Last season the Jets cobbled together a decent selection of linebackers to man their 3-4. They didn't have prototypical inside linebackers but they moved Barton inside to be a big physical presence next to Vilma and after some early fits and starts that seemed to work adequately. There were problems against the run all season but nothing that crippled the team except against very high caliber opposition. They turned Bryan Thomas into an OLB and that worked out very well. The made do with Hobson on the other side, disguising his lack of speed by putting him on the strongside of the offense where size and strength are a bit more at a premium. They even got some real production out of him for a change by using him as a blitzer in their six man rush packages. The question I have looking forward is why do the Jets seem bent on getting rid of Barton, a quick hard-hitting intimidator with a hot head, and keeping Hobson, a relatively passive and slowfooted defender? They had to put Barton inside last year next to Vilma or face the prospect of having the 3-4 DOA due to lack of impact. Why not move the better and more productive athlete outside and find a replacement to man the middle of the 3-4? Barton can take some stupid aggressive penalties at times but he's the kind of headhunting linebacker that you want on the field when things get rough.
Barton is getting older and his skills will begin to diminish. Hobson is getting better and is much younger.
I have a feeling, and I have absolutely no proof of this, that Barton is more rebellious vs. the Mangini way of football than the rest of the team. I wouldn't pin attempts to trade Barton on physical issues as much as team chemistry issues. You don't see Barton quoted as much as some guys on the team, so I wonder if it's a thing of "if you don't have something nice to say, don't say anything at all." Total lark here, but it's my 2 cents.
I absolutely agree that Barton has a rebellious anti-authority streak in him. He also plays out of control at times and those incidents can literally be at any time as in the SD playoff game in 2004 when Barton gave the Chargers overtime. He's also the best hitting linebacker that the Jets have had since Brian Cox and he definitely makes opposing players look around to find him when they're crossing into the box as outlet receivers. I just find it very surprising that a headhunter is being valued lower than a passive player. That does not sound very Patriot-ish to me.
I'm sick of people ripping Hobson. I used to be one of those people but he proved me wrong this past season. 91 tackles, 6 sacks, INT, FF, FR, 1 TD... That's production. What more do you want from a 34 OLB? People defend Vilma saying he had no dline to keep blockers off him, well last I checked Hobson played behind the very same dline and made way more plays. We don't need to get rid of anyone in this LB core. We need to add one passrushing specialist at OLB and make a nice rotation. In the 3-4 depth is key, why get rid of any good players. And for the record I love Barton too. We saw good play from 3 out of 4 linebackers this season, people just don't like to lay any blame on a certain linebacker and direct it at less popular guys like Hobson and Barton. If it came down to cutting Barton for salary reasons, then I'd like to move Hobson to ILB because he'd be a standout at that position. He's a prototype at 34 ILB, but has showed he is capable of playing well at OLB too.
C'mon...Anybody that knows football can see that Hobson belongs on the inside. He hits hard & is strong at the point of attack. He doesn't have the speed to play the outside, but he is ideal as an ILB. Enough said....IMO.:up:
He's 29 years old man, maybe 30. And he is pretty tenacious when he plays...For all of us who wanted Thomas or Porter, they're "30" as well, i'm not putting Barton in that class, but I find it a little ironic that Barton is getting older and his skills will diminish, when Porter and Thomas have 3 years left in them at least... Anyway, I wouldn't mind Barton on the outside, but maybe his pass-rushing skills aren't that good? My only observation...
I thought the decision to put Hobson on the outside and Barton inside was one of the most puzzling things Mancini did last year. Like the rest of you, I saw Hobson as the perfect inside LB and Barton as the faster, better pass rusher from the outside but obviously Mangini saw something the rest of us didn't. He consistently kept Hobson outside all year, but as the season went on he seemed to be playing Kassell for Barton more and more. Now I didn't notice Barton's play slipping, but I saw Kassell get beat consistently at the point of attack. Therefore, trusting Mancini's judgement more than mine, I can only assume he doesn't consider Hobson an option inside at all. So where does that leave us? If the rumors are true that we are trying to move Barton, maybe we'll be drafting an inside backer early? Or maybe Schlegel gets a shot? I have been guessing a speed rushing OLB with 25, but now I'm not so sure. I guess I'll have to wait and see come draft day.
