SB Nation - Alan Faneca

Jets Flight Connections 03-18-10

dvdvil — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 15:15:19 -0000

S James Ihedigbo reports from Haiti. I'm really proud of "Digs", WR David Clowney, LB Vernon Gholston and former Jets DB Ahmad Carroll for all the good they are doing. Ihedigbo writes about Day One.

Day Two.

And Day Three.

Ihedigbo asks that you visit http://yele.org/ and help.

The signing of RB LaDainian Tomlinson doesn't necessarily solve our backfield problems.

The Jets may not be too confident that RB Leon Washington will return to the same game-changing player.

Former Jets FS Kerry Rhodes reportedly showed little effort.

There is a Jets Fest on March 28. It looks like 7 current Jets are scheduled to appear.

One of them is K Jay Feely, who may or may not be a Cardinal by then.

More connections after the jump.

The Jets Kvetch cares a whole lot. And so do I.

The Jets Blog explains LS James Dearth's tough 2009 season.

The team has signed DE Rodrique Wright.

GM Mike Tannenbaum spoke about LT.

There has been speculation on the retirement of LG Alan Faneca. Yeah, I don't think it'll be this year.

Faneca talks about "Blocking Out Epilepsy."

SNY.tv debates whether to let QB Mark Sanchez air it out or keep grounding and pounding.

Jets owner Woody Johnson says that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's integrity was never questioned.

It looks like the NFL and the owners can see past this squabble and approve a New York Super Bowl.

Thanks to Cold_Old_Steelers_Fan for these links on DB Bo Smith: CBS Sport's player profile and his CFL stats.

random122 provides this link to this video. Is it just me, or does Smith kind of look like Bodie from The Wire?

GGN member Crackback explains why New England won't release LB Adalius Thomas before the draft.

GGN member njdevil7 explains why LT is a great signing.

And GGN member nrmax88 shares endorsement opportunities for CB Antonio Cromartie.

Dolphins QB Chad Henne says QB Tim Tebow is not an NFL QB.

Some say Tebow should be drafted by New England.

DE Dwan Edwards wants to be a leader in Buffalo.

USA Today analyzes the proposed overtime changes.

One proposition is that a field goal alone would not result in a win.

Former NFL OT Jon Runyan will launch his campaign for New Jersey congress.

You can watch Texas Stadium implode.

Lastly, relive some more RB Thomas Jones moments:

Bobbie Williams and the Bengals are in a "holding pattern"

Kirkendall — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:26:15 -0000

More photos » David Kohl - AP

3 months ago: Cincinnati Bengals guard Bobbie Williams (63) greets fans after his team defeated the Cleveland Browns 16-7 in an NFL football game in Cincinnati, Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009. (AP Photo/David Kohl)

Browse more photos »

Remember back in the day when the Bengals sported one of the league's best offensive lines nearly five years ago? Good lord, it's been that long? Yep. Eric Steinbach was dynamic, versatile and stable. His loss to free agency was noticed. In response, the team moved Andrew Whitworth out of his natural tackle position to left guard, allowing aging veteran Levi Jones to man left tackle while Rich Braham hung up his cleats after a career-ending injury in 2006. The line quickly dissolved. And the team struggled to rebound, evident by a combined 11-20-1 record between 2007 and 2008.

Through all of the changes, veteran Bobbie Williams remained as the team's starting right guard since signing with Cincinnati in 2004, starting 93 of a possible 96 games. He's a steady rock, a vocal leader and a very good guard. Some have claimed that his production has dropped and many would prefer quicker smaller guards that would open the play book slightly.

Pro Football Focus suggests otherwise. The website ranks Williams as the league's fifth best guard in 2009, especially strong as a run blocker. He did allow three sacks (Alan Faneca led the league with six allowed by a guard), 11 quarterback pressures and an additional hit. All of which are not close to ranking as the highest at his position.

For the past week, negotiations between Williams and the Bengals have hit a holding pattern, writes Joe Reedy.

