April 2013 - New York Jets Wiretap
Rex Ryan is in agreement with John Idzik that the New York Jets should start Geno Smith at quarterback instead of Mark Sanchez.
Sources say the Jets don't trust Sanchez and are particularly tired of his mistakes in the red zone.
Marty Mornhinweg is confident that the Jets can create a gameplan to minimize Smith's inexperience.
The New York Jets have signed Dan Carpenter while also releasing Billy Cundiff.
Carpenter was released this month by the Miami Dolphins.
The New York Jets have released Braylon Edwards.
Edwards was an All-Pro in 2007, but has struggled to remain relevant in recent seasons, bouncing around to the San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks and back to the Jets.
Geno Smith threw three interceptions against the New York Giants on Saturday.
Smith's disappointing performance made Mark Sanchez look like the presumptive starter. But Sanchez injured his right shoulder and will undergo an MRI. Sanchez finished 5-for-6 for 72 yards.
Sanchez has dealt with a shoulder issue since the 2011 season and almost needed surgery.
The New York Jets have taken Santonio Holmes of the physically unable to perform list.
Holmes passed the team physical and is eligible to practice.
The Jets have had concerns that Holmes was looking to avoid training camp and exaggerating the injury.
"He could be milking it and feel fine by Week 1," said a source.
The New York Jets and Miami Dolphins have had household names nationally on defense in relatively recent seasons in Darrelle Revis and Jason Taylor. Revis has been traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as the Jets attempt to rebuild and Taylor has retired, but Muhammad Wilkerson and Reshad Jones are two of the best young defensive players in the NFL that are on the cusp of breaking out.
Wilkerson is a member of the already famed 2011 NFL Draft class that included the likes of Von Miller, J.J. Watt and Aldon Smith, all of whom widely considered to be in the top-15 of all players in terms of immediate value despite just two seasons in the books.
Wilkerson, a defensive end, has steadily improved and had a combined 37 sacks, hurries and quarterback hits last season. Those numbers are on par with Haloti Ngata and Calais Campbell, who are the gold standards at the position.
Wilkerson wasn’t selected for the Pro Bowl, which was one of the biggest snubs of 2012. Wilkerson was ranked 14th overall in terms of total production by Pro Football Focus and was dominant as a 3-4 end could possibly be both against the pass and run.
Wilkerson will turn 24 in October and the hype momentum is beginning to swing in the opposite direction as it almost always does with even marginally talented players in New York, but the attention has been well-earned. Wilkerson will anchor a defense and franchise badly in need of remaking itself.
Jones was a fifth round pick in 2010 out of Georgia and is easily one of the steals of that year. Jones showed a lot of promise in his first two seasons while establishing himself as the Dolphins’ starting strong safety, but his production in 2012 was Pro Bowl worthy. Jones finished the season with four interceptions and 95 total tackles.
Jones was rated by Pro Football Focus as the third best safety in the NFL in 2012, behind Eric Weddle and Jairus Byrd, who also made our Be The GM 32 as representatives from the Chargers and Bills.
Jones makes a strong impact against both the pass and run, which led to a four-year, $30 million extension in the offseason.
Mohamed Massaquoi has agreed to a deal with the New York Jets.
Massaquoi was previously released this week by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Massaquoi occasionally looked to be on the verge of breaking out at wide receiver during his tenure with the Cleveland Browns.
Muhammad Wilkerson has had a quietly productive career with the New York Jets at defensive end though he hasn't received as much attention as his 2011 NFL Draft classmates such as J.J. Watt, Von Miller and Aldon Smith.
Watt had 76 combined sacks, hurries, and quarterback hits last season, though Wilkerson's 37 compares very favorably to Calais Campbell (39) and Haloti Ngata (38), players who both average $11 million or more a year.
"I do feel like those are the guys who are always mentioned -- the J.J. Watts, Aldon Smith, Von Miller," Wilkerson said. "Some of those guys have a different game from me, but I feel like overall I have everything I need. I can stop the run and get after the passer.
"Those guys definitely have more sack numbers than me, but there's so much other than sacks, and I think I'm neck and neck with those guys. I know I'm up there with them. I really don't care about not being mentioned with them. I know the style of play I'm capable of doing, and I just have to put it out there on the field."
Wilkerson figures to be the first member of the Jets that receives an extension during the tenure of John Idzik.
"I think Mo will be that face-of-the-franchise guy for them," said Bills defensive line coach Anthony Weaver, who worked with the Jets defensive line in 2012. "And I think he has the confidence to be that guy and he works hard every day and the people around him listen to his voice and they respect how he works and what he says.
"Mo is great, so great to coach. He puts in the work, he's such a tremendous talent and the way he moves for a guy his size is unreal. He has such a high football IQ. He's a very good player, and as the years pile on and he gets even more knowledge of the game he's going to be truly great."
Brandon Moore has decided to retire from the NFL after 10 seasons all with the New York Jets.
Moore had agreed upon a one-year, $2 million contract on Tuesday with the Dallas Cowboys, but decided to change his mind.
"I was wrestling with it all day, going back and forth with my wife and family," Moore said by phone. "Finally, we decided, 'Let's go ahead and do it.' I didn't sleep at all. I was wrestling with it. I realized it was too late in the game to uproot my family. I called my agent and said, 'I can't do it.'"
Moore had been leaning toward retiring throughout the offseason.
Moore switched to the offensive line after playing defense in college and started 142 games for the Jets.
The New York Jets will run the Wildcat more this season.
The Jets hired David Lee as their quarterbacks coach and he is credited with bringing the formation to the NFL.
“I would say we probably would [run it more] because you guys say it, we never used it,” Ryan said. “So I would say yeah. I would think that’s part of what we do.”
The Jets were expected to run the Wildcat with Tim Tebow, but never used it regularly.
“He’s been a big contributor,” Ryan said of Lee. “That’s what you love about [offensive coordinator] Marty [Mornhinweg]. He takes the knowledge he has. He is very knowledgeable about it as well but he takes his staff and he collects information from everybody. That’s what you do.”
Ryan seems to want to use Geno Smith in a role similar to Colin Kaepernick or Robert Griffin III.
“I think it’s here to stay for the simple fact that guys are getting these quarterbacks now, these mobile quarterbacks with the size and speed,” Ryan said of Wildcat. “I do think it’s here to stay. It does give you the numbers back. Sometimes on defense you’re playing plus-one, but it’s a great equalizer."