The thing to remember is...Tangini makes mistakes too...:up: He's not some super genius.....He's just a guy trying to make it. The super genius is still up in N.E....:rofl:
Vic Belongs inside and Eric belongs outside. I was scratching my head like all of you when this never happened. I bet we see more of Schlegel inside this year. Or we get ride of Barton ( I hope not, I love his FIRE) put Vic inside and draft a OLB @ 25 and Rotate him with Vic and Schlegel inside when Vic is outside. Its just that simple?????
Nonesense You have a feeling?Based on what? a guess orthe penalties the guy has had? If you have no evidence of your "feeling" please keep it in your pocket.Magini guy or no who cares?Is Coles, my favorite player a Mangini guy?Coles has said several things and complained several times to the media yet Mangini still has prasise for him.This whole MANGINI GUY thing is overblown. You have no idea of whether Barton is rebellious or not and to state that because he is the center of trade talks means that he is rebellious is sheer nonesense.Is Vilma rebellious too, because some on this board cliam he is at the center of trade talks? Besides Coles how many Jets do you see talking up a storm?
I think if Mangini and the coaches thought Hobson could play inside he would have. Based on last season, I'd say his most productive and most helpful to the team on the outside. He seems to do better when he is up against TE's or the play is going away from him. He wasnt particularly effective at taking on Tackles and "setting and edge" so despite his size I really dont think he is physical enough to play inside in the 3-4. I think Hobson had a good year, but I dont think Mangini is in love with him as a player. I suspect the Jets might draft an OLB this year and groom him as Hobson's replacement for 08. Barton was, at times, very good against the run. At other times he seemed to be taking whole series off. I think if Mangini were sold on him for next year, Kassell would have seen little playing time. I still expect him to be traded or released. I just dont think the Jets think he's worth what they are going to have to pay him this season.
Yeah, you're totally right...we should only talk about what we are absolutely certain about. That way, we won't ever have to face those silly little questions like what if; we won't have to take part in creative conversation in which there is a free exchange of ideas, possibly highlighting a different angle to see a particular subject; In fact, we should just post proven facts like stats on this board from now on. Great Idea.
My point is that don't just say something you have NO CLUE about .If there were rumors, speculation or even a couple of stories labelling the guy as rebellious you may have a point.It seems like anyone can preface a bogus statement by saying "I have a feeling."
There have been rumors that Barton is trade bate. I'd say thats enough to speculate that he may not fit well into the system.
I don't think they'll trade Barton now. Coaches will try to work with him during the training camp to see just whether or not he will be able to change positions.
Get your panties unwrinkled and let the guy speak his mind. When he said "He had a feeling" it was akin to a personal opinion. If you haven't noticed, this board is rather filled with personal opinions. Furthermore, I don't see it as a bogus statement- a bogus statement would be "The NY Daily News is reporting that Barton is being shopped as his attitude is poor and he's not onboard the Tangini bus." You might not like what the guy has to say, but to be as whiny as a 13 year old girl who just had her cell phone taken away is a little over-the-top, don't you think?
Ok, Inspector Clouseau. Here we go. I don't think you see read the subtlety of Coles' behavior very well. Coles is probably more of a Mangini guy than 90% of the guys on the team. But, being who he is (a WR) and to maintain his cred in the lockerroom, he plays the role of rebel. He is the one who coined the "Penguin" moniker -- a name he wouldn't have wasted time coming up with if he didn't half respect the guy. He had one of his best years ever under Mangini & Schottenheimer, so I'm not sure where his beef rests. I provided an opinion. Never said it was fact. I have an opinion about you -- it's probably fact, but I'll withhold judgement for now.
