SB Nation - Donald Strickland

San Francisco 49ers vs. Philadelphia Eagles: A Prospector's Guide

Fooch — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 15:00:18 -0000

vs.

The 49ers remain on the periphery of the playoff race (I will most definitely NOT say in the thick of it at this point for karma purposes). They find themselves heading into Philadelphia badly in a need of a win in a game that most people don't give them much of a chance in. We've moved past moral victories, so while I won't be stunned by a loss, keeping it close in Philly won't exactly make me happy as a clam.

The 49ers travel to Philadelphia in what will be the 29th meeting between the two teams, with San Francisco holding a 17-10-1 advantage in the series. The 49ers and Eagles have matched up six times this decade, but this week’s game will mark the first in Philadelphia since 2005.

San Francisco enters the upcoming game following a 24-9 victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Monday Night Football. In that game, the 49ers defense created 7 turnovers, while RB Frank Gore rushed for 167 yards on 25 carries and one touchdown. TE Vernon Davis leads all NFL receivers with 11 touchdown receptions after registering a 5-yard score from QB Alex Smith against Arizona and is only the 9th tight end in NFL history to record at least 11 touchdown receptions in a season. The NFL record is 13, held by TE Antonio Gates (2004).

Last week’s contest marked the third week in a row that the 49ers defense had posted at least 4 sacks in a game. San Francisco now ranks tied for 7th in the NFL with 34 sacks and a +6 turnover ratio. The 49ers 18 forced fumbles rank tied for 1st in the NFL in 2009 and are tied for the most by the team in a single season (1996 - 18), dating back to 1992.

49ers-Eagles Connections
Coaching Connections
• Eagles offensive coordinator Marty Mornhingweg was the 49ers offensive coordinator and QBs coach from 1997-2000. In 1998, the 49ers became the first team since the 1941 Chicago Bears to lead the league in gross passing and rushing yards thanks in large part to Mornhinweg’s guidance. Mornhinweg attended Oak Grove HS in San Jose, where he was the Northern California POY and an all-state performer.
• 49ers secondary coach Johnnie Lynn and Eagles WRs coach David Culley coached together with the Tampa Bay Bucs from 1994-95.

FORMER EAGLES - Offensive coordinator Jimmy Raye was on the Eagles roster in 1969 ... Pass rush specialist coach Al Harris played with the Eagles for two seasons (1989-90) ... SS Michael Lewis was drafted by the Eagles in the 2nd round in 2002 and played in Philadelphia for 5 years. He earned a Pro Bowl invitation in 2004 ... LB Takeo Spikes spent the 2007 season with the Eagles, starting 14 games ... Strength and conditioning coach Duane Carlisle served as the Philadelphia Eagles speed development consultant from 2000-04. Carlisle also coached at
Penn State from 1989-92 ... Director of pro personnel Tom Gamble entered the NFL as an assistant for the Eagles player personnel department in 1996. He is the son of former Eagles president Harry Gamble and was born in Cherry Hill, NJ ... Area scout Todd Brunner first joined the Eagles as a scouting intern in 1992 and worked as a scouting assistant in 1993.

FORMER 49ERS - CB Joselio Hanson, a native of Playa del Rey, CA, was originally signed by the 49ers as a rookie free agent in 2003 and appeared in 13 games for the 49ers.

49ERS PENNSYLVANIA CONNECTIONS - RB Michael Robinson played collegiate football at Penn State ... CB Shawntae Spencer is from Rankin, PA ... Rookie LB Scott McKillop hails from Monroeville, Pennsylvania.

EAGLES NORTHERN CALIFORNIA CONNECTIONS - Head Coach Andy Reid spent time as the offensive coordinator at San Francisco State from 1983-85 ...TE coach Tom Melvin is a native of Redwood City, CA, and began his coaching career at San Francisco State from 1982-85 and attended Cubberley HS in Palo Alto ... Special assistant/defense Brian Stewart served as defensive backs coach at San Jose State (1997-98) ... WR DeSean Jackson played at Cal and is a native of Long Beach, CA ... TE Alex Smith lettered at Stanford from 2001-04.

