New York Jets Training Camp News And Notes

Kerley continues to impress- New York Jets rookie wide receiver Jeremy Kerley is having a very strong camp impressing both the players and coaches.  The young wideout continues to make plays all over the field and is being used in a variety of formations.  The key for the Jets will be to not overload the rookie as the last thing you want is a receiver that is swimming in the playbook.

Mason getting his feet back- Newly signed wide receiver Derrick Mason took the field on Monday and was admittedly tired towards the end of practice.  Mason offered: “It felt good to be out there on the field, to laugh, to get pushed around and to catch a few balls. I just have to get my legs up under me. They started to go a little bit in the middle of practice. I’m not worried about that though. Give me a few more practices and I’ll be fine.”

Note on Mason:  Derrick will be wearing pink cleats to honor his mother who is battling cancer for the second time. ” I asked Coach Ryan can I wear them, and he gave me the okay, so I’m going to continue to wear them. My mom’s dealing with breast cancer. This is her second bout. It’s gone into remission now, so I’ll just continue to wear them throughout the whole season.”

Bart Scott discusses the Jets defensive front- Jets linebacker Bart Scott addressed the media on Monday and offered the following comment about the defensive front: “They’re working well. I think the young kid (Muhammad) Wilkerson is going to be a player. I mean, instantly, I think he’s the guy you plug in day one. He’s really going to pay dividends for us. The rookie, (Kenrick) Ellis, we are going to have to teach him, coming from a smaller college, a historically black college, he doesn’t really have the great fundamentals going on. He really relied a lot on his athleticism and his power and being bigger and stronger than everybody. Now we just have to teach him to keep his pads down. I’m really excited about Ropati (Pitouitua). We were excited about him last year, but unfortunately, in the pre-season he was injured. To be 6’9” and be able to move that well and be 315 (pounds) and be able to run and be long, if he just keeps his pads down, I don’t think anybody can block him because of the amount of leverage and force he gets with his height and his length.”

The early reports about the rookie defensive linemen are encouraging as they will add much needed depth to the position.  If the Jets defensive line can generate any type of push or penetration, the linebackers will have a field day attacking ball carriers and quarterbacks.

Novak, Folk in a duel- New York Jets placekickers Nick Folk and Nick Novak are in a heated competition for the starting job.  Early reports have Novak in the lead based primarily on the numbers, but everything changes under the bright lights of game action.  Definitely a position to keep an eye on.

Kroul making switch from offense to defense- The Jets have decided to move defensive lineman Matt Kroul to the offensive side of the ball.  Head coach Rex Ryan offered this explanation: “I just think that for him, (he will) actually be a swing guy. I saw it one other time, Justin Banta did it in Buffalo as a backup defensive lineman and backup offensive lineman. Kroul is a smart guy. He can always pop over to defense. His weight is up, just under 310. This guy is a tough guy. He was an Iowa state champion in wrestling so he has great balance and he’s smart and tough. Brandon Moore, you just have to look at our starting right guard and I think the best guard in football and he’s sitting over there as a former defensive lineman. Maybe Kroul will be one of those guys who plays 10 years as an offensive lineman. He certainly has the mentality. He’s a tough guy and he looked pretty good over there. I know Bart (Scott) was calling him “The Fat (Alan) Faneca”, making him feel good over there I think. Always building guys up (as) Bart does. But he looked pretty good over there.”

Scott discusses Shaun Ellis- The Patriots signing of Shaun Ellis has created quite a stir throughout Jets nation.  Elllis, who was the longest tenured Jet, reportedly signed a deal for approximately $4 million dollars, which is remarkable considering that Gang Green offered Shaun the veteran minimum ($910,000).  Bart Scott offered his thoughts on the Patriots move: I knew he wanted an opportunity to play. He sat and then he went (to New England). He’s always wanted to retire a Jet. It was one of those weird things where you associate Shaun Ellis with the green and white, it may be kind of weird to see him up there. I wish him well in everything other than playing against us. I wish him well, not the team well.”

You really cannot fault Ellis for signing with the Patriots, especially when you look at the money and the opportunity.  It would have been great to see Shaun retire a Jet, but in the modern NFL that is not going to happen with most of our favorite players.

The critics are out already? Less than two weeks into camp and there are already some critics questioning the New York Jets and some of their star players including quarterback Mark Sanchez.  Are you kidding me? Can we at least get through some preseason games before all of the panic buttons are hit?  The offense is going to start off slowly as Sanchez gets on the same page with his new receivers.  There will be some growing pains, but at this point there should be no reason to worry.  If the experts want to find a story to create a controversy over, maybe they should check out the Jets ticket sales.

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Tyson Rauch

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