NEW YORK JETS DAILY CLIPS June 29, 2014 Table of Contents ESPN NEW YORK... 1 Sunday notes: Geno's case of the runs (Rich Cimini)... 1 NJ.COM... 3 National writer says Nick Mangold is Jets' most overrated player (Dom Cosentino)... 3 SATURDAY S SPORTS TRANSACTIONS... 4 ESPN NEW YORK Sunday notes: Geno's case of the runs (Rich Cimini) ESPN New York June 29, 2014 http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york-jets/post/_/id/40442/sunday-notes-genos-case-of-theruns?ex_cid=espnapi_public Cleaning out the notebook on the New York Jets: 1. The Geno plan: Geno Smith caught teams by surprise at the end of last season, running with more frequency than before. He carried 31 times for 186 yards and three touchdowns over the final four games, accounting for roughly half his total production. Clearly, the change in strategy helped him become a better quarterback, an upswing that made the Jets buy in for at least another year. But now, as one opposing player noted, defenses will be better prepared to stop Geno the scrambler. "I think he'll be better this year, but the other thing is, every team will have had the opportunity to watch 16 games and break him down," Tennessee Titans CB Jason McCourty told me last week at a charity golf tournament on Long Island. McCourty, who faced Smith last season (a brutal day for the Jets' QB) and will see him again in December, makes a good point. After studying him in the offseason, teams will scheme up ways to keep him in the pocket. They were unprepared for it late last year because he had shown no inclination to run, which frustrated the Jets' coaches at times. Facts are facts: When Smith runs, the offense runs better. The Jets were 6-1 when Smith had five or more carries and 6-0 when he scored a touchdown. Opponents will go to school on the final four games, count on it. 2. Buying QB insurance: Belated thoughts on Marty Mornhinweg's comment that Smith will get 70 to 75 percent of the first-team reps in training camp: It shows that, as Michael Vick noted on more than one occasion, it's not an open competition. At the same time, the percentage indicates the Jets aren't all-in with Smith. They're hedging their bet, giving Vick one out of every four reps to get him ready -- just in case. Normally, a veteran starter gets about 90 percent of the reps. 3. Anything you can do... : DT Sheldon Richardson, the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year for 2013, said in a recent interview that rookie S Calvin Pryor has the goods to match his accomplishment. When I asked Pryor his reaction to Richardson's raising-the-bar remarks, he didn't back down one bit. "When it comes down to it, that's one of the goals I have in the back of my head," the Jets' first-round pick said. "I'll definitely try to fill his shoes." 1 P a g e
In case you're wondering, no team has produced back-to-back winners in the 47-year history of the award. In 1980, two members of the Atlanta Falcons' defense split the award, Buddy Curry and Al Richardson. 4. Home bodies: There was some talk about the Jets having dual practices with the Cincinnati Bengals during the run-up to their Aug. 16 preseason game, but the Jets have decided to remain in Cortland, N.Y., for that week. From what I hear, there wasn't too much disappointment in the locker room about skipping the Cincy trip. 5. The joy of Rex: I've heard a lot of players over the years talk about why they enjoy playing for Rex Ryan, but I was particularly interested in listening to Dimitri Patterson, who came from a place -- the Miami Dolphins -- where there was an obvious disconnect between players and coaches. "Rex gives off this positive energy that spreads around," Patterson told me. "That's why the guys played so hard for him toward the end of the year. What stands out to me is he knows how to put his players in a positive space, mentally." Maybe Phil Jackson isn't the only Zen master in New York. 6. Michael Vick, cont.: In a sitdown last week, I asked Vick to name his greatest career accomplishment. He thought for a moment. "I think my greatest accomplishment in my career was being such a young quarterback and having the guile to go into Green Bay in 2002, being a second-year player and making history, basically," he said, referring to the Falcons' playoff upset -- the first road team to win a postseason game at Lambeau Field. "Going in with confidence and winning that football game was I think my greatest accomplishment." It was a great win, to be sure, but I don't think anything short of a championship can satisfy a "greatest accomplishment" question for 12 years. 