PLAYER CONNECTIONS
• 49ers DT Justin Smith and Eagles G/T Stacy Andrews were teammates with the Cincinnati Bengals from 2004-07.
• 49ers DT Demetric Evans was a teammate of Eagles DE Chris Clemons and LB Jeremiah Trotter for the Redskins (2004-05).
• 49ers LB Parys Haralson and Eagles LB Omar Gaither were teammates at Tennessee from 2002-05.
• 49ers G Chilo Rachal played at USC with Eagles DT Mike Patterson and T Winston Justice.

Series Highlights
Matchups: 28
Series Record: 49ers lead series 17-10-1
49ers Away Record vs. Eagles: 49ers Lead Series 9-3-1
First Meeting: 10/6/51, Eagles win, 21-14, at Philadelphia
Last Meeting: 10/12/08, Eagles win, 40-26, at San Francisco
Current Streak: Lost 3
Longest 49ers Win Streak: 5 (9/23/84 - 11/29/92)
Longest Eagles Win Streak: 3 (9/18/05 - Present)
Most 49ers Points: 38 (Two Times), Last: 38-28, at ~~San Francisco~~ Philadelphia
Most Eagles Points: 42 (9/18/05), 42-3, at San Francisco
49ers Shutouts: 1 (12/29/96), 49ers win 14-0, at San Francisco
Eagles Shutouts: None

PHILADELPHIA 40, SAN FRANCISCO 26
At ~~Glendale, AZ~~ Philadelphia, PA, October 20, 2008

The Philadelphia Eagles forced 3 turnovers during a 23-point 4th quarter of a 40-26 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. CB Donald Strickland returned a blocked FG 41 yards for aTD on the final play of the 1st half and the momentum carried into the 3rd quarter when the 49ers scored 10 points to take a 26-17 lead.

After the Eagles rallied back to take a 27-26 lead with 7:38 left to play, the 49ers next three drives ended in turnovers that set up scores for Philadelphia. S Quintin Mikell intercepted a QB J.T. O’Sullivan pass and returned it to the San Francisco 7-yard line to set up a short FG. On the next series, Eagles DE Trent Cole forced a fumble on a sack of O’Sullivan, allowing Philadelphia to recover at the San Francisco 20-yard line to set up another short FG for a 33-26 lead with 1:10 left. San Francisco got past midfield on the next drive when O’Sullivan connected with WR Josh Morgan on a 25-yard gain, but two plays later with 48 seconds to play, O’Sullivan was picked off by DE Juqua Parker, who returned it 55 yards for a score to seal the 40-26 win.

Philadelphia QB Donovan McNabb threw for 280 yards and 2 TDs while RB Correll Buckhalter, playing in place of an injured Brian Westbrook, had 93 yards rushing and 85 yards receiving. Philadelphia took a 7-6 1st quarter lead and then added 10 points in the 2nd quarter for a 17-6 lead. PK Joe Nedney hit a 53-yard FG with 34 seconds to play, but Philadelphia moved to the San Francisco 36-yard line with one second remaining on the clock before halftime. The Eagles sent PK David Akers on to the field to attempt a 54-yard FG DE Ray McDonald blocked the kick, and Strickland scooped up the loose ball and ran 41 yards for the score to make it a 17-16 game at the half. RB Frank Gore had his second 100-yard game of the year with 101 yards on 19 attempts.

2009 Statistics

49ERS (rank)		EAGLES (rank)
6-7 (2nd NFCW)	Record	9-4 (1st NFCE)
20.7 (18th)	Points per game	28.6 (3rd)
288.6 (27th)	Total Offense	360.2 (11th)
98.8 (24th)	Rushing Offense	106.1 (19th)
189.8 (22nd)	Passing Offense	254.1 (10th)
29:31 (16th)	Possession Avg	28:30 (25th)
18.6 (8th)	Points allowed/gm	21.0 (t-16th)
338.6 (18th)	Total Defense	320.1 (10th)
95.0 (5th)	Rushing Defense	101.5 (10th)
243.6 (27th)	Passing Defense	218.6 (18th)
34 (t-7th)	Sacks	36 (t-4th)
47.8 (2nd)	Punting Avg (Gross)	41.7 (27th)
+6 (t-7th)	Turnover Differential	+15 (3rd)

Friday Injury Report. Ryan's Conference

David_Wyatt — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 23:36:10 -0000

