Of course there were some tricky issues to address also, with Ryan and Tannenbaum all but admitting the platitudes offered a little over a week previous were part of a calculated effort to maximise Schottenheimer’s chances of winning the Head Coaching position in Jacksonville. That endeavour having failed, a mutual decision was taken to bring his time on the Jets’ staff to a close. The Jets weren’t trying to deceive anybody – they genuinely hold Schottenheimer in high regard – which might well be a concern in and of itself.

The biggest concern about Sparano is not his record at Miami, nor is it his lack of experience as a playcaller (he handled the duty only once, on the 2006 Cowboys), rather it is the worry that he won the job by virtue of the Bill Parcells-Mike Tannenbaum connection. If this is the case it suggests only a cursory involvement of Rex Ryan in the process and indicates that difficult times may yet lie ahead if things do not proceed smoothly.

Sparano himself pointed to his philosophy of a physical, but explosive offense, noting that his Dallas and Miami teams were consistently amongst the league leaders in plays down the field, whilst running the ball effectively throughout. He suggested it would be his responsibility to tutor Mark Sanchez, and if so it may be that there is no role for Todd Haley on this staff, UK-born Sanjay Lal having been appointed as receivers coach.

Ultimately the first sign of the Jets commitment to the type of offense Sparano describes will come in free agency next month as they target the players they need to make the plays they are hoping to make. Until then we watch and wait.

Haley, who was the offensive coordinator on the Cardinals when they reached the 2008 Super Bowl, previously co-existed with Tony Sparano when the pair worked under Bill Parcells at the Dallas Cowboys, each complementing the other’s skills – Sparano an offensive line and running game specialist, with Haley more at home constructing and teaching passing plays, techniques and concepts. As noted here at UK Jets, the possibility of Sparano and Haley working together had been mooted last week and seemed a potential fit, if somewhat ambitious given both men were coming off runs as Head Coaches for AFC teams Miami and Kansas City.

Jets fans may well recall Haley’s comments prior to the week 14 matchup at MetLife Stadium between his Chiefs side and the home town Gang Green, where he reminisced on his time working on the Jets’ offensive staff in the late 1990s and indicated an affection for the team, noting that he liked to see them succeed where it didn’t harm the interests of his own side. Given that Haley also enjoyed a successful time with the Arizona Cardinals it will be interesting to see which of his old haunts he opts to return to, with each side expected to make him an offer to mull over.

Adding Haley to Sparano gives the Jets strong voices at the helm of each aspect of their offense and, though it raises the question of ‘too many cooks’, would appear to be a solution that has real prospects of success. Sparano and Haley have previously co-existed without difficulty and are believed to be on friendly terms, an encouraging state of affairs. Their 2006 Cowboys offense ranked well in both the run and passing games, with quarterback Tony Romo having a breakout year whilst receivers Terrell Owens and Terry Glenn and running back Julius Jones posted 1,000 yard seasons, with Marion Barber III adding fourteen touchdowns.

Watching the offense come together will be an intriguing facet of free agency, the draft, minicamps and ultimately Training Camp for Jets fans around the world – a stark contrast the the past few years. Put our name down under “optimistic”.

Schottenheimer’s exit has long been anticipated and it is no coincidence that it was announced shortly after he failed in his bid to win the Jaguars Head Coaching position. Had Schottenheimer not been under consideration for that position it is likely his departure would have been confirmed a week ago.

Although the move has been announced as a resignation and both Rex Ryan and Mike Tannenbaum have publicly supported Schottenheimer since the end of the 2011 season, it is unlikely that this was a unilateral move by a frustrated coach. Rather, some form of financial settlement has likely been achieved between Schottenheimer and the organisation, but they’ve been lying to us since the season ended, so why stop now!

Jenny Vrentas of the Star Ledger notes in her report on the move that, having refused contract extensions, receivers coach Henry Ellard and OL coach Bill Callahan will leave, together with OLB coach Jeff Weeks, who’s contract has expired. Callahan will coach the Dallas Cowboys’ offensive line in 2012. Vrentas links former Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Todd Haley with the receivers coaching position.

Tony Sparano has never previously served as an offensive coordinator, but is an offensive line specialist and was Assistant Head Coach and primary play caller for the Dallas Cowboys’ 9-7 run in 2006 that culminated in Tony Romo’s memorable botched hold in a dramatic playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Sparano ceded play calling duties to incoming offensive coordinator Jason Garrett in 2007 before being appointed Head Coach of the Miami Dolphins, who he led to an 11-5 record and an AFC East title despite inheriting a squad that had managed a 1-15 mark the previous season.