7. Farewell to an original: One of the original New York Titans, guard Bob Mischak, died Thursday at the age of 81. He began his career with the New York Giants, but he'll be remembered in Jets/Titans history as the first player to receive all-star recognition. He was the only member of the Titans named to the AFL all-star team in 1960, the franchise's first year. He won three Super Bowl rings as an assistant coach with the Oakland Raiders, and he also coached in Italy and London. That's what you call a full life. 8. Cro the Cardinal: In a post on Instagram, former Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie mocks his critics, saying he ran two sub-4.4 times in the 40. If we write about it, he'll find a way to rip us for misquoting him. 9. He's not Mike Westhoff: Sensed a little edge in Thomas McGaughey's voice when he was asked about the scheme differences between him and his predecessor, Ben Kotwica, and his predecessor's predecessor, Mike Westhoff. "I m not Mike Westhoff. I m not going to try to be Mike Westhoff," said McGaughey, who was hired in February to coach the special teams. "My name is Thomas McGaughey, Jr. and I can be the best me that I can possibly be, and that s where it stops. Mike Westhoff was a hell of a coach, is a hell of a coach, and he had a great career. Ben was a great coach in his own right. But I m me. I m not going to try to be anybody else. I m not going to try to act like anybody else. I m going to be Thomas Ray McGaughey, Jr." All right, then... 10. Vacation time: I'll be shutting it down for the next three weeks, but make sure you stay locked to our Jets team page. The blog will be populated with interesting features, starting this coming week with another edition of the AFC East "Four Downs" segment -- four team reporters tackling hot issues as camp approaches. The following week, we'll roll out our "Most Memorable Play" series across the league, which 2 P a g e
is sure to generate debate. After that, we'll start our daily position previews for training camp, which starts July 23. Until then, I'm chilling. NJ.COM National writer says Nick Mangold is Jets' most overrated player (Dom Cosentino) NJ.com June 28, 2014 http://www.nj.com/jets/index.ssf/2014/06/national_writer_says_nick_mangold_is_jets_most_overrate d_player.html Pete Prisco of CBSSports.com slipped into his summer troll pants on Friday by publishing his annual list of who he thinks is every NFL team's most overrated and underrated players. Jets-wise, Prisco has center Nick Mangold as most overrated, and defensive tackle Damon Harrison as most underrated. Regular readers of Prisco's overrated/underrated list might notice that he often tabs as overrated a recognizable name on a given team. In 2011, Prisco identified linebacker Bart Scott as the Jets' most overrated. In 2012, it was offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson. And last season it was inside linebacker David Harris. Scott was certainly beginning his decline by 2011, but Ferguson and Harris are veteran mainstays and crucial to what the Jets do. Same goes for Mangold. The problem with Prisco's analysis is that there isn't much analysis. His entire take on Mangold and Harrison reads as follows: New York Jets Overrated: C Nick Mangold -- He didn't have the type of season we expect from Mangold. Is it a oneyear thing? Or a trend? Underrated: DT Damon Harrison -- You know about Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson, the two players who play on either side of Harrison. But Harrison is a big load in the middle of the defense and key to their run defense. Which... OK. What part of Mangold's game failed to be "the type of season we expect from" him? His runblocking? Pass-blocking? The fact that he had to work with Vlad Ducasse on his left before Ducasse got benched in favor of then-rookie Brian Winters, who was transitioning from having played tackle in college? Prisco doesn't say. Pro Football Focus gave Mangold an overall grade of minus-0.2 for the 2013 season, which ranked 19th in the NFL. Mangold got a positive mark for his pass-blocking (+6.8) and a negative one for his run-blocking (-9.3). And PFF said Mangold's pass-block efficiency came out to 98.0, which ranked 12th-best in the league. In 2012, PFF did give Mangold a grade of plus-20.5, good enough for sixth-best in the NFL, with especially high marks for his run-blocking (+15.8). At the same time, PFF's grades don't take specific assignments and game-planning into account, so, you know, grain of salt. 3 P a g e
