SB Nation - Kellen Clemens

Falcons 10 Jets 7: Kicked Away

John B — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 00:00:19 -0000

by Kathy Willens - AP

The Jets fell back to .500 after suffering a crushing 10-7 loss to the Falcons today at the Meadowlands. Once again this team loses in the final minute. Once again this team wastes a great defensive effort. Once again we have to ask how the heck the Jets lost a game they seemed to control. It's the story of the season.

More after the jump.

The Bad:

Jay Feely: Jay, I'd like to introduce you to Doug Brien, John Hall, and Cary Blanchard. Feely helped kick the Jets out of the Playoffs by not connection on a pair of makable field goal tries. If he does his job, the Jets are comfortably ahead in the fourth quarter. No, he doesn't get a pass because the wind was bad. This is Feely's second season in the Meadowlands, and he spent time with the Giants before. He has plenty of experience in the Meadowlands. Does he get blame for kicking it too low on the blocked try? You bet. Last week's hero is this week's goat.

Kellen Clemens: Fine, we've established you can't play quarterback. Now you can't even get a hold down? The whole reason the Jets made him the holder was because of the botched field goal try in overtime against the Bills. The Jets wanted a guy capable of throwing it on a broken play. Using the backup quarterback presents a different problem. He's not on the field and doesn't handle the ball. Maybe Brad Smith would be a better choice. He sees action and can make something happen with his legs and arm if things break down.

James Dearth: His long snaps were terrible. They didn't help matters.

Sending Three on Fourth Down: The Jets are an aggressive team. That's how they became the top statistical defense in the league. It's how they shut the Falcons down all game. Why go away from what works and only rush three on the play that decided the game?

Offensive Line: The rare performance where the other team was successful loading up the box because the offensive line wasn't getting enough of a push. I'm not going to get on Thomas Jones (19 carries, 52 yards) because I didn't really see anywhere for him to run most of the time.

Missed Opportunities: Five trips in Falcons territory ended in no points. That's a recipe for heartbreak.

Danny Woodhead: Very unimpressive game. Didn't come up with a pair of catches he should have had early. Later he showed no ability to break tackles. He was slow to break after the catch on a third down, and his run back on the kickoff following the winning touchdown put the Jets' back to the wall.

Alan Faneca: Idiotic personal foul killed the last drive before it really started.

Donald Stickland: Terrible penalty on the last drive. Even worse coverage.

The Good:

Darrelle Revis: Roddy White had 4 catches for 33 yards. He almost had as many times begging the officials for a flag as he had receptions. Revis shut him down.

David Harris: 10 tackles and was effective as a blitzer. The Jets surely won't be going to Miami for the Super Bowl, but Harris should go there for the Pro Bowl.

Kerry Rhodes: The missed tackle was bad, but Kerry played a great game aside from that. He registered 6 tackles and was excellent in coverage. This was the player we were expecting at the start of the year.

Brad Smith: A great kickoff return to start the second half and made good reads out of the Tiger formation.

Mark Sanchez: Yes, Sanchez goes here. He did some bad things, namely holding it too long, not throwing it away in some spots, and once again not sliding. I think you need to find a new scapegoat for the last drive. Can you blame him for the last interception? The Jets needed to get it downfield. He had to try and force something. The first pick was bad, but I was impressed with the way he responded. The rest of the game, he was making good throws and making good decisions with the ball. Even on the second pick, there was a window open. We were worried whether the cold was in his head. The throw seemed to give him confidence he can play in the cold. That's huge for the future. When you look at the numbers, it won't look great. In the grand scheme of things, I view today as a net positive. He proved he can make plays in the element. Mark will have to play better next week to get a win, though.

Braylon Edwards: 5 catches for 105 yards and a touchdown. He also drew doubles which in theory should have opened thing up for others and did good work as a blocker. Admit it. You were nervous he'd drop the touchdown pass.

I hate to let the defense off the hook. I mean another game winning drive late is upsetting, but the fact of the matter is the game should never come down to the last drive when you only give up 10 points. This game was lost by the field goal unit and the offense not finishing drives. I have nothing left to say. You'd think I'd be used to it by now. Just like last year, we see a season essentially die in a snowstorm the Sunday before Christmas.