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Out

Mark Sanchez- QB

Dwight Lowery- CB

Robert Turner- OL

Questionable

Alan Faneca- OL

Wayne Hunter OL

Probable

Marquice Cole- CB

Shaun Ellis- DE

Jim Leonhard- S

Calvin Pace- OLB

Donald Strickland- CB

Transcript of Rex Ryan's news conference is after the jump

On how Kellen Clemens has progressed this week…

He’s got a great grasp of our system. This is his fourth year under Brian [Schottenheimer]. He knows the system as well as anybody and it shows. He has great poise and ownership right now. The guys believe in him, just like they believe in Mark. He is very comfortable and very confident. I think most backup quarterbacks probably don’t have the system down as much as Kellen does. Kellen knows it inside and out. We’re very confident in how he’s going to play this week. I know his teammates feel very comfortable and confident in Kellen.

On if Clemens’ struggles in 2007 were because of the offensive line…

I remember playing against him when I was in Baltimore. For three quarters they struggled offensively, but then they lit us up in the fourth quarter. He made some nice passes that day. That was how familiar I was with Kellen. It was based on that. I never went back and looked at all the other tapes. I know we have an outstanding offensive line now. We have an excellent group of receivers, great backs. I expect Kellen to play great. I expect him to really have a big game for us.

On if he feels the team won’t overlook the Buccaneers…

It’s hard to get overconfident for two reasons. Number one, you watch all that tape. You can look at last week’s game when they posted almost 500 yards against Carolina, which is not a bad defensive football team. That is really all you need to know there. And you can look at last night. Last night was a perfect example. You have the defending Super Bowl champs go into Cleveland to play a team that has won one game. The experts, as we say, are all picking Pittsburgh. Well, somebody forgot to tell Cleveland that.

We know what we’re going to get. We’re going to get everything Tampa Bay has. Likewise, they’re going to get everything we have. I feel confident that we’ll win this game. I know they’re going to get everything we have and I know we’re going to get what they have and we’ll see. I’m confident in our football team. We’re going down there on a business trip. We’re going to take care of business. We’ll see, like I said from day one, at the end of the season we’ll see how many wins we’ve got, how many losses and we’ll all take a look at it then. Right now, we know what’s in front of us and we have to go down there and lay it all on the line. I’m confident that we’ll get it done.

On if he is happy with Cleveland’s win over Pittsburgh…

You know I’m not big on lying. I’m glad that this happened. But it’s not what you think, I’m glad my brother [Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan] got a big win on a nationally televised game. They showed him every two seconds. I thought it was ironic that every time they did something good they show my brother and every time they did something bad they showed [Browns head coach Eric] Mangini. That was interesting to me. I told my brother that. I left a message for him. They needed that win. It’s a huge win for them. Oh, by the way, it helps us. I’ll take that also. Pittsburgh is a proud team and for our benefit we are going to need Pittsburgh to be Pittsburgh for the rest of the season, too. They are going to have to play.

On what problems Josh Freeman presents…

He did struggle in the red zone in particular. He threw the five interceptions. All that’s true, but he threw for 370 or something. He had a huge day statistically, but he did make those mistakes and that’s what happens a lot of times with young quarterbacks. He’s got a big arm. He’s a big man. He’ll take off with it, so that’s something you’ve got to be ready for. If the first guy’s not there, forget reading coverages, he’ll just run with it. I was really impressed with Freeman when we went on his interview. He’s a smart guy, very bright and physically, he fills a room. That’s a big man. We’re going to look to slap some Riddells on him and see what happens.

On ball security…

The facts are what they are. We’re 5-0 when we win the turnover battle and we’re 0-4 when we lose it. That’s got to be a point of emphasis any week and it should be every single week. It doesn’t matter that Freeman’s a young guy or not. We’re coming after him. We’re going to try to create bad plays for them.

On if maroon will be a new color code for Kellen Clemens this week…

That was great. The look on his face, that was fantastic. He never missed a beat. He just looked at me and smiled. "I believe it’s maroon." "Oh, good. Go get 'em, kid." He knew and everybody makes light of those things, but I know one thing, protect the football. He knows you’ve got to protect the football. They do a good job of rushing the passer. They do a good job in the back end of making big plays. We’ve got to be smart. We’ve got to protect the football and I think we’ll be just fine.