A report surfaced out of Dayton two days ago that the Bengals were close to re-signing right guard Bobbie Williams. According to Williams agent, Tony Agnone, the two sides are at the same point where they were last week — in a holding pattern.

Agnone said that he remains hopeful that both sides can come to an agreement but they continue to test the waters with other teams. In checking with others around the league, three teams have expressed interest about Williams but that one of them is a Final Eight squad that has not lost anyone yet.

The report that Reedy is talking about was written by Carlos Holmes earlier in the week. He wrote that according "to a source with knowledge of the situation, the Cincinnati Bengals are close to a deal with offensive guard Bobbie Williams."

Another report suggested that the Bengals will be able to sign Williams based on what they do at wide receiver. The thinking was that a long-term deal with Antonio Bryant would make it harder for the team to sign guys like Bobbie Williams or Reggie Kelly. Bryant signed and now we're in a holding pattern.

If the Bengals can't land Williams, then they could move beyond their "interest" phase with Houston Texans guard Chester Pitts, who is scheduled to visit with the San Francisco 49ers next week.

Jets Flight Connections 03-09-10

dvdvil — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 16:58:10 -0000

LG Alan Faneca is organizing an event to "Block out Epilepsy."

Dave Hutchinson follows up on his story about WR Laveranues Coles.

GM Mike Tannenbaum confirmed that contact has been made with the free agent.

However, he also added that "nothing is imminent."

Tanny also joked that FB Tony Richardson would remain a Jet "unless something changes."

Chillicothe, Ohio native TE Ben Hartsock will remain a Jet.

Chillicothe, Ohio native TE and LS James Dearth, however, is in a holding pattern.

The team wouldn't comment on the cash advance for CB Antonio Cromartie.

You can listen to the conference call by the Jets GM.

C Nick Mangold, CB Darrelle Revis and RB Leon Washington are hosting an event to fight hunger.

More connections after the jump.

SNY.tv has video of Cromartie talking about Gang Green.

SNY.tv also debates whether dealing FS Kerry Rhodes was a good move or not.

The Cardinals have video of Kerry's press conference in Arizona.

Rich Cimini thinks Kerry got a culture shock in the desert.

USA Today: Rhodes wasn't seeing eye to eye with the coaches.

JetNation.com debates the Cro and Kerry moves.

JetNation.com also asks owner Woody Johnson to be reasonable.

TurnOnTheJets.com asks where we go from here.

NewYorkJets.com has the top RB performances.

LilMissNYJet lauds T-Rich.

New England is interested in LB Marques Murrell.

CB Leigh Bodden is still a Patriot.

S Ryan Clark is not a Dolphin.

QB Chad Pennington will be a third stringer.

But he can fight for the starting job and get paid for it.

Miami is going to need a nose tackle with Jason Ferguson's suspension.

Marty Schottenheimer, Kim Bokamper and and Keith Sims talk about the contract of LB Karlos Dansby.

The Bills have signed OT Cornell Green, who is excited about the run game in Buffalo.

The Panthers have released FB Brad Hoover.

Here is the state of the Ravens, a 2010 Jets opponent.

Retired players want to fire their union lawyer.

2009/2010 New York Jets Starters, Draft Status

David_Wyatt — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 23:30:46 -0000

I started thinking about the importance of the draft. Having spent quite some time this week on scouting reports for the first round, it got me thinking about the current Jets team, and their draft status coming out of college. Maybe something that will only interest a few. I put together some tables for the Jets starting line-up's in 2009/10, just to get a good idea of how much it can benefit a team to get it right early. So take a look for yourselves, I put down some conclusions at the end, but I just found it interesting to really see the draft status of our starters from last year.

*I added Braylon Edwards in as a starter even though he joined mid-season.

Click the comments section to open up full story, and cleaner table.

