Week 4 Report Card

by Joe Grinwis
Colts-31, Jets-28

Quarterback:  B+
Pennington – 17-23, 207 yards, TD, INT
Another strong performance from Pennington but this was the first game where there were basically no shots deep downfield from the offense. Pennington also recorded his first ever INT in the redzone on the Jets’ 4th & Goal at the 2 try that failed. If he remains healthy and plays like he has in the first four games thus far, Pennington not only will be the NFL’s Comeback Player Of The Year, but, dare I say it, Hawaii will be looming?

Running Back: C+
Houston – 12 carries, 49 yards
Barlow – 13 carries, 35 yards
Washington – 9 carries, 33 yards
Cedric Houston, if his MRI comes back negative, has earned the starting RB role. This is the same guy who had a 3.7 ypc average behind that horrific make shift OLine last year in his 4 starts. Houston carried the ball well and Washington proved for a 2nd straight week that he should be the change of pace back. Barlow…inconsistent is the word.

Wide Receivers:  B
Coles – 6 receptions, 81 yards
Cotchery – 3 receptions, 65 yards, TD
Dwight – 3 receptions, 31 yards
Coles dropped a ball that he should’ve caught early but still put up good numbers throughout. Cotchery made a beautiful catch & run work in the 2nd quarter to tie the game at 7. The receivers and QB on this team are not the problem.

Tight Ends:  D-
Baker – 1 reception, 6 yards
Ryan – 1 reception, 6 yards
Wow. The Jets’ offense has tight ends? They are decent blockers and never are getting open when they seperate themselves from the line. Must say, at least they’re not dropping the ball like Anthony Becht & Doug Jolley.

Offensive Line:  C
Better run blocking but then again maybe it’s just Cedric Houston making the line against a Colts Dline that averages 260lbs a person. Pass protection was decent but Ferguson was beat numerous times by Freeney & Mathis.  Ferguson still needs work.

Defensive Line:  D
If not for Shaun Ellis, would there be a DLine? Ellis had 2 sacks, both nice, but, also, aside from those plays, he was nowhere to be found in the Indy backfield. Robertson made a few nice plays, but was invisible otherwise.  They still COULD NOT STOP THE RUN.

Linebackers:  C-
They had to make all the tackles with Addai & Rhodes getting to them 95% of the time. Vilma made a few nice stops but he is obviously out of position and isn’t playing his best football in the 3-4. The Jets need an OLB who can rush the QB because Bryan Thomas is not the answer & they need a LB who can drop into coverage and not get burned all the time. Period.

Secondary:  C
No Kerry Rhodes blitzes. Justin Miller got burned a few times & even though it was in my mind a stupid call because both were pushing, had a key pass interference called against him. The secondary collapsed down the stretch and also didn’t find a way to force a turnover.

Special Teams:  C+
The Good:
–Justin Miller KO return for TD
–Onside kick
–Ben Graham’s 3 punts for a 49 yard average, 59 yard long

The Bad:
–Final KO return
–Nugent’s other KO’s

Coaching:  C
Mangini has balls, we get that, but you need to take the points. Period. It’s 14-14 in the 3rd against the Colts, it is not the time to go for it at almost the 3 yard line. Shotty & Co., what the hell was with the conservative 1st quarter play calling? This coaching staff wants to score early? Really? Then stop this on your first 3-5 possesions EVERY GAME:

1st down: Run
2nd down: Run
3rd down: Dump off / 5 yard slant

Play calling got better late.