On Lito Sheppard…

I’ll tell you, it’s been a frustrating year for Lito. He started the season off playing terrific, then he gets the injury, probably came back a little too early, so he gets another injury on top of it, a more severe injury. We’ve been wanting to make sure he was back before we really felt comfortable putting him out there, trying to ease him in. There’s no easing in anymore.

He played a tremendous game [at Toronto]. In fact, we gave him a game ball last week. He gave up one completion. That was on the third down, 38-yard play. It was a great play. You can’t defend the perfectly-thrown ball. Lee Evans happens to be a heck of a football player. The thing that was impressive was he made the one-on-one tackle and prevented the touchdown. After that, he never gave up a completion. He was tremendous in that game.

Let’s not forget, that is a two-time Pro Bowl player. Lito is still Lito. I sense the confidence is back. I think the biggest thing he had to overcome was the injury. I don’t think he felt that he was all the way back and that puts some hesitation in his play. Now, I think Lito feels great. I think he knows he’s all the way back. Lito may be the fastest player we’ve got on defense. He’s got all the ability. It’s not bad when your second corner is a Pro Bowl-type corner. It’s not bad. We’ve been saying it from day one. We’re healthy now. Obviously, Lowery is out, but when we get him back, we’re going to be loaded. We have no excuses. We expect to play well. We know we’re going to be challenged by Tampa Bay, but we believe our guys will be up to the task.

Related Players

Jets Flight Connections 120809

dvdvil — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 15:33:51 -0000

The New York Jets got a little help from the Packers last night. Rex Ryan was not rooting for his former team.

Meanwhile, Mark Sanchez did not practice yesterday. Somebody else was wearing his jersey on the field.

The Head Coach on the QB's situation, from NorthJersey.com:

I know he expects to play. We’re optimistic he’ll play. ... I think he seems to be getting better each day. We’re obviously going to be smart with this. I’m going to consult with the doctors [and] get their opinion of things. We’ll do the same thing about should he play in this game or not. All of those decisions are what we always talk about. We’ll consider what’s best for the player first, team second. We’ll see.

The Jets had the best defense in the league before the MNF game last night. Still, it's the highest rating our defense has had this late in the season in a long time. And we're still in the top rankings in other categories.

Speaking of defense, you can meet Kris Jenkins and Jim Leonhard next month.

More connections after the jump.

If you live in the Tampa area, you might want to check out this fan club.

Bart Scott and the Xaverian football team helped out the Food Bank on Thanksgiving.

Tom Brady thinks the Patriots don't fight very hard at times. New England may no longer be a dynasty, but they still control their destiny.

The Dolphins didn't use the Wildcat in their win. I did see Pat White in there, but I guess that doesn't count.

The NFL Commisioner is not impressed with LandShark Stadium, or whatever you call it these days.

And Bills DT Kyle Williams is not impressed with his own team.

Former Jets WR Wayne Chrebet admits some of his concussions could be due to his own competitiveness.

His former teammate and current Saints LB Jonathan Vilma likes the new rules on concussions.

Lastly, the NFL takes from the rich, but doesn't want to give to the poor.

McGee, Byrd questionable for Thursday night Toronto tussle

Brian Galliford — Wed, 02 Dec 2009 22:38:46 -0000

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While Terrell Owens puts on his best giddy face for the cameras and scores of reporters covering the Buffalo Bills' latest excursion to Toronto, there's actual news to discuss about tomorrow night's divisional battle with the New York Jets.

The injury reports are out, and two of Buffalo's main defensive cogs are questionable: starting cornerback Terrence McGee and starting free safety Jairus Byrd. McGee, who has missed the Bills' last three games recovering from arthroscopic knee surgery he had during the team's Week 9 bye week, is considered a game-time decision. Byrd is as well, as he deals with a groin injury that has bothered him off and on since before training camp.

Demetrius Bell, John McCargo and Ashton Youboty have all been ruled out. Just like in last week's victory over Miami, Jonathan Scott is expected to start at left tackle.