Sanchez Seems Good to Go

John B — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 14:03:25 -0000

Rex seems to think Mark Sanchez looked good enough in practice to play on Sunday.

Sanchez and Clemens split reps with the first team today in practice. The plan is, if Sanchez’ knee feels good tomorrow, for Sanchez to take all the snaps with the first team tomorrow.

"I’m not ready to say absolutely on that until we see how he is tomorrow and we check with our medical staff,’’ Ryan said. "You want to make sure there’s no swelling or anything and that he feels good, that he got through the night.

"I’m not even saying that we’ll know for sure a definite answer tomorrow,’’ Ryan went on. "We’ll just have to see. This is a big decision. He’s got to show that he’s able to protect himself before we’re going to be 100-percent committed in him playing Sunday.’’

Ryan said he was very encouraged with what he saw from Sanchez yesterday, though, saying, "Last week he wasn’t able to do anything on the field, so he’s much further along than he was last week. If you were just watching him, you wouldn’t know if he had (an injury) issue or not. He’s not favoring his leg or anything.’’

This sounds very good. I think all of us have seen enough of Kellen Clemens.

Jets Flight Connections 121509

dvdvil — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 15:59:21 -0000

We won't find out who will start at quarterback until at least tomorrow.

QB Kellen Clemens says "I did what was required" against Tampa Bay.

Is QB Mark Sanchez crucial to keep winning, or are we good with running the ball and defense?

Bob Wischusen lauds the whole Jets defensive unit.

HC Rex Ryan explains why he wouldn't commit to FS Kerry Rhodes starting the last game.

The Jets D is first in the league in many categories.

A couple of quotes from Matt Gagne of the Daily News. Rex on LB Bart Scott's unnecessary roughness:

There's going to be some ramifications for Bart. I'll just let him tell you. He'll find out on Wednesday. It's good news, bad news for Bart.

And RB Thomas Jones on his O-line:

This is the best offensive line in the NFL. Every one of these linemen deserve to go to the Pro Bowl. Every one of them.

More connections after the jump.

The Star-Ledger's Manish Mehta breaks down the Buccaneer game.

NorthJersey.com's J.P. Pelzman grades the Jets.

The Daily News's Rich Cimini grades the Jets.

I already had this yesterday, but The New York Post's Mark Cannizzaro also grades the Jets.

With the team still alive for the playoffs, Ryan is confident the Jets will win out.

Here is the AP's Dennis Waszak Jr. on the Jets' playoff chances, with quotes from Jim Leonhard, Shaun Ellis, Bart Scott, Thomas Jones and D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

T Ryan McKee came and went.

Get RB Shonn Greene's autograph - and get him to sign it, "I will protect the football." - today from 12:30 to 2:30 pm at this charity event in Manhattan.

Your daily Pro Bowl reminder, keep voting for the Jets as many times as you want. You have until Dec. 21.

And lastly, here is CB Darrelle Revis at 12AngryMascots last October:

Mark Sanchez's Status Up in the Air

John B — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 14:00:20 -0000

More photos » by David Duprey - AP

Browse more photos »

Mark Sanchez will hit the practice field Wednesday. How he performs will help determine whether he will start.

Sanchez will return to practice Wednesday, Rex Ryan said late today in a conference call with reporters. Ryan, perhaps engaging in a little gamesmanship, wouldn't say if Sanchez will start Sunday against the Falcons. He said he wants to see Sanchez in practice before making a decision. Ryan hopes to have Sanchez and Kellen Clemens split the reps on Wednesday.

I tend to think the only way Sanchez isn't on the field is if there's a real risk of him injuring himself worse. After what we saw out of Kellen Clemens the past two games, an unhealthy Sanchez gives the Jets a better shot of winning.

What do you think the criteria should be to decide the starter?

