Edwards arrest puts Jets in a tough spot

Early Tuesday morning (5:15 am) New York Jets wide receiver Braylon Edwards was arrested for Driving While Intoxicated.  Edwards, who was reportedly driving with 3 other passengers in the car including D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Vernon Gholston, blew a .16, which is double the state limit.

This arrest has sent shock waves throughout the entire Jets organization and has put the team in a precarious situation.  There are several stipulations in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that forbid both the NFL and the New York Jets from punishing Braylon until he is actually convicted (Edwards is scheduled to appear in court on Nov. 9).  So as much as the Jets want to address the situation, their hands are somewhat tied.  So what exactly can Gang Green do? As of now Braylon will reportedly not start on Sunday night against the Dolphins, but will play in the game.  Not exactly the punishment  all the talking heads are looking for.  But as of now the Jets are walking a fine line and are truly in a tough spot.

Here are some of my thoughts and comments on the situation:

1) Timing is an issue- 5:15 am Are you kidding me? I can almost guarantee that there are some coaches and players waking up at this time to get ready to watch film and prepare to workout.  Even though Tuesday is somewhat of an off day, I have a hard time believing players lay in bed all day sleeping.

2) 3 players no phones? The Jets have a “Player Protect” program in place to help in situations where a player is unable to drive.  You mean to tell me none of these guys thought to call? Talk about irresponsible and ignorant.

3) How is this Rex’s fault? Many in the media are pinning this on head coach Rex Ryan and his lack of discipline.  Is Ryan supposed to go out with all of his players and hold their hands?  This is completely on the player and has nothing to do with Rex and his policies.

4) Why punish D’Brick and Vernon? If D’Brickashaw and Vernon are guilty of anything it is making a bad decision to drive with a person that has been drinking.  Furthermore they should have not let Braylon drive in the first place.  But punish them? These guys did not break any laws, keep the focus on the main culprit.

5) Will hurt the Jets against Miami- This is a distraction the Jets did not need and it will hurt them on the field against the Dolphins.  Other than Edwards the Jets have only 3 other receivers (Cotchery, Smith, Clowney) on the roster, with Jerricho Cotchery the only proven one.  The Dolphins will be able to game plan to stop Jerricho and tight end Dustin Keller leaving Mark Sanchez scrambling for answers in the passing game.

6) Look to move Edwards? It is no secret that Braylon has ruffled some feathers since being a Jet and this is just the icing on the cake.  Edwards is in a contract year and there is no way he will be a Jet in 2011.  So with that being said the Jets should consider trading Edwards once Santonio Holmes returns from his suspension.  Granted the Jets will not get much in return but at this point he could be addition by subtraction.

7) Anti-Jet bias shines through- I find it comical how the New York Jets organization is getting bashed for a selfish, stupid mistake made by a player on his own personal time.  Why don’t you just admit that you do not like the New York Jets and their bravado before you make yourself look ignorant with your comments.  Just because Rex Ryan is not Bill Parcells, it should not make it open season on his team.  Last I checked even legendary coaches had some players that had off the field issues.

The bottom line is that this is an unfortunate situation and thankfully no one was hurt.  This will be a temporary distraction for the Jets, who will hopefully have their act together against the Miami Dolphins Sunday night.

Tyson Rauch

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