New York Jets: Are playoffs really possible?

 

How the New York Jets are still alive for a postseason berth is almost beyond comprehension.  The team stands at 6-7 on the season with five of their losses being by more than 17 points.  Offensively they are ranked 30^th in the NFL without any elite weapons and with a quarterback that seems to be regressing and was finally benched two weeks ago.

After the Jets lost their top offensive player in Santonio Holmes, they’ve lined up Jeremy Kerley, Stephen Hill, Jason Hill, Clyde Gates, Chaz Schilens and Mardy Gilyard at receiver this year.  How many quarterbacks in the NFL could stay competitive with this supporting cast?  Kerley is having a very solid season and has been the Jets best receiver and is only in his second season.  Stephen Hill is a rookie who was starting to develop but sprained his knee in the victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars last week and might not return this year.

Jason Hill is no longer on the roster.  Gates was picked up off the roster of the Miami Dolphins before the season and had a total of two catches in his career coming into the year.  He has been out of action with a concussion.  Schilens was signed as a free agent before the year from the Oakland Raiders where his big knock was an ability to stay on the field.  In four seasons with the Raiders he played in 44 games with 19 starts.  Gilyard has bounced around the NFL and is currently in his second stint with the Jets who previously had him for one week last season.

I don’t understand how anyone can knock the move of signing Braylon Edwards especially if you look at the list of receivers we just went over.  Is Edwards the same player he was in his previous stint, probably not?  Is there any type of downside to seeing if he can play, no.  Edwards and Mark Sanchez had a real good chemistry with each other and the Jets should have never let him go.  He had a reputation for dropping passes but he was very solid in that respect in 2010.  He is a very good run blocker which helps the Jet run game and he will be a receiver other teams have to game plan for.  Most importantly he wanted to be a Jet.  A motivated Edwards can be a very dangerous thing for the opposition especially if he wants to stay a Jet after the season.

The question with Edwards will be whether he is healthy or not.  The Seattle Seahawks cut him because they didn’t think he’d be able to play due to a hamstring issue.  The Jets have cleared him and he might play Monday night.

If Sanchez is going to be the quarterback next season, a wide receiving core of Holmes, Hill, Kerley and Edwards is not a bad place to start to build up this offense.