For the Jets, they'll be without two cornerbacks - Dwight Lowery and Donald Strickland - as well as guard Robert Turner. Mark Sanchez, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Shaun Ellis, Calvin Pace, Jim Leonhard and Eric Smith are all listed as probable, and all will play.

New York Jets Pass Defense vs. Carolina Panthers Pass Offense

John B — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 19:02:32 -0000

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There are a lot of similarities between the Jets and the Panthers. One of them is both teams have talented quarterbacks capable of taking over a game or losing it by constantly throwing it to the opposition. It's been more of the latter this year for Carolina. Jake Delhomme has only 8 touchdown passes against 14 interceptions on top of his all time horrific Playoff start last year against the Cardinals. His passer rating right now stands at 66.

Steve Smith will draw Darrelle Revis. Smith is one of the top deep threats in the game and owns great speed. He leads the Panthers with 45 receptions, 599 yards, and 4 touchdowns. With Donald Strickland and Dwight Lowery out, Lito Sheppard will rejoin the starting lineup. He'll spend much of his day covering Muhsin Muhammad. This seems like a decent matchup for Lito. Muhammad is not a deep threat. He does a lot of his work underneath, runs good routes, and battles. I like the matchup between the starters.

The Panthers are a better running team than passing team, but there are some areas they can try to exploit the Jets if they are willing to open up their playbook a bit. Then again, that requires putting it into Delhomme's hands instead of their excellent running backs. In any event, Drew Coleman will be the nickel. Coleman is coming off one of worst performances in NFL history against Wes Welker (and that is not hyperbole). In four years, Drew hasn't really developed any cover skills or shown he should be on the field in anything other than extreme passing subpackages. Carolina's third receiver, Jersey product Dwayne Jarrett, has only 10 receptions on the year, but the Panthers could look to exploit this matchup. We could also see them target tight ends Jeff King and Dante Rosario, who split time. They have combined for 31 catches.

The key will be bringing pressure and forcing Delhomme to make decisions quicker than he wants. This is how opponents approch New York's mistake prone quarterback. It's how the Jets should go after Carolina's. The Panthers are playing without Pro Bowl tackle Jordan Gross, who is on IR with an injured ankle. Travelle Wharton will start in his place. He had some struggles against the Dolphins last week. The overload blitzes this week could go primarily to his side.

New York Jets Pass Defense vs. New England Patriots Pass Offense

John B — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 14:32:12 -0000

by Michael Perez - AP

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Last time the Jets shut down Tom Brady with non stop pressure. That's been their formula for success against Brady in the past, sending men from all angles, confusing his protection, and forcing him to throw early. It's the only way to beat an offense like this. If a quarterback this good has time, he'll find a window. If receivers this good have time, they'll eventually get open.

This kind of matchup favors the Pats. The Jets probably won't change much from what was successful the first time. Why would they? New England has the ability to adjust. It's funny because in the past, New England adjusted to New York's blitzing of Brady by the formula they tried in the first game, spreading the field and getting the ball out quickly. That won't work because the Jets will just send more men than blockers once again. At least one guy will run free to Brady and force an early throw. This time I think the Pats leave in extra blockers. As long as they leave Brady standing, he can find somebody.

In the first game, Darrelle Revis shut down Randy Moss with very little safety help. The Jets played a lot of cover zero and cover one. When he had help, he didn't need it. The one area the Pats found success was working the middle with Julian Edelman, a shifty slot receiver. Wes Welker will be in the lineup this time. He and Edelman will be working the middle a lot. We'll also see a lot of quick throws and screens to Welker and let him make plays. To get to Brady, the Jets are going to have to ask a lot out of Lito Sheppard, Donald Strickland, and Dwight Lowery. If the Jets are going to win, these guys in particular are going to have to cover and tackle well.

I also think the Pats will look to exploit Benjamin Watson and Chris Baker and test out Eric Smith. Eric will be playing Jim Leonhard's role now, not working underneath and as a blitzer in subpackages. We'll also see Kevin Faulk on a lot of screens out of the backfield to try and catch blitzers overpursuing.

