Week Two Report Card

Patriots 19 Jets10
by Brian Clark

Quarterback – B
Brett Favre – 18/26,181 yards, 1 TD, 1INT
You cannot blame Brett Favre for the play calling of the Offensive Coordinator. He did a decent job hitting the guy on the run, and rarely made a bad pass. The 1 INT was a poor decision as the corner baited him into that throw. Despite that throw, it didn’t ruin the game for us, and although it wasn’t the strongest game, he completed the passes called for him. I just wonder if he is upset running the Chad Pennington offense as much as we are.

Running Backs – B
Thomas Jones – 17 carries, 70 yards, 4.1 yards per carry
Thomas Jones worked it well to the outside, but didn’t do that well running in the seams. I would have like to see him get a TD on 3 tries from 3 yard line, and that was the turning point in the game. He showed flashes of explosiveness, but it wasn’t an overly impressive game out of him. The average per carry isn’t bad, but it seemed as if it was a 8 yard break, or a stuff at the line. .

Wide Receivers – C
Chansi Stuckey – 4 receptions, 43 yards, TD
Laverneus Coles –3 receptions, 72 yards
Jerricho Cotchery – 1 reception, 20 yards
I refused to put Laverneus Coles at the top of this receiver list because although he had the most receiving yards, he had 2 bad drops, and 55 of those yards were on one play. This group really lacked the explosiveness that we would expect out of a Brett Favre led team. They didn’t get separation deep, and with 8 receptions by this group, that is definitely sub par. Chansi Stuckey continues to impress, and will be a mirror image of Wayne Chrebet in the slot. He runs tight routes, and is creative and quick after the catch. The chemistry between Favre and Cotchery was missing in the game.

Tight Ends – C
Dustin Keller –1 reception, 19 yards
Bubba Franks – 2 receptions, -4 yards
Although none of the tight ends had any game changing plays, they’re production helped move the chains and extend drives. Baker caught a 29 yard pass on 2nd and 12 to help put the Jets in the red zone. Besides that all the catches were short curl routes that only gained minimal yardage.

Offensive Line – B-
Let’s say that this unit was great for 90% of the game, but they refused to “Get Up” and win the big battles in the trenches when it mattered the most. I really don’t mind Mangini’s choice to run 3 times, because you pick up Faneca and Woody and Tony Richardson to run the ball. But the inability to get 3 yards really was the fault of this group. They only gave up 2 sacks, but one of them was a big one in the final 4 minutes. I hope that this group can step up when we need them in those goal line situations over the next few weeks.

Defensive Line – B
This group played increasingly better in the 2nd half than they did in the first half, but rarely got any pressure on Cassel in the first half. Kris Jenkins is the real deal, and has secured the middle of our line. In each game there are at least 3 or 4 where he will blow by his guy and get pressure in the face of the quarterback or blow up a run attempt. Sean Ellis should be on the side of a milk carton. 1 tackle and a disappearing act. This group did a decent job against the run, but I’m looking for a more aggressive force on the pass rush.

Linebackers – A-
This group did relatively well, although did not produce anything spectacular. The biggest gainers were pass plays to Kevin Faulk and little screens which need pursuing from this group. Calvin Pace had 6 tackles and half a sack. Bryan Thomas had 8 tackles and 1 sacks, David Harris had 8 tackles, and Eric Barton had 8 tackles. I think this group did exceptionally well against the run, but just decently against the pass. But I would take this production from this group every game. .

Secondary – B
Any game when Randy Moss is shut down, I say that the secondary has accomplished what it wanted. Revis had a great game, allowing only 2 completions to Moss and he was a non factor. Even on a play where he was beaten badly, he tracked back and did a great job and broke up the pass. Dwight Lowery had a quieter game, but it was expected the player donned greatest player drafted this year, would have a more understated game. Kerry Rhodes had a quiet game, made 2 nice plays on runs, but I want to see him knocking down the quarterback or being a ball hawk on a pass. Eric Smith had 10 tackles, but I am not of fan of him and wonder how he is ahead of Abram Elam in the safety spot.

Special Teams – F
One week after the chants to cut Nugent were made, I bet there are a few more that would ask for him to come back. Jay Feely missing that first field goal not only took an easy 3 points off the board, but really killed the momentum that was building. It took the air out of the balloon. Ben Graham had a horrible game. He averaged 40.5 on his punts, and that doesn’t even tell the true story, he only netted 28 yards on his punt. The past two games really shows how much of an impact special teams can have on a game. Field position was the key to this game, where we started on the 20 yards line on multiple occasions, while the patriots started at midfield. Leon Washington had no chance to impact the game on returns, although I wouldn’t mind if he took the ball out from 5 yards deep. He has the explosiveness to at least get the ball back to the 20. His conservative approach is a fitting segway to….

Coaching – D
The coaching staff lost this game for us. They have decided to handcuff our best player, Brett Favre, and have him run a short pass offense. They are playing an overly conservative game in all aspects, worried about losing the game instead of trying to win it. I don’t mind running the ball 3 times, since you would have to expect that he should be able to pick up 3 yards on 3 tries. A pass on 2nd down could have been a tricky play though. The team was never in sync and that is due poor play calling. Besides that there was no discipline at all for our team, all of which stems from coaching. The Patriots had few penalties, but it was silly penalties like 12 men on the field on the 2nd play of the game, or on 2 different occasions where a time out had to be wasted because we did not have the right personnel in. The coaching plan for the defense was good, which saved it from getting an F, but Coach Mangini should tell Schott to stop running his dad’s offense and to open it up..

Studs Of The Game: Darrell Revis, Bryan Thomas, Chansi Stuckey

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