Jets 26 Buccaneers 3: Flying High Again

John B — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 01:02:58 -0000

More photos » by Chris O'Meara - AP

Browse more photos »

The Jets are somehow back in the Playoff mix after their 26-3 victory today over the Bucs in Tampa. Gang Green is riding a 3 game winning streak and is back over .500 at 7-6. The last month of this season could get very, very interesting. This performance rivals the Houston and Oakland games in terms of domination.

More after the jump.

The Good:

The Defense: We'll definitely profile some of the outstanding individual performers, but this was just an excellent defensive effort. Tampa's only 3 points came as the result of a personal foul on Bart Scott on which the officials arguably should have thrown an offsetting flag on the Bucs. The blitz packages had Josh Freeman's head spinning and overwhelmed Tampa's offensive line. Freeman was 14 for 33 with 93 yards and 3 interceptions. The Bucs didn't have a first down until the third quarter. They ended with 6 and 124 total yards. This was domination.

Jay Feely: Feely was money today. He hit 4 out of 5 field goals. One was from 40 yards, and a pair were from 49. Feely's kicking helped the Jets put the game away even as their offense struggled to advance deep into Tampa Bay territory.

Calvin Pace: He was constantly running free and finished with 7 tackles and a sack.

Darrelle Revis: Another dominant performance by the game's best corner. Antonio Bryant had 2 catches for 22 yards. Revis had an interception that just about iced the game and broke up a few passes.

Mike Westhoff: A fourth successful fake punt this year deserves kudos. It was the third variety of fake punt the team has run. Apparently the Bucs didn't pick it up on film.

Danny Woodhead: 3 catches for 35 yards. I'm really liking the idea of having him as a third down back and replacing Leon Washington a bit as a receiving threat out of the backfield.

The Tiger Formation: I made that name up, but it's what we'll call the Wildcat package for Brad Smith. Smith only had 16 yards on 5 carries, but getting the ball into the hands of a playmaker in the open field is a good idea and at least gives upcoming opponents something to notice on film and spend time preparing for. Smith had a 21 yard punt return. I'd like to see him out there instead of Jerricho Cotchery. He's more apt to make guys miss. I know he doesn't have great hands as a receiver and would seem to be more of a turnover risk, but catching a punt is different from catching a pass.

Thomas Jones: Another big stat line against an opponent that was gameplanning to stop him. TJ had 99 yards on 24 carries and 2 touchdowns.

The Bad:

Kellen Clemens: The best thing you could say is that he avoided a catastrophic mistake, finishing with no turnovers. In other words, he was lucky that Tampa Bay's offense was no inept because he didn't make any plays. This was bad any way you slice it. This is a bad defense that was loading up to stop the run. Kellen only hit 12 of 23 passes for 111 yards and looked lost aside from a brief period in the second half. He left plays on the field. He wasn't making decisions quickly enough. When he found a receiver, his throws were wildly inaccurate. His mechanics were a mess. He struggled with all but the most basic throws, and even some of them were an adventure.

A lot of us (and I include myself in that number) have been making excuses for Kellen for four years. He was young and inexperienced. He wasn't supposed to play. His offensive line was terrible. The team never gave him a chance. He's out of excuses. By this point, if he was ever going to be a player in this league, he would have shown some sign of it. It's sad to say because from what I hear you'll never meet a more genuinely good person. However, I don't see how Kellen finds a job in the NFL after this season.

Shonn Greene: That would be three fumbles in six games. When the ball is getting punched out from behind like that, it's a sign you're carrying it way too loosely. The Jets are going to have to start taking carries away from him. Even though he's been productive, it's becoming too much of a turnover risk.

Mike Westhoff: Westhoff got credit for the fake punt. He also has to take heat for the onside kick. It's been obvious the up men have been leaving too early all year. It almost cost them against Jacksonville. It hasn't been corrected at all. The Jets had no shot of recovering that kick because their men were so far down the field.

Three down, three to go. Nobody can say for sure how this thing will end. One thing is for sure. The Jets have shown a lot of character this year. It would have been easy to pack it in after the midseason swoon. The way they have continued to fight and get themselves back into this position says a lot good.

