New York Jets Preview

This is my take on the current Jets roster and the prospects for the upcoming season:

Quarterback:
Mark Sanchez is entering his 3rd season and he has so much room to grow. With Mark Brunell mentoring him for another season there is much optimism in Jets Nation. Sanchez needs to take control of the offense and become not just a reliable quarterback, but an efficient one. With his new role as captain, Rex Ryan has shown complete faith in his young passer. Let's hope he responds.

Backfield:
The question is can Shonn Greene be the workhorse in the 'ground and pound' style offense Rex has employed. The last two seasons Greene has been inconsistent in the regular season but flourished in the playoffs. This year needs to be his breakout season. Once the NCAA's leading rusher, the Jets need to see the same production from him in order to make more noise in the vaunted AFC. LaDainian Tomlinson is the '3rd down back' and I couldn't be happier with that role for him. He was amazing last year proving he still has gas left in the tank but faded down the stretch with the overwhelming workload he had to carry. Joe McKnight also proves to be a contributor in all facets of the game including possibly running the WildCat vacated by Brad Smith. And who can forget John Connor AKA 'The Terminator.' With a year of tutelage from All-Pro Tony Richardson, Connor is ready to be the lead blocker for Greene & Co.

Wideouts:
Mark Sanchez has some familar faces along with some new toys to play with. Santonio Holmes is back and ready to be the leading option in the new Jets passing game. I'm looking forward to more 'Tone Time' situations that endeared Jets Nation to #10 last season. Dustin Keller is a favorite target for Sanchez out of the Tight End position. Schotty needs to infuse DK into the offense more because he is a matchup nightmare for LB's and Safeties. Plaxico Burress headlines the new toys that Sanchez has at his disposal. Fresh out of prison, Burress has something to prove to himself and the rest of the NFL. Question is: can he stay healthy? Taking the place of JCo is Derrick Mason, the 37 year old veteran most recently from the Baltimore Ravens. He will be a reliable set of hands for the Sanchise, especially in 3rd down situations - something the Jets struggled mightily with last season. Also in the mix is Rookie Jeremy Kerley who has opened many eyes in the few days of training camp. He looks to be the new version of Brad Smith seeing as he will in all likelihood be the 4th WR and be one of the featured members of the return game.

O-Line:
With Damien Woody retiring, that leaves a gaping hole on one of the best O-Lines in football. That hole will need to be filled by Wayne Hunter. Hunter was acceptable in his few games last season but he will need to step it up in order to complete the line. Otherwise the line is pretty formidable. The rest of the line: D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Matt Slauson, Nick Mangold and Brandon Moore are all proven lineman. Slauson had many question marks coming into last season but answered them all and became very reliable. Moore is one of the most underrated lineman in the NFL and is a major force in run blocking. And Ferguson and Mangold are some of the best lineman in football. If Hunter can step up, the line wont skip a beat and will assist the halfbacks and most importantly protect the Sanchise.

D-Line:
This is the biggest area of concern for the Super Bowl contenders. Where will the pressure on opposing quarterbacks come from? With the departure of Shaun Ellis to the rival Patriots, that opens up a key starting role for rookie Muhammad Wilkerson. He has large and important shoes to fill playing defensive end and being the main pass rusher from the defensive line. Another rookie, Kenrick Ellis, will also play a key role; his role however is going to be stopping the run along with incumbents Sione Pouha and Mike DeVito. Both of those veterans came out of Kris Jenkins' rather large shadow last year and proved to be valuable members of the defensive front.

Linebackers:
The Jets have one of the best pairs of middle-linebackers in the NFL. Newly extended David Harris and emotional veteran Bart Scott provide leadership and force in the middle of Rex Ryan's powerful defense. No halfback is going to want to run up the middle when they see #52 and #57 in their way. On the outside is one of the longest tenured Jets in Bryan Thomas who can play almost anywhere in the front 7. He is not flashy but gets the job done. Opposite him is Calvin Pace who hasn't really lived up to expectations the last few years. The oft suspended and injured OLB was brought in to put fear in opposing quarterbacks. He has done far from that. He has the talent to be one the best pass rushing linebackers in the league, but will he prove it when and where it counts?

Corners:
Two words: Revis Island. What more can I say about the best corner in football? Nnamdi who? Revis turns the game into a 10-on-10 matchup because whoever he is covering is automatically shut down. The only guy who ever gave Revis a smidge of trouble was Randy Moss - and he is retired now. Opposite Revis will be Al-Cro-Traz or Antonio Cromartie. When the Jets missed out on the Asomugha sweepstakes, they quickly refocused their efforts on Cromartie. The tall and speedy corner complements Revis well and is looking to improve on his first season with Gang Green. The key to the group will be second-year player and former first-round pick Kyle Wilson. Wilson had a disappointing rookie campaign, but in my opinion was given a raw deal. Wilson was asked to play the nickel - a position he never played before. In training camp, instead of working on his new position, he was filling in for Revis while he held out. Wilson missed out on valuable learning experiences and thus never really adjusted to life in the NFL. With a season under his belt and a 'whole' offseason of learning the nickel I look for big things out of Wilson and the entire group this season.

Safeties:
This group is led by Jim Leonhard. Leonhard is the quarterback of the secondary and one of the smallest and smartest players in the game. His season was abruptly ended with a terrible leg injury mere days before the drubbing at the hands of the Patriots. If, and that's a big if at this point, Leonhard can come back healthy that adds a huge spark to the defense. Opposite Leonhard will be Eric Smith. Smith was used as Leonhard's replacement when he went down last season, but this year will be in the starting lineup. Smith is a very hard-nosed player who crosses the line every once in a while. He isn't a Pro Bowl caliber safety but is very servicable. Brodney Pool will be the third safety. He came back to the Jets for less money and that is commendable. Pool struggled at the beginning of last season but played very well down the stretch. Dwight Lowery will also split time between safety and cornerback.

Special Teams:
The loss of Brad Smith will hurt a bit less because of the new kickoff rules but he was still a dynamic kick returner during his time with the Jets. Filling his shoes will be a variety of players. Rookie Jeremy Kerley, RB Joe McKnight, CB Antonio Cromartie and CB Kyle Wilson all figure to get a chance returning both kicks and punts. Nick Folk and Nick Novak will battle for the place kicking job. Each man has had his ups and downs in his career and this position will be a heart-stopper for Jets fans all season long. Battling to do the punting is T.J. Conley and Chris Bryan. Conley is an inexperienced punter out of Idaho and Bryan is a former australian rules football player. Reports say that Bryan has a better boot but only time will tell.