Five New York Jets Who Could Break Out in 2009

My definition for a breakout season is a player who has something to build on from the previous season and to potentially have a significant season. Here I list five players on the current New York Jets team that could top their 2008 numbers and become key components to the 2009 team.

Calvin Pace

Pace came to the Jets last offseason after five seasons with the Arizona Cardinals. After being awarded a hefty six-year, $42 million deal, Pace did a solid job in the Jets pass rush, recording seven sacks, five forced fumbles and 80 tackles despite not having a solid, steady player on the opposite side of the defense to take the pressure off.

The blitz-happy Rex Ryan is now in charge, and you can bet your bottom dollar that Pace is going to be heavily involved in almost every play on the defense this season.

Projected 2009 stats: 83 tackles, 11.5 sacks, three forced fumbles

Vernon Gholston

The Jets first-round pick in 2008 was Vernon Gholston. After failing to meet the demands of a first-round pick, Gholston and his 15 tackles rode the bench for most of the year, with the exception of coming in on substitute packages on occasion.

Gholston’s possibilities are endless. It is clear he is very athletic and has the talent to make it in the NFL. This could be the story to watch out for this fall and winter.

As I stated above for Calvin Pace, the Jets lacked that solid, pass rusher on the opposite side of the defense. Rex Ryan took Terrell Suggs under his wing when he came into the league. Could Gholston be Ryan’s next project?

Projected 2009 stats: 67 tackles, 6.5 sacks, two forced fumbles

David Clowney

Clowney is basically falling into a golden opportunity here with the Jets. After the Jets picked him up a couple of years ago off the Packers practice squad, he is finally going to get his opportunity to prove himself as an NFL-caliber player.

With Jerricho Cotchery the only proven NFL wide receiver on this team with a good amount of experience, Clowney will compete with Chansi Stuckey and Brad Smith for playing time on the opposite side.

Clowney’s sub-4.3 40-yard dash speed will provide a very nice compliment to the possesion, over-the-middle style that Cotchery brings to the table. He will be fun to watch if he gets the opportunity to stretch the field.

Then again, a signing of Plaxico Burress could change this all…

Projected 2009 stats: 45 receptions, 590 yards, five touchdowns

Dustin Keller

While Keller had a very solid 2008 campaign, it is quite possibly that Keller could shatter last season’s numbers and become a top-eight tight end in the NFL this season.

Without a steady starting receiver on the opposite side of Cotchery, it is quite possible that whoever is under center in Week One will make Keller their safety net and utilize him as their second-look or sometimes first-look receiver.

His blocking isn’t quite what you would like, but as a receiver from the tight end position, Keller has what it takes to become one of the elite tight ends in the game today.

Projected 2009 stats: 67 receptions, 780 yards, seven touchdowns

Leon Washington

Some might say, “How could he be on this list? He’s already a premiere talent on this team.”

This is true.

But, as it has become known, over the past two seasons, Eric Mangini had somewhat handcuffed offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer in the conservativeness of his play-calling.

Schottenheimer has stated that he is looking to get back into the style of offense that he coached during the 2006 season, when Washington was a rookie and the leading rusher on the team.

An interesting stat that Leon can put his name to is the yards-per-attempt statistic. In his rookie season, he averaged 4.3 yards an attempt, while in 2007, he increased it to 5.0 yards. Last year, Leon managed to get 5.9 yards per rush attempt.

With Rex Ryan letting Schottenheimer control every aspect of the offense, this could open up the opportunity for Washington to get more touches, both out of the backfield as a receiver as well as taking handoffs.

Projected 2009 stats: 120 rushes, 684 yards, si touchdowns/32 receptions, 227 yards, two touchdowns

Predicting the New York Jets’ 53-Man Roster: Offense

This is the last of three articles that will break down my predictions for the Jets 53-man roster

To view the Special Teams/Practice Squad – Click Here

To view the Defense – Click Here

 

Quarterback – Mark Sanchez, Kellen Clemens, Erik Ainge

The two obvious ones here are going to be Mark Sanchez and Kellen Clemens. Both will compete for the starting job and the loser will be the backup. Sanchez has reportedly had some very good days and some average days, but will quickly adjust to the offense.