Jets Flight Connections 121309

dvdvil — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 15:34:12 -0000

First of all, don't forget to check out "Jets 24/7" "Jets Flight Plan" on WCBS-TV New York at 11:30am.

Brian Schottenheimer explains why Kellen Clemens looked so bad against Buffalo.

Kellen is eager to start again at quarterback.

His coaches and teammates say they have total trust in the back-up.

Will Tampa Bay hurt our post-season push?

This article says bet on the Jets, while this one says bet on the Bucs.

With Robert Turner out and Alan Faneca recovering from illness, the Jets activated OT Ryan McKee from the practice squad.

Former Army HC and current Jets LB Coach Bob Sutton was at the Army-Navy game.

Buccaneers HC Raheem Morris and Jets Strength and Conditioning Coach Sal Alosi were teammates at Hofstra.

More connections after the jump.

Read about how well former Jets Jason Trusnik and David Bowens are doing with the Browns.

What's going wrong in New England is not Tom Brady's fault.

Maybe it's Adalius Thomas's fault, who will not play today.

Matt Moore will be the quarterback for the Panthers against the Patriots.

Do you remember when Carolina went to the Super Bowl? What if Kris Jenkins and the Panthers had won then?

The Dolphins will be playing without Jake Grove again, while the Jaguars will be without Mike Sims-Walker, John Henderson and Rashean Mathis.

Lastly, please keep voting for you favorite Jets to go to the Pro Bowl.

Here are some highlights of the last one, where we voted in seven Jets players:

Download the Media Program guide for todays Jets/Bucs game

Niko Houllis — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 14:07:12 -0000

Download the huge program for todays Bucs/Jets game.

View full size photo »

Click to download the PDF...Jets

From NFL.com...

Following consecutive wins that helped New York's playoff chances go from dim to promising, the Jets will have to rely on a backup quarterback to improve those odds.

Kellen Clemens will start in place of the injured Mark Sanchez on Sunday when the Jets visit the lowly Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the second time this decade.

New York (6-6) appeared to be on its way toward missing the playoffs for a third consecutive season after dropping six of seven following a 3-0 start.

They were also helped by last week's losses by New England, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Houston and Baltimore. The Jets are tied with Miami for second in the AFC East -- one game back of the Patriots -- and are in the thick of the wild-card race.

"I think you can make assumptions that our morale was down, but that was an assumption," coach Rex Ryan said. "We still had a belief. I don't expect anyone else to believe it and I said that back then. Everybody in this building believes in this football team, that we can still accomplish things.

"This team is close. We're close to being a special football team. Nobody can deny that."

Ryan won't have his rookie quarterback in the lineup after Sanchez was forced to leave against the Bills because of a sprained right knee suffered while diving headfirst for a first down. The injury occurred just days after the Jets employed New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi to teach Sanchez how to slide.

Ryan made the decision to have Sanchez not play this week after seeking the advice of team doctors.

Clemens hasn't started since a 13-10 win over Kansas City on Dec. 30, 2007, and has appeared in 20 games over four seasons. He went 3-5 as the starter in 2007.

Clemens was limited to two passes against Buffalo while getting sacked three times and fumbling once. He may not have to throw the ball much this week with the Jets relying more on the NFL's best running game, which is averaging 168.6 yards.

New York might benefit from facing a Buccaneers defense that ranks 31st in the league against the run, surrendering 160.1 yards per game.

Tampa Bay (1-11) has lost 15 of 16 dating to last season, and rookie coach Raheem Morris rejects the notion that a losing culture has settled into the locker room after last Sunday's 16-6 defeat to the Panthers.

Click to download the PDF...Jets

Jets/Bucs Preview & Prediction

Matt Birch — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 06:29:49 -0000

Two down, four to go.

On Sunday the Jets travel to Raymond-James stadium to take on the 1-11 Bucs. Still alive in both the WildCard and divisional race, they will do something they haven’t in two years -- start Kellen Clemens at QB in a regular season game. Forced to throw only twice when he entered the Bills game last Thursday for an injured Sanchez, Clemens will look to continue the Jets winning ways.