Sparano’s first season as Head Coach was highlighted by the strong quarterback play of Chad Pennington and widespread use of the Wildcat formation – a staple for the Jets in recent seasons with Leon Washington, Brad Smith and now Jeremy Kerley. Sparano’s teams have generated production from their running backs each season, an encouraging thought for Shonn Greene and Joe McKnight.

It will be interesting to see how Sparano, who has coached against Mark Sanchez five times with a 3-2 record, approaches the development of our quarterback. Perhaps this move opens the door for the arrival of Chad Henne as primary competition. Whatever happens, out is encouraging to know the Jets were not prepared to stand still, a positive sign for the upcoming offseason period.

It is being reported that former Miami Head Coach Tony Sparano and former Kansas City Head Coach Todd Haley, good friends from at least as far back as their time together on the Cowboys’ staff, are prepared to package themselves together as an Offensive Crack Team, splitting responsibilities between rushing (Sparano – line coach for the Cowboys in a previous life) and passing (Haley – Arizona’s OC during Kurt Warner’s almost-glorious swansong) in a wholesale solution.

With Matt Cavanaugh reportedly on the outs and Bill Callahan out of contract, this leaves only the role of Anthony Lynn as a potential issue – one easily resolved if he is tabbed as Sparano’s right hand man, a position likely to lead to OC interviews in future years, on other teams.

Both Haley and Sparano are take-no-prisoners types, perhaps the hard line approach the Jets offense requires and which Rex Ryan cannot fulfil without engaging further on that side of the ball. Each man would demand respect and hold his charges responsible, a necessary change in dynamic.

It is an intriguing possibility, and if nothing else would address our clear deficiencies in field goal celebration!

The NFL season is far from over, but for the New York Jets, it most certainly is.

The Jets headed into the 2011-12 NFL season following their second consecutive loss in the AFC Championship game, and a long offseason which included a lockout, player movement, and a mixed bag in pre-season. Expectations were running high, Rex Ryan had guaranteed the franchise its second Super Bowl Championship, and for Jets fans – myself included – we had a season to look forward to. But what happened next?

What happened next was a lacklustre season of football for Rex Ryan and his men; a proverbial ‘roller coaster’ ride, which brought about eight wins and eight losses, dismal for the standards the Jets had set the previous season, with an 11-5 regular season record and a trip to the AFC Championship game, en route to which picking up two impressive road victories over the Colts and Patriots. But, ultimately, the New York Jets wouldn’t be able to repeat the heroics of the last two seasons, they wouldn’t even get the chance, as the old green and white crashed out of the Playoff race following a loss to long time rivals the Miami Dolphins, as the Cincinnati Bengals stormed to the remaining wild card spot, rounding off the AFC postseason teams. The Jets actually had the chance to stop that from happening if they happened to defeat the Dolphins and three other results went in their favour, but this was not the case, the Jets fell at the first hurdle and the rest is history. But why did the Jets fail to make the grade this time around?

Well, there are a multitude of possible reasons, and I hope to bring some of them to light.

When talking about this season, and the failure to reach the playoffs for the Jets, one of the first things called into question is Mark Sanchez, the third year quarterback out of USC. I rarely hear any positivity when it comes to Mark Sanchez. Even when he does something good, people are quick to point out his flaws. But I suppose that comes with the territory: being a quarterback in football means that the responsibility held is great; the scrutiny that the quarterback is under is immense because, well, they are the face of the franchise and the central focus of the team. It means that a good performance is not just desired, but is expected. Did Sanchez deliver on that this season though? Well, quite simply put, no. This season, Mark had NFL career highs in pass attempts, pass completions, pass percentage, passing yards, and touchdown passes. Now, armed with these facts, you might think the criticism of Mark Sanchez is harsh, but stats alone do not paint the whole picture.

Being a quarterback isn’t about getting bigger and better stats than another quarterback, or than the year before, although it can go a long way to helping – there are other vital aspects in respect of which Mark Sanchez failed to deliver. One of these aspects is decision making. At times his decision making was poor, but everyone makes mistakes. Unfortunately for Mark Sanchez he seemed to make them at crucial times, none more so than in the home game against the New England Patriots when Sanchez, with the Jets in the red zone, called a timeout with 1:24 left on the game clock. It was a move branded the ‘stupidest play in football history’ by head coach Rex Ryan, ultimately leading to the Jets’ downfall in that game, losing the lead right before the half, which swung the momentum, and the game, in the Patriots’ favour. What could’ve been a three point lead heading into the third quarter became a four point deficit, something which the Jets didn’t turn back around as they lost 37-16. More of the same came throughout the season, and it did cost the New York Jets on a number of occasions.