He has impressed the team, media and fans by his professional attitude and the way he conducts himself despite being under such pressure of being the franchise quarterback of a team that hasn’t seen the Super Bowl in over 40 years.

It is up in the air on who is actually going to win the starting job, though head coach Rex Ryan has gone on record saying that he was one of the only coaches on the Baltimore Ravens in support of Joe Flacco as the starter in his rookie season last year. It shows that he would not be afraid to throw Sanchez right into the fire in week one.

On the other hand, you also have another quarterback battle going on behind those two. 2008 fifth-round pick Erik Ainge is competing with 2009 undrafted rookie free agent Chris Pizzotti. At this point, I would say Ainge has the upper hand, but Pizzotti is not far behind. Ainge will and should win this battle.

 

Running back – Thomas Jones, Leon Washington, Shonn Greene

The talk of the offseason beyond Mark Sanchez has been the contract holdouts of running backs Thomas Jones and Leon Washington. It has been stated by agent Drew Rosenhaus that Jones will report to mandatory camp this week.

The Jets reportedly won’t budge on the contract. He is due to make $900,000 this year after receiving $13 million of the $20 million, four-year deal he signed back in 2007 during the first two seasons.

Washington seems to be the hardest one to overcome at this point. His contractual stance keeps him from putting on a practice jersey and he is hell bent on getting a new contract. The Jets are weary because of the uncertainty with the current Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Players Association and Owners.

This one could last well into the summer, but in the end, the Jets will reach an agreement with arguably their best player on the field.

2009 third-round pick Shonn Greene will fill the role as the Jets third running back this year. The coaching staff reportedly loved him so much that they chose to hand over the bulk of their second day draft picks to move up to grab him in the top of the third-round.

Greene will be there for the Jets in the tail end of games when they need him. His fresh legs in the fourth quarter could tear apart an opposing defense. This coincides with Rex Ryan’s willingness to pound the ball on the ground this year.

Fullback – Tony Richardson

Tony Richardson is the ultimate professional and is just as much responsible for Thomas Jones’ career season and Pro Bowl appearance last year as the offensive line was.

Richardson has played the blocking fullback role for many running backs who have surpassed 1,000 or more yards in a season on the ground including Priest Holmes three times (2001, 2002, 2003), Larry Johnson (2005), Chester Taylor (2006), Adrian Peterson (2007), and Thomas Jones (2008).

Wide Receiver – Jerricho Cotchery, David Clowney, Chansi Stuckey, Brad Smith, Wallace Wright

Perhaps, the weakest of all positions. The Jets have been lacking a proven wide receiver to start opposite Jerricho Cotchery since Laveranues Coles left to sign with the Cincinnati Bengals, but with that, opens up a new opportunity for a variety of young wide receivers with talent to prove themselves worthy of the void.

David Clowney and Brad Smith appear likely to compete with each other this summer to start outside opposite Cotchery. Clowney brings a 4.37 40-time to the table and gives the Jets a nice deep threat, while Brad Smith gives the Jets the experience that none of the other competitors carries.

In the end, I see the Jets going forward with Clowney, who the new coaching staff has seemed very high on since their arrival.

The Jets spent their seventh-round pick in 2007 on a Clemson wide receiver named Chansi Stuckey. A foot injury in his senior season would drop his draft stock from a mid-round pick to almost out of the draft completely. Never the less, the Jets took the risk and grabbed him with the 235th overall pick.

He put up promising numbers in his first preseason, only to be hampered by a broken foot that would put him out for the season. He returned in 2008 and started at three games for the Jets.

In each of the first three games of last season, Stuckey caught a touchdown pass from Brett Favre. He finished out the season with 32 catches for 359 yards and three touchdowns.

Stuckey has all the makings to be a great third-down, slot receiver that the Jets haven’t truly had since Wayne Chrebet. If he can pull off that role, he will be a huge security blanket for the quarterback in crucial parts of games during the 2009 season.