Offensive Starters

Position	Player	Round Selected	Selected by Jets (Y/N)
QB	Mark Sanchez	1	Y
RB	Thomas Jones	1	N
FB	Tony Richardson	UDFA	N
TE	Dustin Keller	1	Y
WR(1)	Braylon Edwards	1	N
WR(2)	Jerricho Cotchery	4	Y
C	Nick Mangold	1	Y
LT	D'Brickashaw Ferguson	1	Y
LG	Alan Faneca	1	N
RT	Damien Woody	1	N
RG	Brandon Moore	UDFA	Y

Defensive Starters

Position	Player	Round Selected	Drafted By Jets (Y/N)
NT	Kris Jenkins	2	N
DE(1)	Shaun Ellis	1	Y
DE(2)	Marques Douglas	UDFA	N
ILB(1)	David Harris	2	Y
ILB(2)	Bart Scott	UDFA	N
OLB(1)	Calvin Pace	1	N
OLB(2)	Bryan Thomas	1	Y
CB(1)	Darrelle Revis	1	Y
CB(2)	Lito Sheppard	1	N
SS	Jim Leonhard	UDFA	N
FS	Kerry Rhodes	4	Y

Conclusions:

Of the 22 main starters for the 2009/10 New York Jets, 11 were selected from the draft or the un-drafted pool by the New York Jets. (6/11 on offense, 5/11 on defense)
The starting Jets consisted of twelve 1st round draft choices. 6 of which the Jets selected themselves (3 on the offensive side of the ball, 3 on the defensive side)
The Starting Jets consisted of two 2nd round draft choices. Both on the defensive side of the ball.
The Starting Jets consisted of no 3rd round draft choices.
The Starting Jets consisted of two 4th round draft choices. One on the offensive side of the ball, one of the defensive side of the ball.
The Starting Jets consisted of no 5th/6th or 7th draft choices.
The Starting Jets consisted of five UDFA players. Two on the offensive side of the ball, three on the defensive side of the ball
Of the five UDFA players, only one was scouted and signed by the Jets (Moore). Three were scouted and signed by the Ravens (Douglas, Scott and Leonhard) , and one was scouted and signed by the Cowboys (Richardson)

Jets Flight Connections 020210

dvdvil — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 16:59:06 -0000

Some fun with quotes today. Let's start with Jason Cole of Yahoo Sports:

"I think it’s important for guys who are voted to the game [to play in the Pro Bowl]," said veteran Tennessee Titans center Kevin Mawae.

"These are the moments that 10 years down the line after I’m done I’ll look back and remember," said [Nnamdi] Asomugha, who playfully used this week to recruit New York Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis to play opposite of him in Oakland. "In a league where man-to-man coverage has kind of died out, that would really bring it back, I think."

So it seems playing in the Pro Bowl is a memorable moment, and having two shutdown corners together seems like a special thing, especially these days when offenses seem to be favored.

Let's see if anybody can expound on that. Tim Graham of ESPN's AFC East Blog:

"Me and Revis have been talking to Rex to try to do something," Asomugha said. "You may see us in the future. There's a little bit of talk going on. Either he's coming to Oakland or something else will happen."

"You always want that as a player, to have that guy on the other side of you that's equally as talented and can make plays. It fuels you a little bit. We'd been joking around with [AFC coach] Norv Turner throughout practices all week, and with [NFL commissioner] Roger Goodell. He said they probably wouldn't allow us on the same team."

So Rex has been involved in a conversation about "something." Revis comes to Oakland or something else. And apparently Roger Goodell was involved in the lighthearted fun, too. And look, he even offered up his own opinion about it.

So now let's imagine there's a blog out there that pretty much finds links and simply reiterates it. Yet the writers seem to be doing this as a full-time jobs and probably get paid very well for it. What might a certain writer come up with in order to generate more hits? Let's try profootballtalk.com:

Tampering charges could be on the horizon for Rex Ryan.

Per Tim Graham of ESPN.com, Raiders cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha wants to be a Jet. And Asomugha says that he has spoken ... to Ryan himself.

Even if Asomugha initiated the contact, Ryan has an absolute obligation to refrain ... and contact the league office.

So, according to this blogger, Tim Graham wrote that Nnamdi wants to be a Jet. That's interesting because nowhere in the Tim Graham article do I see anything that specific. ESPN.com quotes that he wants to be on the same team with Revis and that Revis is "coming to Oakland or something else."