One thing to watch on the line is the play of rookie Sebastian Vollmer, who replaced the injured Matt Light about a month ago. Vollmer has held up exceptionally well against some of the best rushers in the game like Dwight Freeney last week. Light had been the weak link on the line. The interior guys, Steven Neal, Dan Koppen, and Logan Mankins, as well as right tackle Nick Kaczur have been good in pass protection. The Jets should focus again on overload blitzes. It's going to be tough to consistently win matchups against these guys. Just overwhelm them to one side and hope the protection can't slide quickly enough.

Thinking about Baby Holt

Tkopa — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 03:24:51 -0000

Jarret Dillard broke his ankle in the Jets game and will be out the remainder of the year. It happened in the second quarter at a critical third and five. Jarret ran a clean route, setting his break and cut for the sidelines, one yard past the marker. Donald Strickland and Kerry Rhodes were in pursuit. David hit him just as he came open and Donald Strickland rode him to the ground. Jarret hung on to the ball, made the first down, and then rode the cart. I couldn't help but think about him all day today.

I jokingly call him Baby Holt because I noticed he made friends with Torry at training camp. Everywhere Torry went, Jarret went. During pre-season, when Jarret got in the game and made a play, he came to the sidelines looking for Torry. It didn't take long to find him, Torry was waiting to congratulate him. The relationship seemed special and Jarret waited for his chance during the season.

Jarret demonstrated his gravity defying abilty during the Chiefs game here in Jacksonville. It was third and fourteen with David standing in his owm endzone, Jags up 7 to 3. David threw a rope over the middle 40 yards to a leaping Jarret Dillard. Jarret is 5 foot 11 inches and went over 6 ft 2 inch Javon Belcher to grab the ball. It was a stunning catch and one the home crowd hadn't seen in five years. We came to our feet in appreciation.

Jarret Dillard was a Gene Smith gem in the fifth round. In 2006 Jarret was a sophmore at Rice. Rice went on a terror streak to finish the season with a 7-1 run. That brought Rice it's first bowl game in 45 years. During that run of 8 games, Jarret caught 55 passes and 16 touchdowns. I'm sorry, maybe you didn't quite understand that. In 8 games he caught 55 passes and 16 touchdowns. One more time, in 8 games, first bowl game in 45 years. Can you feel the respect and admiration?

There are two guys who held the record for touchdowns catches in consecutive games, Larry Fitzgerald and Randy Moss each with 12 consecutive games with a touchdown. Only one guy has more, Jarret Dillard has 13. Very few players have meant as much to their school football program as Jarret Dillard did to Rice. He was amazing. Watch this video if you want to understand how special this guy is.

Dillard at Rice

I always wanted him to get in the game as a Jaguar. I knew he was a player who could make a difference. I can't help but think about him now and wish him well. Get well Baby Holt. We want to see you back so very very much.

- Terry O'Brien

Jets 38 Raiders 0: Back on Track

John B — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 23:36:11 -0000

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All is well again. The Jets are back over .500. They finally got a win on the West Coast and totally dominated their opponent. Sure, it was an opponent that couldn't have looked less dangerous, but a win is a win in the National Football League. It sure beats losing to the Bills (or the Raiders a year ago). The Jets can go into next week's showdown with the Dolphins feeling good about themselves.

More after the jump.

The Good:

Commitment to the Run: Some of us have been begging Brian Schottenheimer for over a year to just use his terrific stable of backs and his big offensive line and just pound opponents with the ground game. All it took was a rookie quarterback meltdown to finally deliver it. I love the 55-15 run to pass ratio. In future weeks, not every team will be as outclassed up front as the Raiders. That disparity will have to go down. It's just nice to see the Jets finally focus on the ground game. The tendency in the past has been to start putting it up when things don't click early. Today it was a bit of a struggle early, but the Jets kept with their gameplan of pounding it and eventually worked into a groove and wore Oakland out up front. The end result is a second consecutive game with over 300 yards on the ground.

The Offensive Line: Just a dominant performance up front one through five. The guys had holes to hit all day long. Things are finally clicking for this unit with a physical opponent coming up.

Shonn Greene: For whatever reason, some talented rookies don't get a chance to shine until the team has no choice. I think back to a pair of promising inside linebackers the Jets had earlier in the decade. Jonathan Vilma couldn't sniff the field until Sam Cowart got hurt. Ditto David Harris three years later until Vilma went down. Enter Greene. Shonn looked really good in limited action prior to today. The coaches still wouldn't give him much playing time. Today Leon Washington's injury forced the Jets to play Greene. The result? 19 carries, 144 yards, and 2 touchdowns. He looked like a complete runner. He showed he had the vision and burst to hit the holes, the power to break tackles, and a second burst running away from defenders that frankly took me aback. The book on Greene is that he's a power runner. I know the opponent stunk, but we have something special on our hands.