Wallace Wright rounds out the wide receiver list. Reason? He is a special teams ace. When you watch a Jets game every week, it’s hard to go a game without hearing Wright’s name called as making a special teams tackle or two. For that reason alone, he will return.

 

Tight End – Dustin Keller, Bubba Franks, Jack Simmons

Did I say wide receiver was the weakest part of the Jets roster? Check that. It could be tight end. The only difference is that the Jets have a superstar in the making at tight end, and he’s really the only one on the roster of any significance. The Jets really lack depth at this position at this point.

Keller came on strong and had an excellent rookie campaign in 2008, recording 48 receptions for 535 yards with three touchdowns. He has really brought a pass-catching credibility back to the Jets and it made Chris Baker expendable in that part.

However, Keller is not a great blocker and in addition to depth, that is what the Jets lack at the position. The Jets brought back veteran tight end Bubba Franks to possibly assume the role as a blocking tight end and Rex Ryan is also very high on Jack Simmons, who may make the team as a third tight end.

 

Offensive Tackle – D’Brickashaw Ferguson, Damien Woody, Wayne Hunter, Mike Kracalik

The Jets head into the 2009 season with good depth on the offensive line for the first time in awhile. I can’t ever really say the Jets had great depth up front on offense during Eric Mangini’s tenure as head coach.

D’Brickashaw Ferguson heads in to his fourth season as the Jets starting left tackle. While he has hit a few bumps in the road, he has truly come into his own and with the guidance of a future Hall of Fame guard to his right in Alan Faneca, Ferguson is making life easy when it comes to protecting the Jets quarterbacks on their blind side.

Damien Woody begins the second-year of a five-year, $25 million deal that the Jets gave him last offseason. The Jets haven’t really had a good player at right tackle since Kareem McKenzie left to join the Giants. Woody never played the tackle position on a regular basis until this past season and made the switch very well.

Wayne Hunter has reportedly caught the eye of the coaching staff and the expect good things from him as a backup tackle.

The former third-round pick by the Seahawks in 2003 spent three seasons in Seattle and one in Jacksonville before joining the Gang Green for the 2008 campaign.

The best news of all is that Hunter saw no action as a starter in 2008.

Mike Kracalik was originally signed by the Jets as an undrafted free agent in 2005, however, he found no place on the team’s 53-man roster and joined the Baltimore Ravens.

He spent four seasons with the Ravens before returning to the Jets this offseason and is joining ex-Raven personnel Rex Ryan, Bart Scott, Jim Leonhard and Marques Douglas in New York. Standing at 6’8″, and weighing in at 337 pounds, Kracalik is a load and gives the Jets a nice big body up front behind the starters.

 

Offensive Guard – Alan Faneca, Brandon Moore, Matt Slauson

Alan Faneca became the richest offensive lineman in NFL history for two months, until Jake Long came along and took that distinction away from him. Faneca did nothing but great things for the Jets in his first year.

Whether it be continuing to do what he does best in run blocking or mentoring third-year players D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold to his left and right on the offensive line, Faneca’s addition made the Jets offense just that much better.

Brandon Moore has leaped all the hurdles it took, but after signing with the Jets as an undrafted free agent defensive tackle in 2002, he has made the switch to offense to become one of the leagues better and most underrated run-blocking guards.

Moore was due a $7 million roster bonus earlier this offseason, so the Jets decided to cut him rather than pay him the bonus. However, a mere one day later, Moore re-signed with the Jets at four-years, $16 million with $10 million guaranteed.

It worked out for both sides. The Jets didn’t have a huge cap number with Moore’s old contract and under his new contract, Moore would make more money per year on average.

Matt Slauson joined the Jets this past April when it was announced that the team had taken him in the sixth-round of the NFL draft.

A huge factor and perhaps one of the main reasons why the Jets selected Slauson was because current Offensive Line coach Bill Callahan was Slauson’s head coach at Nebraska for three of his four years at college. The rookie was named to the first-team All-Big 12 by the San Antonio Express-News and Second-Team All-Big 12 by the Associated Press.

