GREEN BLUEPRINT
WHEN Eric Mangini stood before his players for the final time of the 2006 season Monday morning, he thanked them for their effort and commitment.
Quickly after that, Mangini smartly warned his players that just because they got to the postseason this season doesn’t win them a single game on the 2007 schedule.
“We need to collectively understand we’re no longer 10-6, we’re no longer in the first round of the playoffs,” Mangini said. “Where we are right now is we’re back to a clean slate. Each season is its own unique season.
“It’s not a function of just picking up where you left off. That’s got to be our position and the way that we view things moving forward. It’s 0-0. We now control what happens based on the things that we do.”
Good for Mangini for telling his players that. His words ring true, and they’re words that some coaches don’t have the smarts to tell their players.
A number of players lived through the crash from the lofty expectations of 2004-05, when they went from coming within a 43-yard Doug Brien field goal of the AFC title game in the 2004 season to going 4-12 in 2005, the season Chad Pennington was shelved with his second shoulder injury in a year.
“Each season is its own stand-alone entity,” linebacker Matt Chatham said. “There’s no such thing as momentum in the NFL. We just have to take what we’ve learned and continue to apply it all over again.”
That said, here’s the Post’s five-part plan to send the Jets deeper into the postseason in the 2007 season and perhaps – dare we say? – to the Super Bowl:
* Anoint Chad Pennington as his starting QB. Mangini made a rare coaching mistake on Monday when he declined to name Pennington his starter in ’07. He did gush about Pennington, and he probably knows Pennington will be his man next season, but Mangini wanted to stay consistent to one of his “core” beliefs, which is competition at all positions. In this case, he should have strayed from the core and thrown Pennington a scrap. This is Pennington’s team. For the rest of the players to know that is good for team chemistry. For Pennington to know that is good for his confidence.
* Find a legitimate feature running back. The three-headed back-by-committee program isn’t ideal and it rarely works. The best backs need to touch the ball and get into a rhythm. The Jets should take a long look at San Diego restricted free agent Michael Turner or try to get a top back in the draft. An interesting possibility on draft day, where the Jets pick 25th, is Cal’s Marshawn Lynch, a junior who announced Monday he’s coming out early. Lynch, who rushed for 1,245 yards and a 6.1-yard average this season, would be a steal if he’s there at No. 25.
* Find a pass rusher for the defensive line. Easier said than done, yes, but the 10 sacks the line produced this season aren’t enough. Kimo von Oelhoffen, for example, started 16 games and had 28 tackles with one sack. That isn’t enough production.
* Spend some of the $28 million or so they’ll be under the salary cap and steal cornerback Asante Samuel (10 interceptions this season and a pick of Pennington in the playoffs) from the Patriots. That might erase the hug from Bill Belichick to Mangini next season. The Patriots are notoriously cheap when it comes to giving their own players big contracts (see: Adam Vinatieri, David Givens, Deion Branch, etc.).
* Bring the tight end back as a weapon. Brian Schottenheimer saw first-hand what Antonio Gates did in San Diego. Why not utilize Chris Baker’s terrific hands and playmaking ability? Teams are always trying to take Laveranues Coles and Jerricho Cotchery away, so throw the ball to Baker, who’ll often have a mismatch on him.