As well as his decision making, Mark Sanchez didn’t seem to be able to shake the confidence factor that, I believe, has been his worst flaw over his three seasons as a Jet, and I think it reflected on the rest of the team. When something went against the Jets, or after a mistake was made, it seemed to me that Mark Sanchez found it hard to forget about it and move on, instead getting hung up on it and letting it affect his play. The same could be said about the rest of the team, the source of which, I believe, is Mark Sanchez. And none of that is to mention Mark Sanchez’s leadership, or lack of, that has also been brought up in the news recently. Former Jets defensive lineman Kris Jenkins even went on record to say that Mark Sanchez needs to ‘grow a pair’ in order to gain control over his locker room. Perhaps he does, but would that be in line with the nature and morals of Mark Sanchez? Maybe, maybe not, most likely the latter, and poor leadership could’ve been detrimental to the Jets this season. However, with a head coach like Rex Ryan, the leadership responsibility for the Jets’ quarterback may not be as emphasised as it is for other teams.

Another under-fire member of Gang Green is Brian Schottenheimer, offensive coordinator for the New York Jets. This season, the Jets’ offensive approach seemed to differ from the last couple of seasons. Instead of primarily being a running team, a winning formula was altered and the allowance for passing seemed to extend. But, ultimately, it didn’t work and, along with some questionable play calling and offensive decision making, calls have come for the head of Brian Schottenheimer, a man who is currently interviewing for the vacant head coaching position at the Jacksonville Jaguars. Schottenheimer’s approach seems to have become tired and stale, and teams seemed to figure it out pretty quickly over the past season. Lack of points due to a poor offensive system could be a feasible reason for missing the Playoffs; I mean you DO have to outscore your opponent, so something has to give. If Schottenheimer is the main cause of the Jets’ shortcomings in 2011 it still wouldn’t clear the name of Mark Sanchez, because it’s one thing to create a plan and quite another to execute it.

Coming and going. The two things that define player movement, and two things that Jets had to deal with in the offseason. A total of ten players left Gang Green, whilst eight players were acquired: four from the NFL’s yearly draft, three from the free agency, and one on waivers. Among the players who left the New York Jets were Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery. For Cotchery, his numbers in 2010 weren’t as impressive as those in seasons past but he was still a target for Mark Sanchez to hit and an important one at that. He was one of those players that always appeared to offer an option when there was no opening for Sanchez and I think that the Jets missed that this season. You’ve also got to look to the loss of Braylon Edwards, a man who had more touchdowns than anyone on the Jets roster last year. Did that take a lot of scoring power out of the offense? Possibly, in fact, I’m almost certain, but would it have been a wise move keeping him? The circumstances in which he left led me to believe that something had gone on behind the scenes and keeping him could’ve done more bad than good with regards to morale and motivation within the team. We let these players go and we replaced them, to an extent. The addition of Plaxico Burress certainly turned a few heads and, although the wide receiver is obviously talented, he had just come off of a break from football, due to the infamous shooting incident he was involved in, followed by a lengthy prison spell. Getting in a player who hadn’t played competitive football for three years to replace your leading touchdown scorer isn’t exactly reassuring but, then again, there were issues with the salary cap so you have to work with what you’ve got. As for the defensive roster, players like Vernon Gholston, Kris Jenkins, and Shaun Ellis all left, but had their spots filled by Aaron Mabin, first round draft pick Mo Wilkerson, and another Ellis, Kenrick, the first two of whom did prove their worth. I’d say that there wasn’t much of a difference made to the defence, although the offense definitely suffered a hit with the loss of Damien Woody and the changes at receiver which could tie in with the performances of Mark Sanchez and Brian Schottenheimer. If the pair had less to work with, then how could they be expected to get more out of the offense than in previous seasons? Well, the base was there and the runners were still there, so why wasn’t the running game employed more often like it has been in the past? And there you have the blame being brought back onto offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer. Having said that, one can only speculate and perhaps fewer options meant that the offense became less of a threat to opposition.

However, Brian Schottenheimer and Mark Sanchez aren’t the only members of the New York Jets and backup quarterback Greg McElroy’s recent revelations suggest there were problems beyond Sanchez and Schottenheimer’s control. The term ‘selfish’ has been thrown around when talking about the Jets locker room since the loss to the Dolphins on 1st January and Santonio Holmes ‘quitting’ on the team hasn’t helped matters either. Is there turmoil behind closed doors? Perhaps so and if the players are more bothered about themselves as opposed to the team itself then the team is bound to fall off the wagon at some point: you can’t build a great house on shaky foundations, it just won’t work. But there is a saviour in the saying: ‘no-one is bigger than the club’ and if you’re not interested in the New York Jets then you can be disposed of in an instant. Yes, there may be some ramifications with regards to the salary cap, but the significant detrimental effect it would have on the locker room, as well as team morale and motivation would far outweigh that. If what’s been said is to be believed, then many will surely attribute the disappointment of 2011 down to the attitude of certain Jets players.

