JETAMORPHOSIS
Gang Green defense enjoying turnaround
A glance at the schedule before the season and JetsEagles looked to be a matchup between one of the league’s top defenses and one of its top offenses. Half right, so far. The Jets have lived up to their preseason billing with a revamped defense forcing 10 turnovers through two games, while shutting down the Browns and, more notably, Andrew Luck’s Colts. The bad news for the rest of the league is that this Darrelle Revisled unit may have only scratched the surface of its potential.
“They have an opportunity to be special defensively,” said former Buccaneers safety and ninetime Pro Bowler John Lynch, who will call the game for FOX.
“The hallmark of any great defense is strength at every level … And I still think they are really learning where Todd Bowles wants them, and it’s only going to get better. It’s going to be a handful for opposing offenses … And one thing Bowles may learn is that they are so good physically, you don’t have to do so much. There’s a balance in there. You can avoid the busts because you can beat people manoamano.”
The Jets brought back cornerbacks Revis and Antonio Cromartie this offseason and drafted stud USC defensive lineman Leonard Williams at No. 6 to go along with Muhammad Wilkerson, the suspended Sheldon Richardson and a solid linebacker group. They also traded one defensive mastermind, Rex Ryan, for another, Bowles, at head coach. Much has been made about the difference in personality — the boastful Ryan vs. the reserved Bowles — but the two also use different styles to confound opponents.
“The genius of Todd Bowles, and I covered him a lot in Arizona, he has a great ability — where Rex is attack, attack, attack — he’ll keep mixing it up,” Lynch said. “He brings three guys on one rush, four on the next, seven on the next and it really keeps opposing offenses on their heels.”
The Eagles’ offense has been offbalance early on, putting Chip Kelly, Sam Bradford and DeMarco Murray under fire after losses to the Falcons and Cowboys. Lynch agreed with the concern expressed by his former coach at Tampa Bay — ESPN’s Jon Gruden — that Bradford is no threat to run and that is a key for the quarterback in Kelly’s offense. Lynch’s doubts about Bradford extend beyond that.
“Even when he was healthy, I don’t think he’s proven that he is a topflight quarterback,” he said.
Lynch also said he believes the Eagles are miscasting Murray, who signed a fiveyear, $42 million deal after rushing for 1,845 yards last season with the Cowboys. Murray is questionable for Sunday’s game with a hamstring strain suffered in practice Wednesday.
“Where do you start?” Lynch said of the Eagles’ struggles.
“DeMarco is being asked to run in an offense that doesn’t really fit his skill set. He’s a downhill, strong runner, who has the ability then to bounce out, but when you start side-to-side, that’s not his strengths. You give a player that much money, you have to highlight his skills, so Chip Kelly needs to adjust there. … It’s been a bad combination thus far. Last year you saw LeSean McCoy, Jeremy Maclin, players with explosion that scared you and right now you don’t see that with this offense.”