The Jets plan on offense will be clear. They will run the ball 40+ times. On defense, Tampa will stack the box and force Clemens to throw. Unfortunately for them, they may be outmatched upfront. Buffalo also knew what we were bringing but couldn’t stop the rush. The Jets Pro-Bowl, veteran O-Line should dominate the lackluster TB defensive front in the trenches here and carryThomas Jones to another 100-yard-game.

31^st in the NFL- That’s TB’s rush defense ranking -- they’re giving up 160.1 yards/game on the ground. Even with a second string QB at the helm, when you’re the #1 rushing offense in the NFL(168.8/game) going up against 31^st worst rush defense (160.1/game), good things happen to you. The Jets have an extremely favorable matchup here on offense and should be able to find themselves in a lot of "3rd and managable" situations, making Clemen's job easier.

Don't Force it- To his credit, Kellen Clemens has a strong arm and good mobility to maneuver around in the pocket with, but his problem over the years has been turnovers. During his four-year career in NY he's thrown 11 interceptions and just 5 touchdowns. Fortunately, TB only forces 1.6 takeaways/game so hopefully with a powerful running game making his job easier, he can be an effective game-manager on Sunday.

Bucs may be without a key component in their running game. RB Cadillac Williams is questionable and may not play due to a back injury he sustained in practice on Thursday, which means Derrick Ward and Ernest Graham would split the carries. Two RBs that have had solid years in the past, but I believe have definitely shown signs of regression this season. Ward has only 1 TD on 85 carries this year. The Bucs OL is mediocre also as they rank 18^th in the NFL.

Jets defense finally showing the tenacity they were lacking -- they’ve forced 7 turnovers in the last 3 games. Josh Freeman threw 5 INTs last week against Carolina. There’s a good chance Revis will come away with at least one pick if they try to force the ball to Bryant. Even if Tampa employs a conservative game-plan, expect a couple of turnovers from their end tomorrow.

As John mentioned, with Tampa banged up at WR2 (the main position that has burned us this year), the Buc's only favorable matchup in coverage would be Eric Smith on TE Winslow (who leads the team in receptions with 58). With Williams possibly out, Winslow is arguably their best red-zone and 3^rd down threat. He leads the team with 58 catches and 5 TDs. Hopefully the Jets can neutralize his effectiveness by playing some zone coverage zone to get help from the LB core.

DE - FENSE!- The jets finally got their first defensive TD of the season last week against Buffalo when Darelle ("Robot") Revis picked one off and took it to the house. Freeman was given the green light and threw the ball 44 times last week against Carolina. If he makes a big mistake and the Jets can capitalize early it would be a huge boost to Clemens and his confidence... and also a big lift for them and they could play off of it (as it was in the Oak game).

Statline:

-Jets are 7-2 vs the bucs in L9 matchups.

-Tampa has averaged just 10 points in each of their last 3 games.

Bottom Line:

The Bucs are simply a bad team and this game has a similar feel to the Buffalo game. The Jets get the benefit of facing another squad with an awful defensive front and inaccurate quarterback. This plays right into their strengths as they can manage the game by running the football and also let their defense dictate field position. They have allowed more then one offensive touchdown to a losing team just once this year (vs. Tenny), and with Williams likely out I don't see how they will be able to continually move the football effectively against this stout (ranked #2 in the NFL) Jets defense.

J-E-T-S 20, Bucs 13.

Jets Flight Connections 121209

dvdvil — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:56:37 -0000

Kerry Rhodes will not shut up.

Rex Ryan praises Lito Sheppard.

Rex Ryan praises D'Brickasaw Ferguson.

Rex Ryan and Bart Scott praise Josh Freeman.

Mike Pettine praises Larry Izzo.

Damien Woody praises Alan Faneca.

Braylon Edwards praises Kellen Clemens.

Brad Smith and Wallace Wright celebrate with a middle school in New Jersey.

The Jets are thankful to Eric Mangini and learn from the Browns' upset.

Mark Sanchez, Dwight Lowery and Robert Turner will not play on Sunday.

