Bill Belichick explains what he sees from the New York Jets this season
The Patriots are 3-2. The New York Jets are also 3-2.
The two AFC East teams will face off at the Meadowlands on Sunday in a battle for first-place atop their division. While New England is listed as a 9.5-point favorite to win the game, head coach Bill Belichick will not be taking his former organization lightly. Belichick, who previously worked as a Jets defensive coordinator in the late 90’s, talked about what he’s seen this year’s squad in a conference call with reporters on Tuesday.
“They’ve played good complementary football,” he said. “They’re a good team.”
“A lot of young players — 25 new players from when we played them last year, which was Week 16 — but a lot of young players and a lot of guys,” he continued. “They brought in some guys, younger veteran types along with their draft choices and so forth from the last couple of years. They’re doing a good job.”
On the offensive side, Belichick called the Jets a “well-balanced team” that makes you cover everybody.
“They get the ball to everybody, all of their backs, tight ends, receivers, quarterback,” he said.
On the defensive side, Belichick says the Jets have “good team speed” and are “athletic.”
“They have some tough players to block up front and they have good speed in the back end,” he noted.
The head coach also specifically highlighted a few of New York’s position groups. Here’s what he had to say about them:
Special teams
“A couple of dangerous returners in [Jeremy] Kerley and [ArDarius] Stewart, their usual strong coverage players – [Rontez] Miles, [Josh] Martin, [Julian] Stanford. [Terrence] Brooks has done a good job for them.”
“A couple of big legs with [Lac] Edwards and [Chandler] Catanzaro, long field goals, kickoffs, long punts. Edwards has changed field position in the punting game several times this year. He did it to help them beat Jacksonville. He did it last week against Cleveland.”
Quarterback
“I think [Josh McCown has] been effective throughout his career. I don’t think it’s limited to a couple of games here. The guy has played 15 years or however long it’s been, so he’s a good quarterback. He’s tough. He’s smart. He uses all of his options. He’s in a very well-balanced offense with Coach [John] Morton.”
“It’s a quarterback-friendly type of offense, like New Orleans runs. What the Jets run is similar to that, has bases in that. He has a lot of options. He uses them. He gets the ball out quick. He’s been accurate. He’s athletic. He’s able to extend plays.”
“I mean, he’s over 70 percent completions so he’s making a lot of good decisions, throwing the ball accurately and getting the ball in the hands of his playmakers and letting those guys make the plays. He’s played well. Not every system is designed that way, but that’s where he is now, that’s the way he’s playing and I think he’s playing very well. I mean, I have a lot of respect for him, a lot of respect for his competitiveness, his toughness, his leadership.”
Running backs
“A good group. We know [Travaris] Cadet — a fast, athletic player, good in the passing game, hard runner, tough kid, plays in the kicking game. [Matt] Forte is, obviously, a very experienced guy, a good three-down player, catches the ball well, good inside runner, good vision, good balance.”
“[Bilal] Powell – another good three-down player, catches the ball well, explosive, capable of big plays, good quickness, hard guy to tackle. [Elijah] McGuire’s done a good job for them in his opportunities, a good runner, good balance, good quickness. They use him in the passing game, too. Maybe not quite as much as the other two guys, but he’s definitely been targeted a number of times, has caught the ball well, run after catch.”
“All of their players, all of their backs, are really, I’d say, three-down backs, can be in there in any down or any situation. They’re very good in the passing game, good in the running game, so they use a lot of empty formations and things like that, free releases where they get the backs out into the pattern so they’re out quickly as an option, as a receiver and not just as a late check down type of player. They get them out really into the heart of the pattern.”
“I’d say that’s the group, a versatile group. They’re all versatile. They all play. They all contribute. They can run. They can catch. They can play out of the backfield, so they present a lot of challenges to the defense.”
Secondary
Safeties
“[Jamal] Adams primarily plays strong safety, and [Marcus] Maye plays more in the deeper part of the field usually in free safety position. Adams is good in the box and has good strength. Maye has got good ball skills and had a big interception last week in the red area against Cleveland … Two good, young players.”
Cornerbacks
“[Buster] Skrine’s pretty much been in the same role that he’s been in. He plays perimeter corner in their two-corner sets and moves inside to the nickel position in their three-corner sets. He’s fast, a tough kid, a very competitive player, good blitzer.”
“[Morris] Claiborne plays on the perimeter and stays on the perimeter. A very athletic guy, long, good quickness, good coverage skills. That’s what those two guys do.”