Thomas Jones: Struggled early but got stronger as the game went on and wore the Raiders out. A second straight big outing, 121 yards on 26 carries.

David Clowney: We're seeing this guy mature as a receiver. The knock on him has always been he's a one trick pony, a guy who can run the vertical route. What I saw today really impressed me. He showed a lot of intelligence breaking off his route on a third down when the Raiders brought heat on Mark Sanchez. He run a good comeback route on one of his receptions. He made a great adjustment on the football on his long touchdown reception. This is a guy who is improving in front of our eyes. With Leon Washington out, the Jets need to find a new homerun threat. This could be an answer.

Wallace Wright: For the first time, this is not for his special teams play. He had a pair of catches and looked pretty quick in short space out of the slot. A possible replacement for Chansi Stuckey?

The Fake Punt: Three for three this year. This was clearly the Jets scouting out the Raiders and Oakland not correcting what it's been doing wrong. There was no way that was ever going to fail the way the Raiders just immediately released down the field, not even looking at the punter. Give the quality control coaches a game ball.

Calvin Pace: Nice to see Pace being the difference maker this defense needs him to be. 7 tackles, 3 sacks, and 2 forced fumbles. As teams use more maximum protection schemes against their blitzes, the Jets are going to need guys to win one on one matchups. Pace is going to play a big role. It's great to see him swatting when the quarterback leaves the ball exposed. His strip sack on the first play was huge. It seems like the Raiders just resigned themselves to a long day after that.

Darrelle Revis: He's in here every week. He dominated his assignments and had a great interception.

Dwight Lowery: It looks like he's passed Donald Strickland on the depth chart, and it's easy to see why considering all the plays he made when the ball came in his direction. The Jets have to be thinking twice about the Lito Sheppard trade given Sheppard's inability to stay on the field and Lowery's return to his early 2008 playmaking form.

Total Defense: There were some outstanding individual performances, but the defense pitched a shutout. Three of the four turnovers were forced by intense pressure. Always great to get the other quarterback benched.

The Bad:

Leon Washington's Injury: As great as it was to find out about Shonn Greene, there had to be a better way than losing Leon. He's going to be missed big time, especially next week. He always gives the Dolphins fits.

Howard Green and Sione Pouha: And I could put the other defensive linemen there. They weren't getting off thier blocks well enough and allowed too many big runs. That's scary with a physical offensive line and the Dolphins up next week.

Bart Scott's Injury: What's a guy that valuable doing on the field with 3:00 left in a 38 point game?

Mark Sanchez's Antics: I know a lot of you will disagree with me, but I really was upset with what I saw out of Mark Sanchez today. You stunk last week. The team took the keys from you. Stop showing up your opponent by throwing the ball through the goal post after a 3 yard run in open field or eating a hot dog on the sidelines. Show some respect for the other team. Act like you're totally focused. You still have a lot to learn. You're not good enough yet to be doing that stuff.

Other Thoughts:

The next time you call an NFL player greedy for complaining about his contract, think of Leon Washington. Leon did everything right. He didn't hold out. Now because of his serious injury, he may very well lose out. I know. He's making way more than you are or I am. We're not also playing a violent game for a living that will affect us for the rest of our lives at a position when a career span is under 10 years.
Nice touch pouring the Gatorade on Bill Callahan. Great to see Rex leading it. It's stuff like this that makes the team love its coach, and it's why I believe these guys are going to keep battling for him. Keep the faith with our coach.
Braylon Edwards' hidden effect was shown today. He was constantly drawing double teams, opening things up for David Clowney. Look out for Jerricho Cotchery once he gets better.
This was the original formula, pound the ball, let the defense dominate, and don't ask too much of the quarterback. It's kind of a credit to Sanchez it took the Jets this long to get to it. He showed he was capable of handling more up to last week.