Slauson will be a key depth player and will work close by with his former head coach as he makes the transition from college to pro.

Center – Nick Mangold, Robert Turner

When asked by a Patriots fan who the league’s toughest center he ever faced was, nose tackle Vince Wilfork replied, “Nick Mangold.”

Not only does Mangold’s name fit that billing, but in a recent list ranking the top centers in the NFL, a group of former NFL scouts named Nick Mangold the No. 1 center in the NFL.

This guy is simply, hands down, one of the premier players the Jets have drafted in recent years, perhaps the best, though will be the most unnoticed. Mangold, like his first-round counterpart, Ferguson, has started every single game since his arrival in the NFL.

There is not much else you can say about him. He is clearly one of the best players this team has.

Robert Turner joined the Jets as an undrafted free agent in May of 2007. He has since been a member of the Jets and provided key depth on the offensive line.

While he started out at guard earlier in his career, he has the versatility to play center as well in the unfortunate event that Nick Mangold were to ever come down with an injury. For that, the Jets value him as a crucial player on their depth chart.

Predicting the New York Jets 53-Man Roster: Special Teams/Practice Squad

This is the first of three articles that will break down my predictions for the Jets’ 53-man roster. First up will be the special teams and practice squad followed by the defense on Monday and the offense on Tuesday.

 

Special Teams—Jay Feely (PK), T.J. Conley or Eric Wilbur (P), and James Dearth (LS)

Jay Feely was hanging out on the free agent market when the Jets gave him a call after starting kicker Mike Nugent was hurt in the team’s first game. He signed on with the Jets on Sept. 8, 2008.

Feely did a great job in place of Nugent, going 24 for 28 in field goals and 39 for 39 in PATs. He did so well that the front office and coaching staff decided to bring him back instead of Nugent this year, and he re-signed with the team on a one-year deal.

It was also Feely’s game-winning 34-yard field goal in overtime against the Patriots that put the Jets in sole possession of first place in the AFC East for the first time since Nov. 19, 2001. 

Over the past four seasons, Feely has been very accurate with a field goal percentage of 83.3 or higher.

T.J. Conley and Eric Wilbur will compete this summer for the starting job as the Jets’ punter. The best bet would be that the loser ends up on the practice squad.

Conley went undrafted this past April despite entering the NFL Draft after spending four seasons with the Idaho Vandals in College. After leading the NCAA in punting this past season, he was named to the prestigious Walter Camp All-American Team as a First Team selection.

Wilbur was signed by the Houston Texans in 2007 after going undrafted, but didn’t make it past Aug. 8, when he was released. The Jaguars quickly scooped him up only to hold onto him for a mere twelve hours before he was released again.

The Jets signed him on Apr. 15 to compete for the starting job.

James Dearth.

He is what he is…a long snapper…and one of the best in the league.

What else do you want me to say?

 

Practice Squad

QB—Chris Pizzotti—Another camp arm for the Jets. From the sound of it, he’s giving Erik Ainge a run for his money.

Could be the Jets’ future third quarterback.

RB—Danny Woodhead—The NCAA’s All-Time leading rusher ran for 7,962 yards in his NCAA career and 9,749 all-purpose yards, good for second all-time. At 5’7″ and 195lbs., he faces an uphill battle to make it in the NFL.

FB—Brannan Southerland—Could be the Jets’ future fullback after Tony Richardson leaves/retires.

OT—Ryan McKee—A projected late-round pick, was twice named second Team All-Conference USA by the coaches.

Could be a projected offensive tackle.

WR—Marcus Henry—The Jets sixth round pick of the 2008 NFL Draft has the height to give the Jets a nice big target in the redzone, but at this point, the Jets need more than that. Perhaps an injury could move Henry to the active roster.

P—T.J. Conley/Eric Wilbur—One of these two will win the battle; the loser will be on the practice squad ready to take the other’s job away if one has any hiccups.

DE/LB—Jamaal Westerman—The local product of Rutgers could make it in the NFL in the right system as a situational pass rusher.