Buccaneers WR Michael Clayton and RB Carnell Williams might not play either.

More connections after the jump.

Miami will be playing against last week's Defensive Player of the Week.

New England might be playing wihout a healthy Adalius Thomas, and with a subpar Tom Brady.

Buffalo will not have Demetrius Bell for the rest of the year.

Once again, Wayne Chrebet is quoted in an NFL concussion policy article.

The topic of NFL injuries is becoming more serious.

Former Buccaneers HC Tony Dungy is still very involved in the NFL.

His other former team is currently still unbeaten, along with the Saints.

I would like to stress again that Darrelle Revis and Thomas Jones need to go back to the Pro Bowl. Please vote for them here. Polls close on Dec. 21.

Lastly, Rex Ryan talks about growing up in Toronto:

NFL Sunday TV Viewing Guide

John (obviousman) — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 15:07:34 -0000

Do you have DirecTV and the NFL Sunday Ticket package? Do you work at, or spend your Sundays at, a bar that does? Do you have a laptop computer so that you can watch scores while watching the game?

Well, here you go. This is the first installment of your NFL Sunday TV Viewing Guide. This is to let you, the Chargers fan, know how to plan your day and which games to keep an eye on. I'll also add in the reasons to watch, and any potential storylines.

1pm EST Games to Watch

There are six(!) games that you should keep an eye on as you settle into that groove on your couch this Sunday.

Broncos at Colts - This is simple enough. The Chargers have a 1 game lead in the AFC West. If the undefeated Colts can keep their winning streak going, that lead can either stay at one (with a SD loss) or grow to two (with just 3 games left). The Colts are the best regular-season team in the league, and they absolutely love playing at home. Their starters will go because they're still playing for that playoff bye and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The only possible reason for concern is that Peyton Manning does not play his best football against 3-4 defenses.
Jets at Buccaneers - Chargers fans could use a Tampa Bay victory, and there's reason to believe it may happen. The Jets are starting backup QB Kellen Clemens, and the young Bucs have been playing decent football since Josh Freeman took over as the starting QB. A good game by Freeman, as well as TB winning the turnover battle, and Raymond James Stadium will be rocking.
Bengals at Vikings - The Bolts main competition at this point of the season is Denver and Cincinnati. Cincy has the same record as San Diego, and both teams are competing for the last available playoff bye. A win against the Bengals next week would certainly help the Chargers chances, but there's no harm in getting started this week. The Vikings will also be a good barometer for just how good the Bengals are, and will hopefully find some holes in a very good Bengals defense.
Dolphins at Jaguars - I really don't know how this factors in, but it does. A Jacksonville win helps the Chargers clinch the playoffs just that much quicker. I've found the Dolphins to be a fun team to watch this season, and Chad Henne looks like he could be a heck of a QB in the future. The Jags have been a roller-coasted of a team all season, but they appear to finally be playing good football every week.

Anyone notice anything? Those are probably the four most important non-Chargers game for Chargers fans this week, and we're rooting for all home teams. I feel good about that.

Panthers at Patriots - This time we're rooting against the Patriots (what else is new?). Stories swirling out of New England this week lead me to believe that this locker room will either explode, or everyone will suddenly get on the same page and become a winning football team. Even though Matt Moore is playing QB for the Panthers, an outright chemistry explosion for the Patriots leaves any and all possibilities on the table. I don't recommend watching this one, but definitely keep an eye on the score.
Lions at Ravens - Chargers fans should be rooting for the Lions. Yikes. I think Dante Culpepper is going for this one instead of Matthew Stafford, which is good news for the Lions and Calvin Johnson. I don't expect this to be a blowout by any means, but the Ravens basically need to win out to make the playoffs so they'll be playing with a monstrous chip on their shoulder.

4pm EST Game to Watch

Chargers at Cowboys - If you needed me to tell you this, you've found your way to the wrong blog. There's no need to watch them, but I'll be rooting for wins by the Raiders (against the Redskins) and the Rams (against the Titans) just as a way to see the Chargers future opponents get a little bit weaker.