but he is not going to lead your team down the field like Peyton Manning, Tom Brady, or even Eli Manning, who really came around at the end of last season for the New York Giants.
Jets fans are already worried about the season before it even kicks off. The Yankees tickets and the Mets tickets may be a great distraction for all the football fans in New York, but ultimately the pennant chase will give way to the football season. The defense looks primed to go, but the many unanswered questions have to leave the fan base a little unsettled.
Fans have no doubt Mangini will be able to turn around the defense like he did in 2006 or when he was the defensive coordinator of the Patriots. The troubled offense has to be a major concern. Not everyone is sold on Jerricho Cotchrey as the new number one option and fans are waiting for Laveranues Coles to lose a step or two. After those two, no real third receiver has emerged. The Jets have a choice of former college quarterback Bard Smith and inexperienced Wallace Wright.