DE—Brian Schaefering—Another defensive end that the Jets can have available to them considering the age of their defensive line starters.

 

Next up: Defense—Monday and Offense—Tuesday

Stocking Shelves to Winning a Ring: A True Underdog Story

Kurt Warner’s first opportunity in the NFL came during a Green Bay Packers training camp in the summer of 1994. He failed to impress and was sent packing before the regular season even came.

After missing out, Warner needed to find a job and began stocking shelves at the Hy-Vee grocery store in Cedar Falls, Iowa. His salary? $5.50 per hour.

His aspirations of becoming a starting quarterback in the National Football League never faded, however.

Despite not being offered a job by another NFL team, while stocking shelves, Warner returned to his college of Northern Iowa and worked as a graduate assistant coach with his football team.

Still with no calls from an NFL team, Warner decided to take an opportunity with the Arena Football League during the 1995 season and signed on to quarterback the Iowa Barnstormers.

In the 1996 and 1997 seasons, Warner led the Barnstormers to the Arena Bowl in both years.

After his performance in the AFL, he caught the eye of St. Louis Rams head coach Dick Vermeil. He was signed by the Rams and sent over the Atlantic to the NFL Europe where he led the Amsterdam Admirals in passing yards and touchdowns. He returned to the team as the backup quarterback behind starter Trent Green.

Warner returned as Green’s backup on the Rams for training camp and preseason in 1999, but tragedy struck during the third preseason game against the Chargers, when Green went down with a season-ending injury.

Vermeil wouldn’t even think about putting in an inexperienced quarterback who was only four years removed from stocking shelves at a local grocery store would he?

Sure enough, he did, but not before the support from runningback Marshall Faulk and the entire Rams receiving unit. Vermeil was hesitant, but gave in and handed Warner the ball.

Warner took advantage of the opportunity. He started all sixteen games during that season, compiled 4,353 passing yards, 41 touchdowns and had a quarterback rating of 109.2.

The powerful offense led by Warner was nicknamed “The Greatest Show On Turf.”

After leading the Rams to a 5-0 record and starting out the season with 15 touchdowns and 3 interceptions in his first five games, the fine people at Sports Illustrated put him on the cover with the headline, “Who IS This Guy?”

Warner took the Rams on his shoulders for the 1999 season and finished up with a 13-3 record, first in the NFC West.

For his outstanding performance over the course of the regular season, Warner was named the league’s Most Valuable Player.

He wasn’t done yet.

A 13-3 record gave the Rams the first seed and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

In Warner’s first playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings, the high-powered offense continued to put on a show, scoring 49 points with Warner leading the charge with five touchdown passes for 391 yards.

The Rams moved on to the NFC Championship game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. While Warner didn’t have a great game (one touchdown, three interceptions), the team still managed to come out with the ugly “W” and headed to the Georgia Dome for Super Bowl XXXIV.

The challenger? The Steve McNair-led Tennessee Titans.

Arguably, one of the most amazing games you will ever see. Warner led the charge onto the field in Atlanta before a crowd of 72,000+ people.

He went out and tossed two touchdowns and threw for 414 yards and with the score at 23-16, with the Rams leading, the Titans took the ball back with 1:54 to go in the regulation and 90 yards to go.

McNair led the team down to the Rams 10-yard line and used their final timeout with six seconds remaining.

Can you even write a better scenario for a Super Bowl?

With six seconds on the clock, McNair took the snap and found receiver Kevin Dyson about five yards from the endzone. Dyson snatched the ball, but linebacker Mike Jones attempted a wrap up tackle about 2½ yards shy of the goal line. Dyson reached out and attempted to place the ball over the goal line, but missed by mere inches away.

The result? The Rams defeated the Titans by a score of 23-16 and shut the door on one of the most amazing single seasons by a quarterback in NFL history.

Kurt Warner’s accolades in Super Bowl XXXIV deemed him as the Super Bowl MVP.

A superb season and one of the most memorable quarterback performances you will ever see.

