The Jets want to add competition to the quarterback position. We will find out in the weeks and months ahead if Mark Sanchez will again be the team's leading man, but he is not just going to be handed a lead role. Last week, I had a chance to ask Terry Bradway what he thought of the six signal callers who were on display during Senior Bowl Week.
"I think this is a good class — I don't think this is a great class. There is no Andrew Luck in this draft, there is no RGIII in this draft," he told me after a day of practices in Mobile, Alabama. "Maybe there is somebody like a (Ryan) Tannehill or a (Brandon) Weeden or those types of guys. I think when you look at the group that's here at the Senior Bowl — there are six quarterbacks and I think all six will make NFL teams. Some of them will become starters."
While West Virginia QB Geno Smith turned down an invitation to participate and USC QB Matt Barkley continues to rehab a shoulder injury, the spotlight last week focused on the following six-pack: Zac Dysert (Miami OH), Mike Glennon (NC State), Landry Jones (Oklahoma), EJ Manuel (Florida State), Ryan Nassib (Syracuse) and Tyler Wilson (Arkansas).
"Those are good quarterbacks and they all throw the ball pretty well. It's a little hard to judge them sometimes in the Senior Bowl — especially the first couple of days," Bradway said. "They're not in sync with the receivers, a lot of the routes being run are against press coverage and there isn't a lot of timing to it. But I've been impressed with the way they've handled themselves. We've had an opportunity to interview several of them and we were very impressed."
Manuel led three scoring drives in the South's 21-16 Senior Bowl triumph on Saturday and he was named the game's MVP. A 6'4", 237-pounder, Manuel is comfortable on the move but his accuracy is considered a question. The 6'6" Glennon has a huge arm and can effortlessly make every throw on the field. Wilson looks the part and can fire the ball quickly and Dysert is a sizable prospect who made a lot of plays with his legs in college. At OU, Jones operated a no-huddle spread so he wanted to show scouts he could take snaps from behind center.
Pundits seem to be all over the place on Syracuse product Ryan Nassib, who struggled a bit with his accuracy during some early week sessions. But the book on Nassib is he is smart and he can fit the ball into tight windows.
In early February, Jets scouts and the new coaches on the staff will meet up. While there is some continuity on defense and special teams with Dennis Thurman and Ben Kotwica taking over for Mike Pettine and Mike Westhoff respectively, Marty Mornhinweg's West Coast attack is an entirely new system.
"We're going to discuss exactly what they want in their players and it may be a little bit different than what we've had before and that will give use direction heading into the draft and also free agency. But we're definitely going to look to add some playmakers to our offense," Bradway told me.
"We need to generate offense — offense is what the league is about now. We have some young guys that have to develop and they can't fail, and we're going hard to get those kids developed. But we're going to be a team — going forward — that is going to look to the draft and supplement in free agency. We have to keep our eye on those explosive playmakers, guys that get chunks of yards and score points."