Great way to bounce back. The Raiders weren't much of a test. In fact, they seemed content handing the Jets the game. Still, a nice confidence builder heading into the Miami game.

'What If' Scenarios

David_Wyatt — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 00:21:05 -0000

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So moving towards Monday nights showdown in Miami we have been greeted tonight with an injury report that makes me a little bit nervous. Not so much with the player that is out (Donald Strickland) but with the players that are questionable, most notably Jerricho Cotchery and in particular Damien Woody.

So god forbid one or both of them are unable to play, what happens? where do we turn? and will it be suitable replacements?

Well let's take Jerricho Cotchery first, and although he missed his 2nd straight day of practise today, I'm confident he will be lined up across from Edwards come game time on Monday night. No particular reason, just a hunch.

However if he can't go we will see a rotation of Brad Smith, David Clowney and Wallace Wright. None of whom fill me with that much confidence. Smith's routes are still pretty raw and although he can make that odd spectacular catch, always struck me as a juggler. Wright has really shown nothing and Clowney has potential but we have barely seen him like up this year. We all know he can run a post, but can he work in the intermediate and short routes. I really don't know because I haven't seen enough of him, no-one has, in NFL regular season games.

However that does not worry me as much as the Damien Woody injury. People seem to have faith in Hunter, but I just don't. I don't think he can turn his shoulders and deal with the explosive outside rush. I don't think he gets enough push off the line. A 3rd round pick who has been in the most part disappointing.

I guess we will have to wait and see, but I'm hoping that both are ready to go on Monday.

If Sheppard can't go then we will see the normal rotation the past few games, Lowery as the 2 and Coleman as the Nickel. Coleman has actually not been half as bad as I thought he was going to be, so credit to him. Kerry will play.

Rex Ryan Press Conference Note- 10/09/09

David_Wyatt — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 19:38:31 -0000

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Ok so I'm just going to dive straight into the notes from the conference:

Donald Strickland and Jerricho Cotchery did not practise today. Cotchery's hamstring is still bothering him, but Ryan definitely not ruling him out. However he is not 100%
Kerry Rhodes (knee), Lito Sheppard (quad), Damien Woody (foot), David Clowney (personal reason), all were limited
Larry Izzo (hamstring), Jim Leonhard (knee), Bryan Thomas (wrist) were all full participation.
It's a possibility that Cotchery doesn't play, but he expects him to play
Bad games are going to happen, has been pleased with Mark Sanchez's performance so far this week. Just going out and being himself. Not going to be perfect the rest of the season. Will bounce back and Mark is ready to bounce back
Calvin Pace is all over the place, embarrassing his team mates like he always does.
Happy with the offensive line, need give opponents credit. Opponents are putting a lot of guys in the box trying to stop the run, hoping that he can pop a couple. Dolphins not given up a run of 20+ yards. Looking forward to the match-up.
Thinks that Braylon will help spread the field and help the run. When Edwards is covered he is open.
Jay Feeley is a pro, outstanding kicker. Not easy to kick in the Meadowlands but the conditions don't bother him.
When asked how Edwards looked he said no comment, except he is a decent receiver.
Had to give up a lot for Edwards, two really good players that he admires a lot. Had to be a special player to trade those guys. Thought it was a good opportunity and commented on how good a job Mike Tannenbaum does.
This game counts a game and a half. Huge game, were not coming in tip-toeing, coming in with the maximum effort to win this game. Going to give them everything we have.
Game is not about revenge or anything else, it's about whatever it takes to win a game. Got to beat the division rivals. About as big a game as it gets.
All three backs are 25 touch capable, but we are looking to do what's in the best interest of winning, if that means running it 45 times a game then that's what we will do.
Shonn Greene is 100% back and healthy.
Going to try and get Leon Washington the football. Get him as involved as possible he is one of the biggest explosiveness.
Can't remember there being too many 3-4's when he came in the league. People switched because the best teams were running a 3-4, but teams will play a defence that fits there players.
Wilcat is a 'pain in the tail'. Takes time and preparation. Have to be prepared, takes practise time, they may or may not run it. He's not flinching about the prospect of facing it, and the message is that we will be ready.

Wasn't a very long conference, around 10 minutes or so, and not a great deal was covered, I guess the important note to come out of it all was the injury status of the players.