And although Nnamdi has contacted the NFL commissioner himself, who apparently did not refrain, Rex Ryan and the Jets get to be labeled with tampering. It doesn't seem to be responsible journalism, but coming from a mere pretend-expert gossipper, there's no reason to expect anything close to real, responsible, fair and accurate journalism.

Anyways, more of the usual connections after the jump.

QB Mark Sanchez will have knee surgery.

It looks like HC Rex Ryan won't be fined after all.

Statesman.com: Ryan deserves at least a wrist slap.

Michael Salfino: The media drill is to make a hero and tear him down.

Bob Raissman: Ryan spices up boring week before Super Bowl.

It looks like they will keep playing the Pro Bowl.

Another blog picks up the Nnamdi-to-Jets angle.

MercuryNews.com jumps in and says go ahead with a trade.

But then Silver and Black Report provides some common sense: All that talk was just playful banter.

Jets PSLs are now slightly more affordable.

Bloomberg.com: Jets cut price on some goal line seats.

Steve Politi: Reducing Orange Bowl to concrete chunks is good for Jets fans.

Former Jet Bruce Harper helped found Heroes and Cool Kids.

LG Alan Faneca is the only current Jet on the All-Decade Team.

C Nick Mangold wants a new deal, and the team may try to accomodate.

New York Post: The Jets will try to make Revis one of the NFL's highest paid players.

Yahoo Sports: Former Jets LB Jonathan Vilma is at home with the Saints.

He has asked for tips from former teammates LB David Harris and FS Kerry Rhodes.

Colts G Kyle DeVan was on the Jets practice squad.

Boston Globe: AFC East may hold Super Bowl clues.

WEEI.com: Revis goes after Moss again.

CSNNE.com: Injuries don't explain WR Randy Moss's season.

This NESN.com article wants two Jets, RB Leon Washington and FB Tony Richardson.

The Miami Dolphins and the Cleveland Browns have exchanged vice presidents.

Here is a warning if you plan on watching the Super Bowl.

Apparently, Bruce Willis is a Jets fan:

Student Reporter Damon Weaver interviews Faneca:

3rd Grade Reporter Anthony Bowie interviews Revis:

2009 in Review: Offensive MVP's

John B — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 18:19:34 -0000

3. D'Brickashaw Ferguson: Left tackle is one of the most important and most difficult positions in the league. His career got off to a slow start, but Brick was one of the five best at his position this year. Despite playing with a rookie quarterback who was often indecisive and tentative, D'Brickashaw only allowed about one hit every other game protecting Mark Sanchez's blind side. He didn't get much help either. While Alan Faneca remains a very good run blocker, his pass blocking skills have eroded to a degree. Most notable, though, is the improvement in Ferguson's run blocking. A few years ago, he added nothing in the run game. He was purely a finesse guy who could pass block. He has developed into an excellent run blocker. While Gang Green still runs primarily to the right side, now the team can run behind Ferguson.

2. Thomas Jones: Jones slowed down near the end of the year and had arguably the game's best offensive line blocking for him. How can you not give a guy with 1,402 yards on the ground a ton of credit, though. Jones isn't flashy. He's just reliable. He reads his blocks, finds his holes, hits them, and consistently picks up good gains to put his team in reasonable second and third down situations. He's still producing big time at an age when most backs are at the end of the line.

1. Nick Mangold: Offensive linemen seldom get the credit they deserve from the mainstream media. We here at GGN want to change that. In reality, all five offensive linemen were contenders for these spots. The way offensive lines function as a unit, the five players could probably count as one entity. Well, Mangold is the best of the bunch. He's the best center in football. He is the anchor of the line. What was the biggest reason the unit dominated on the ground? It started in the middle. Mangold consistently dominated his man without needing any help. In both 3-4 and 4-3 fronts, the nose tackle is responsible to try and draw double teams. Having a center who could regularly not just tie up but beat the nose freed up a blocker to find somebody else. Yes, I say the center was the most valuable player on offense.