Warner later went on to spend the next four seasons in St. Louis. He was named NFL MVP for the second time in three years during the 2001 season when he threw for 4,830 yards with 36 touchdowns and 22 interceptions and led the Rams to an NFL-best 14-2 record and yet another Super Bowl appearance.

He joined the New York Giants and became their starting quarterback in the 2004 season, but was replaced after nine games by incumbent franchise quarterback Eli Manning.

The Cardinals came calling and Warner signed a one-year, $4 million deal to play in Arizona.

After three starts, he was benched in favor of Josh McCown. He took over the starting job once again in week nine, but partially tore his MCL in a week 15 game, ending his season.

The following February, he signed a three-year contract to remain in Arizona. He again lost the starting job after four games, this time to a quarterback who was to become the new franchise quarterback, Matt Leinart.

In 2007, Warner was finally worked back into the mix, starting 11 games. He finished the season with 27 touchdowns and 17 interceptions.

Under Warner, the 2008 Cardinals took the NFC West with a 9-7 record, but it was just the beginning.

After a 30 touchdown season, the 37-year old quarterback continued to dominate throughout the playoffs, defeating the Falcons in the wild card round, Panthers in the divisional round and Eagles in the NFC Championship game, in which Warner tossed four touchdown passes.

He once again found himself in the Super Bowl.

As heavy underdogs going in against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Warner did his best to give the Cardinals their first championship since 1947, passing for 377 yards with three touchdowns and an interception. Arizona ended up on the losing end and the Cardinals spectacular playoff run came to a close.

Heading into 2009, Warner is still at the top of his game and one of the best quarterbacks in the league at the tender age of 38.

After 11 seasons in the NFL, Warner has eclipsed 28,591 passing yards, 182 touchdown passes and is the second most accurate quarterback in NFL history with a 65.7 career completion percentage, trailing only Chad Pennington.

How’s that for a guy who went from making $5.50 an hour stocking shelves in a local grocery store to being named league and Super Bowl MVP in the span of five years?

New York Jets Find Their Face For the Next Decade

When you look around the league, who do you associate most with the Colts? Peyton Manning, right?

How about the Vikings? Adrian Peterson, anyone?

The Cowboys? Tony Romo, sound familiar?

The fact is almost every team in this league has a face for their franchise. The last time the Jets truly had that was when they had Chad Pennington take over for Vinny Testaverde in 2002 after a 1-3 start.

Pennington remained the face of this team for the next few years, but the injury bug hit him in 2003—forcing him to miss games every season from there on out.

He fell out of favor with the franchise and lost the confidence of the fans. The Jets were left without a face to lead this team once again.

When the Jets moved up to the top five of the draft this past weekend, they saw the opportunity to give their franchise a face once again. They selected University of Southern California quarterback Mark Sanchez with the fifth overall pick.

It takes many things to be a successful quarterback in New York. You have to have leadership, passion, character, hard-working ethic and most of all you have to win.

Ask any USC fan about Mark Sanchez and they’ll tell you about the passion and leadership that he brings to the table.

When Sanchez made his rounds through the New York media, whether it be press conferences, TV interview or radio interviews, you could clearly tell he was comfortable and had a good understanding of what was to come.

He knows how to handle the pressure of playing in New York and has the character to make the fans and media love him.

Lastly, the most important thing (and the key to succeeding in New York) is just to simply win. That is all I can ask from Sanchez. Win…and you will be loved.

Jets Hoping to Catch Lightning in a Bottle; Give Amani a Chance

The draft has come and gone, and the Jets are still trying to figure out who their No. 2 wide receiver is going to be in 2009.

The Jets chose not to address the wide receiver spot during the draft and intend to head into camp with a battle between David Clowney, Brad Smith, and Chansi Stuckey, to see who will get the job.

 

David Clowney

Clowney offers the Jets the lightning. He has that deep threat ability to take the ball all the way. Put it in his hands and Clowney won’t disappoint you.

 

Brad Smith

Brad Smith has slowly but surely made the switch over from being a college quarterback to a wide receiver in the NFL. Smith’s touches on offense took a step back in 2008 (12 receptions) from his 2007 numbers (32 receptions).