SATURDAY S SPORTS TRANSACTIONS Associated Press June 28, 2014 http://www.chron.com/default/article/saturday-s-sports-transactions-5587395.php BASEBALL American League Daily Clips Cont. BOSTON RED SOX Selected INF-OF Mookie Betts from Pawtucket (IL). Optioned RHP Rubby De La Rosa to Pawtucket. HOUSTON ASTROS Optioned RHP Jake Buchanan to Oklahoma City (PCL). KANSAS CITY ROYALS Signed LHP Brandon Finnegan to a minor league contract. TORONTO BLUE JAYS Recalled OF Darin Mastroianni from Buffalo (IL). Optioned LHP Rob Rasmussen to the Buffalo. National League CHICAGO CUBS Recalled RHP Dallas Beeler from Iowa (PCL). MIAMI MARLINS Optioned LHP Brian Flynn to New Orleans (PCL). Recalled RHP Sam Dyson from New Orleans. PITTSBURGH PIRATES Reinstated RHP Gerrit Cole from the 15-day DL. Optioned RHP Brandon Cumpton to Indianapolis (IL). SAN DIEGO PADRES Optioned INF Jace Peterson to El Paso (PCL). WASHINGTON NATIONALS Recalled RHP Blake Treinen and LHP Xavier Cedeno from Syracuse (IL). Optioned RHP Taylor Hill to Syracuse. American Association AMARILLO SOX Released LHP Joe Rogers. FARGO-MOORHEAD REDHAWKS Released RHP Danny Gutierrez. Can-Am League TROIS-RIVIERES AIGLES Signed OF Janelfry Zorilla. Frontier League EVANSVILLE OTTERS Sold the contract of RHP Robert Ramer to San Francisco (NL). JOLIET SLAMMERS Traded RHP Ryan Connolly to Lake Erie. LAKE ERIE CRUSHERS Signed 1B Joey Burney. Released 1B Michael Failoni. RIVER CITY RASCALS Signed RHP Bryce Shafer. SOUTHERN ILLINOIS MINERS Signed RHP B.J. Hyatt. BASKETBALL National Basketball Association 4 P a g e
MIAMI HEAT Announced G Dwyane Wade will opt out of his contract, making him a free agent effective July 1. HOCKEY National Hockey League ARIZONA COYOTES Traded a third-round (No. 73) draft pick to Montreal for a third- (No. 87) and fourthround (No. 117) draft picks. BUFFALO SABRES Traded a second-round (No. 39) draft pick to Washington for a second- (No. 44) and third-round (No. 74) draft picks. CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS Traded F Brandon Bollig to Calgary for a third-round (No. 83) draft pick. COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS Traded a third-round (No. 63) draft pick to Detroit for a third-round (No. 76) draft pick and a 2015 third-round draft pick. MINNESOTA WILD Traded a third-round (No. 79) draft pick to Tampa Bay for a third-round (No. 80) draft pick and a 2015 seventh-round draft pick. NASHVILLE PREDATORS Traded a second-round (No. 46) draft pick to San Jose for a second-round (No. 51) draft pick and a 2015 fourth-round draft pick. NEW YORK ISLANDERS Traded a third-round (No. 65) draft pick to Florida for a 2015 third-round draft pick. Traded a seventh-round (No. 185) draft pick to Tampa Bay for a seventh-round (No. 200) draft pick and a 2015 seventh-round draft pick. NEW YORK RANGERS Traded a third-round (No. 89) draft pick to Washington for a two fourth-round (No. 104) and (No. 118) draft picks. Traded a fourth-round (No. 119) draft pick to Tampa Bay for two fourth- (No. 140) and (No. 142) draft picks. SAN JOSE SHARKS Traded a third-round (No. 62) draft pick to Nashville for a third- (No. 72) and fourthround (No. 102) draft pick. TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS Traded D Carl Gunnarsson and the fourth-round (No. 94) draft pick to St. Louis Blues for D Roman Polak. VANCOUVER CANUCKS Traded a second-round (No. 50) to Los Angeles for RW Linden Vey. WINNIPEG JETS Traded G Eddie Pasquale and a sixth-round (No. 159) draft pick to Washington for a sixth- (No. 164); seventh-round (No. 192) draft picks and a 2015 seventh-round draft pick. Traded a seventh-round draft (No. 189) to Ottawa for a 2015 sixth-round draft pick. 5 P a g e