{"id":39559,"date":"2018-06-01T17:51:55","date_gmt":"2018-06-01T21:51:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jetnation.com\/?p=39559"},"modified":"2018-06-02T10:43:17","modified_gmt":"2018-06-02T14:43:17","slug":"espn-misses-the-mark-in-breaking-down-gang-green","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/06\/01\/espn-misses-the-mark-in-breaking-down-gang-green\/","title":{"rendered":"ESPN Misses the Mark in Breaking Down Gang Green"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>So it looks like ESPN has taken a stab at projecting the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/23645045\/nfl-win-total-projections-all-32-teams-2018\"><strong>win totals of all 32 NFL teams<\/strong><\/a> this season and while they have the Jets winning 1 more game than they did in 2017, they have those six wins as being the second-worst in the NFL, ahead of only the Cleveland Browns.<\/p>\n<p>While nobody knows for sure just how many games any NFL team will win in a given year, to say that only one team in the NFL will lose more games than Gang Green in 2018 is a bit far-fetched.<\/p>\n<p>Based solely on the fact that the Buffalo Bills have taken several huge steps backward along with the questions of Ryan Tannehill&#8217;s effectiveness after a season on IR, it wouldn&#8217;t be unreasonable to expect Gang Green to win three games against those two teams, alone.<\/p>\n<p>Rich Cimini of ESPN New York correctly points out the fact that five wins in the first year of a major re-build would make a six win season a disappointment in 2017.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong>Rich Cimini&#8217;s take:\u00a0<\/strong>The Jets&#8217; roster remains under construction, but they have enough talent to win more than six games. They play in a weak division (except for the Patriots), and they have one of the easiest schedules in the league. They won five games last season in Year 1 of a major rebuild, so it would be a major disappointment if they don&#8217;t improve by at least two wins. The wild card is rookie quarterback\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/player\/_\/id\/3912547\/sam-darnold\" target=\"_new\">Sam Darnold<\/a>. If he takes over, his growing pains will hurt the team in the short term. Prediction: Over 6.1 wins.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The upgrades made by Mike Maccagnan this off-season would only go unnoticed if you simply weren&#8217;t paying attention, or were still longing for the good ole&#8217; days of John Idzik.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Quarterback:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We&#8217;ve already touched on this a few times this off-season, but for those who haven&#8217;t been keeping track, Josh McCown is the only quarterback returning from last season&#8217;s depth chart.\u00a0 Christian Hackenberg was <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/05\/22\/new-york-jets-report-jets-deal-hackenberg-to-raiders\/\"><strong>traded to Oakland<\/strong><\/a> after <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/05\/03\/new-york-jets-report-jets-to-release-bryce-petty\/\"><strong>Bryce Petty<\/strong><\/a> was released.<\/p>\n<p>By drafting Sam Darnold with the 3rd overall pick in the draft and signing Teddy Bridgewater, the Jets go from McCown and a couple of guys who may not belong in the NFL, to McCown and a pair of first round QB&#8217;s, one of which has made the post-season in his short NFL career.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Running Back:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Matt Forte did an admirable job last season but <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/03\/13\/new-york-jets-reportedly-set-to-sign-rb-crowell\/\"><strong>replacing him with Isaiah Crowell<\/strong><\/a> gives the Jets a younger, more powerful, explosive runner than Forte had at this point in his career.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Wide Receiver:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_36444\" style=\"width: 360px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-36444\" class=\"wp-image-36444\" src=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525-300x202.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"350\" height=\"236\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525-300x202.jpg 300w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525-600x404.jpg 600w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525-768x517.jpg 768w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/07\/IMG_3525-1024x689.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-36444\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Quincy Enunwa looks to bounce back after spending all of 2017 on injured reserve.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>If not for McCown going on injured reserve late in the season, a pair of 1,000 yard seasons for Robby Anderson and Jermaine Kearse wasn&#8217;t out of the question.\u00a0 With that duo still on board, Quincy Enunwa is expected to return after a season on IR, Terrelle Pryor was added via free agency.\u00a0 Add to that the fact that Chad Hansen has earned rave reviews during OTA&#8217;s and this group could surprise a lot of people.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Tight End:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Austin Seferian-Jenkins had a pedestrian 2017 season, hauling in 50 balls for 357 yards (7.1 YPC).\u00a0 Through waivers, the Jets <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/04\/02\/new-york-jets-addition-of-clive-walford-addresses-multiple-needs-for-gang-green\/\"><strong>acquired former Raiders tight end Clive Walford<\/strong><\/a>, who, at the very least, makes the loss of Seferian-Jenkins a wash.