At this point, the best thing going for him as that, when he steps on the field, it creates a distraction for the other team’s defense not knowing if he’s going to pass, run, or catch the ball.

 

Chansi Stuckey

Chansi Stuckey broke out during 2008 under Brett Favre after an injury in his rookie season. In 15 games, he hauled in 32 passes for 359 yards and caught three touchdown passes. He is your prototypical slot receiver and is best kept in that spot in this offense. You won’t see much of him on the outside.

 

With all of the talk prior to the draft regarding Browns wide receiver Braylon Edwards and Cardinals wide receiver Anquan Boldin, nothing ever materialized. Does that mean that it still won’t happen?

The slate is clean and the Jets now have seven picks for the upcoming draft, once again. Could they make a training camp run at one of these two guys if they can’t find their man from within?

Not even a day after the draft, the talk of the town wasn’t Mark Sanchez, but it was the rumors that the Jets were interested in former Giants receiver Plaxico Burress. It has since cooled, but Jets’ general manager Mike Tannenbaum stated that he made contact with Plax’s agent, Drew Rosenhaus, to inquire about his pending legal situation.

The odds that the Jets sign Plaxico are remote at best.

The free agent wire still has a couple of potential names available. The most attractive options include former Colts’ wide receiver Marvin Harrison, former Bucs’ wide receiver Ike Hilliard, and former Giants’ wide receiver Amani Toomer.

All I ask is that one of these players provide depth at wide receiver.

As it stands, I’d be willing to bet that Mark Sanchez will be the Jets’ starting quarterback come week one. The best thing that the Jets can do for him would be to give him a couple of sure targets and right now. He currently has both Jerricho Cotchery and Dustin Keller, but to be able to give him a steady veteran on the other side or in the slot at times would pay dividends.

 

Marvin Harrison

Marvin Harrison was released by the Colts on Feb. 25. His physicality appeared to diminish as the season went on during the 2008 campaign and, with Anthony Gonzalez set to take over his spot, the Colts decided to move on. If Harrison would be willing to accept a role that would give him the opportunity to prove that he is still capable of playing in this league, then the Jets should bring him on board.

Harrison’s 2008 Stats—60 receptions, 636 yards, five touchdowns.

 

Ike Hillard

Ike Hilliard was tied with Warrick Dunn as the Buccaneers’ second leading receiver in 2008 behind Antonio Bryant. The former first-round pick of the Giants spent the first eight seasons of his career in New York before heading to the Bucs for the past four years. Hilliard has played in all but one game during his tenure in Tampa and put up 109 receptions for 1,146 yards and five touchdowns over the course of the last two seasons.

Hilliard’s 2008 Stats—47 receptions, 424 yards, four touchdowns.

 

Amani Toomer

Amani Toomer finished the 2008 season neck and neck with fellow teammate Domenik Hixon as the second leading wide receiver for the defending Super Bowl champions. While Plaxico Burress was off shooting himself in the leg, Toomer managed to give the Giants solid consistent play from the wide receiver position. The 13-year veteran has spent his entire career with the Giants until they chose not to re-sign him this offseason.

Toomer’s 2008 Stats—48 receptions, 580 yards, four touchdowns.

 

Personally, I would absolutely love to see Amani Toomer in green and white come week one of the NFL season.

The former captain of the Giants would provide a veteran presence at the wide receiver position and could act as a mentor to the young receivers such as Clowney, Smith, and Stuckey. Toomer’s size (6’3″) would benefit the team as well in the end zone. The Jets tallest receiver is currently Brad Smith who stands at 6’2″.

The 34-year old Toomer has stated that he would like to play for another two or three years.

The Jets intend to wait until after the first minicamp in June to see what they have first in Clowney and Smith before they choose to target a free agent veteran wideout.

Hopefully Toomer will still be on the market, because he could truly help this team’s learning curve for both the receiving core and for rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Give Amani a two-year, $6 million deal. You won’t be sorry.

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