But that wasn’t all that was wrong with the team. As Darrelle Revis said, consistency was a big issue this term – something which was a key to the team’s success last year. The Jets never really seemed to get going and hit a spell of good form. For every block of wins, there was a block of losses, and ironically, the team only found consistency by being inconsistent. Another thing mentioned by Revis, who individually had yet another fantastic season, is that only half the team seemed to show up. One week the defense would be present and the offense would go walkabout, and then the next, the offense had a solid game, and it was the defense that wouldn’t show up. This lack of consistency meant that the Jets couldn’t build up a good head of steam, which could have easily been a defining factor as the Jets stumbled to an 8-8 record. If the team can’t function on the same page then how can a winning record and a Playoff place be expected?

And that brings me nicely to my next point; expectation. Before the season even started, the Green Nation were promised a Super Bowl by Rex Ryan. He said that he would guarantee it this time around, and what happened? The New York Jets didn’t even make the Playoffs. As a Jets fan myself I harboured hopes of at least another AFC Championship Game, making it third time lucky, and a trip to Lucas Oil Stadium to play the NFC’s finest. Now I’m not saying that the Jets would go the whole hog, but I thought the title of ‘best in the AFC’ was attainable for the Jets, who were looking to build on the last two seasons. A lot of Jets fans shared similar ambitions, even fans of the Lions, Eagles, Raiders and the like touted the Jets to beat the Patriots to the AFC East title, but they didn’t get that either. These expectations meant that the players had little room for error, a bound which they overstepped many times. Did anything actually go wrong with the New York Jets’ campaign, or were the fans and personnel unrealistic in their expectations for a team with the aforementioned problems? If Jets fans had expected less, would we be asking the question ‘what went wrong’? Well that’s down to personal opinion, and is really a ‘what could’ve been’ scenario; so in truth, there isn’t a right or wrong answer.

In my opinion, there were many factors that saw a lot of things go wrong for the New York Jets in a season that saw them slump to an 8-8 record, but I do not believe that the expectations of Gang Green, including myself, were unjust. We shouldn’t be forced to settle for second best. We’re the support of an organisation that has a rich history; perhaps not decorated, but most certainly rich. Our recent upturn in fortunes should also allow for expectation of bigger and better things. I don’t think that Mark Sanchez deserves as much of the blame as he gets – a weakened offensive line and a change in offensive play hampered his game in my opinion and, despite his mistakes, I thought that Mark showed promise throughout the season and I am hyped to see him next year with another year’s experience on his back. He is certainly a player who needs time and patience. Brian Schottenheimer? I think he should take the heat. I didn’t like the way he played it this year and I felt there was a distinct lack of urgency in his plans. I’m hoping that, for the benefit of the Jets, he gets the head coach job at Jacksonville and then we can start reshaping the offense and bring in a coordinator who is more of a match for New York – I think with a new offensive approach, consistency will follow. As for the goings on behind the scenes, that needs to be sorted out by Rex Ryan and the players. If you want to play for the Jets, and you truly do care about the team, then stay put. If, however, you are one of the selfish players that Greg McElroy talked about then there should be no place for you on the Jets roster. We’re a team, fans included, not a random collection of individuals who are there for fame and money. Therefore, I would place the blame on selfish players, and the offensive coordinator.

For now it’s time to lick our wounds, sort out the team, have a productive offseason and make sure that Gang Green come back stronger than ever in 2012.

Perhaps then it is in some ways fortuitous that things didn’t quite go to plan, that the terminal flaws in the make-up of the roster were exposed now rather than down the road when they could be glossed over. Mike Tannenbaum has a track record of over-valuing his own work, over-estimating the talent level he has accrued, misunderstanding the value of various critical elements of his roster.

And so on New Year’s Day, as revellers nursed their Hogmanay hangovers, the Jets saw their frustrating, disappointing 2011 campaign collapse in on itself in a hail of interceptions and incompetence.

The game itself followed a familiar script – the Jets looked strong early, scored to lead, failed to press home their advantage before the defense took their weekly series off, allowing an otherwise inept offense to drive 94 yards on 21 mediocre plays to take the lead. As has happened more than once this year the Jets responded to this disappointment by turning the ball over in short order – in a two point game the Dolphins were able to score nine points on three 3-play drives – and sealing their own fate.

There was still time for a cherry on the cake, Nick Folk (one of the least accurate field goal kickers in football this season), managing to completely fail in all aspects of Onside kicking, neither getting the ball off the ground, not putting it anywhere a Jets player could recover it. If that is to be the final act of his underwhelming Jets career, it was perhaps entirely fitting.

Santonio Holmes had his own footnote to write, but in the context of the game he was an afterthought, perhaps a harbinger of things to come.