\u00a0 With Jordan Leggett set to enter year two and rookie Chris Herndon on board, surpassing last season&#8217;s totals from the tight end position should be a lock.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Offensive Line:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Wesley Johnson was the worst center in the NFL last season and he has now been <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/03\/14\/new-york-jets-rapoport-jets-to-sign-center-spencer-long\/\"><strong>replaced by Spencer Long<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 This upgrade cannot be understated given the fact that their inability to block up the middle last season was this team&#8217;s number one problem, and the number one culprit has been replaced.\u00a0 Brian Winters is also expected to return from a serious abdominal injury that hampered him last season, making James Carpenter the biggest question mark on the O-line after a poor 2017.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Defensive Line:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Malcontent Mo is gone.\u00a0 Muhammad Wilkerson was sent packing and he&#8217;ll be replaced by the likes of <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/05\/01\/new-york-jets-deal-for-anderson-solidifies-d-line\/\"><strong>Henry Anderson<\/strong><\/a>, Nathan Shepherd and Xavier Cooper.\u00a0 It&#8217;s hard to imagine getting rid of a player who had no interest in playing on Sundays and not getting better at his spot.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Linebacker:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The only notable loss for the Jets this off-season was Demario Davis.\u00a0 His spot was upgraded with the <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/03\/14\/ny-jets-set-to-sign-avery-williamson\/\"><strong>addition of a younger, faster Avery Williamson<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0 Edge rusher is <a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/2018\/06\/01\/new-york-jets-defense-must-find-an-edge-to-take-the-next-step\/\"><strong>still an issue<\/strong><\/a>, but fixing an entire roster in two off-seasons isn&#8217;t realistic.\u00a0 This should be priority no. 1 next season.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cornerback:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Outside of quarterback, this was arguably the Jets biggest need this off-season, and they filled it with one of the NFL&#8217;s best man-cover corners in Trumaine Johnson.\u00a0 With Johnson, the return of Morris Claiborne on the opposite side, the unit should be much improved.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Safety:<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_37215\" style=\"width: 360px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-37215\" class=\"wp-image-37215\" src=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844-300x214.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"350\" height=\"249\" srcset=\"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844-600x427.jpg 600w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844-768x547.jpg 768w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844-1024x729.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/IMG_5844.jpg 1393w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 350px) 100vw, 350px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-37215\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jets fans are hoping for big things from Jamal Adams as he enters year two.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye both enter year two with Johnson lending a big hand.\u00a0 Most players make a big jump from year one to year two.\u00a0 No reason to expect any different with this pair.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Special Teams:<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The kicking situation is unsettled and the punt returner competition will play itself out in camp.\u00a0 Lac Edwards returns after a stellar sophomore season.<\/p>\n<p>So there you have it folks, in a nutshell.\u00a0 Across the board improvements at several key positions for Gang Green along with a fairly weak schedule in year two of a re-build.\u00a0 If all of that only adds up to one more win, then it might be time for Gang Green to start looking for a new head coach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>So it looks like ESPN has taken a stab at projecting the win totals of all 32 NFL teams this season and while they have the Jets winning 1 more game than they did in 2017, they have those six wins as being the second-worst in the NFL, ahead of only the Cleveland Browns. While [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":37567,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[213],"tags":[2833,2645,2447,2856],"class_list":{"0":"post-39559","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-jet-news","8":"tag-isaiah-crowell","9":"tag-jordan-leggett","10":"tag-robby-anderson","11":"tag-sam-darnold"},"acf":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/IMG_5506-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peLffi-ai3","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39559","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/38"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39559"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39559\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39560,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39559\/revisions\/39560"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/37567"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39559"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39559"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/miletestsite.com\/jets\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39559"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}