Jets defense to focus on fundamentals during practice
Tutor
Published: Tuesday, December 28, 2010, 4:35 AM
By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger
Head coach Rex Ryan plans to go back to the basics to help Jason
Taylor and Jets defense regain its confident form.
CHICAGO — For Rex Ryan, the defensive-minded Jets coach, this is a
scenario that needs to be fixed.
He praised the way his offense is playing, saying the unit is
“peaking” at the right time. But his defense?
Ryan tempered his criticism somewhat, pointing out the poor field
conditions at Pittsburgh and Chicago and noting that their opponents
didn’t get much of a pass rush, either.
“We just have to get the swagger back,” Ryan said Monday from the team
hotel here, where the Jets were stranded until the early evening.
While the offense has found a formula that works the past two weeks,
in games at Pittsburgh and Chicago, Ryan said the defense turned in
two performances not up to the Jets’ standards.
Areas of concern that have flashed all season were highlighted in the
Jets’ 38-34 loss to the Bears on Sunday, particularly as the defense
gave up 21 points and the lead in what linebacker Bart Scott called a
“whirlwind” of a third quarter.
Ryan has a plan to fix the problem.
*****“To get back to who our defense is, we need to practice,” he
said. “We’re going to go back to individual drills, fundamental
drills, and really hone that, which is kind of unusual at this time of
year. We really have to, because that’s how we’re going to get better.
There’s no magic call.”
Ryan said he has noticed fundamentals slipping, and cited quarterback
Mark Sanchez’s recent strong play after working on his technique as an
example of the effect going back to the basics can have.
He noted defenders putting their hands on receivers, playing the
proper leverage and getting off blocks when defending the run as
examples of techniques that have slipped. The results turned up in
several ways Sunday: the Jets yielded five pass plays of more than 20
yards, couldn’t get consistent pressure on Bears quarterback Jay
Cutler and allowed 113 yards on 19 carries to Matt Forte, the first
100-yard rusher they have allowed this season.
Communication woes, an issue all season, showed up in a big way when
the Jets only had 10 players on the field for Devin Hester’s 25-yard
touchdown catch — one of three Bears touchdowns in 7:14 in the third
quarter. *****
“You have to have a sense of focus throughout the game and understand
that they’re going to make adjustments, and we have to make sure that
we’re able to respond,” linebacker Bart Scott said Sunday. “We have to
be better: not letting them spill out on the run, fill the gaps, play
techniques right. We’re going to see those types of plays throughout,
because we struggled with a couple of them.”
The Jets have had several very strong defensive efforts this season,
but two games in a row have disappointed Ryan at a critical time of
year. Last week against the Steelers, the Jets almost allowed another
100-yard rusher — Rashard Mendenhall’s tally after the game was
dropped to 99 yards — and gave up 378 yards of total offense.
Defensive coordinator Mike Pettine indicated last week there would be
some personnel changes against the run in Chicago. Defensive linemen
Vernon Gholston and Marcus Dixon seemed to be more involved. The Jets
haven’t said if they’ll make tweaks moving forward, but Ryan did say
he hopes the return of safety Eric Smith (concussion) will give the
unit a boost.
He also pointed out that the defense is still ranked fourth in the
league, but seems worse when compared to last year’s exceptional unit.
Still, that exceptional defense was a big reason why the Jets advanced
to the AFC Championship Game last year — and with the Jets facing a
similar challenge this year, hitting the road for the postseason,
that’s a piece of the formula they’d like to have back.
“It’s not an easy task when you get three games on the road, just to
make it to the Super Bowl,” Ryan said. “We know it’s stacked against
us, but we’re gunning for it. There is no reason we shouldn’t be. I
can’t say enough how excited I am about the way the offense is
progressing, especially these last few weeks. I think and I believe
that we will get our defense back again.”
Beiselbub©
>
> “We just have to get the swagger back,” Ryan said
That's right, you didn't come here to kiss Bill Belichick's toes.
papa.carl44
"Tutor" <dcat...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:ed487861-d085-40d5...@32g2000yqz.googlegroups.com...
By Jenny Vrentas/The Star-Ledger
I read a version of this article in our Central Jersey papers....Wow....it's
all I can say...he realizes he needs to have some basic D in place.
AND...he finally figured out he needs to practice...OMG ! What some of us
thought could be true is true...they did not practice the essential
skills...that is horrendous coaching at any level...and I was taught that by
top pro coaches, not just a high school deal.
Harlan Lachman
<ed487861-d085-40d5...@32g2000yqz.googlegroups.com>,
Tutor <dcat...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> but Ryan did say
> he hopes the return of safety Eric Smith (concussion) will give the
> unit a boost.
Is this Rex' idea of a sick joke?
harlan