Greene’s Ready to Rock with his Role
Posted by Randy Lange on September 11, 2010 – 10:55 amShonn Greene is ready to get behind the wheel and drive. And that means not just motoring with the rock against the Ravens in two days but sharing the wheel in whatever way Rex Ryan and Brian Schottenheimer determine.
Green, the second-year veteran, parried every attempt to draw him out on his true feelings on being the Jets’ No. 1 back but in the same backfield with Hall of Famer-to-be LaDainian Tomlinson.
“It’s going good,” he said about the relationship between him and Tomlinson. “We push each other, as we should. And the thing about me and him is I think we both can get the job done. So whoever’s in there, we’re going to strive for each other and push for each other.”
I asked him about “probably” (Coach Ryan’s word) starting the season as a starter again, something he hadn’t done in two years, or since his senior season at Iowa. Is this a special time for him? How fired up is he to be the top tailback for his team again?
Greene deftly turned the “I” back into a “we.”
“Yeah, I’m pumped. I’m ready to start the season,” he said. “We just got done with a long offseason, with the preseason, so I think everybody’s a little anxious to get the real thing started.”
The great thing about Year 2 of Ground & Pound is that so far, before a single play has been run in the regular season, the Jets appear to have every bit as strong a two-headed backfield as they had last year or any year since Curtis Martin couldn’t carry the load anymore. Greene still is packing his punch.
“The guy runs hard,” said backup guard Rob Turner. “He’d just as soon run over somebody as run around him.”
And in the most active preseason of his storied career, Tomlinson showed that old giddyup with the 43-yard burst against the Redskins and a 5.9-yard average on 22 carries.
“I saw that right away,” Greene said of the classic LT form. “From the beginning, I wasn’t one of those who thought he had lost it. I’m still a huge fan of his.”
With the kind of summer Tomlinson has had, it’s easy to overlook Greene just a little, but that would be dangerous for opponents. SG had his coming-out game in Week 7 at Oakland after Leon Washington went down.
And if you want to throw out that 19-carry, 144-yard game, that would be OK. Once Greene started getting the ball regularly with the Carolina game (which perhaps coincidentally coincided with the Jets’ 7-2 finish through the AFC title game), he got 118 carries and averaged 5.3 yards a pop.
Sure, there are injury worries from outside due to his aggressive style, and sophomore jinx concerns no doubt as well. But Greene says he’s completely healthy and he talks like a humble young man who is about to play a key role in whatever lies ahead in 2010.
The guys who are blocking for him say they have a good feeling about No. 23.
Nick Mangold: “He’s still learning. He’s got a lot of great natural instinct and ability. He’s made good progress from last year to this year. I think he’s taking his role very seriously. He’s trying to excel as best he can. I think he’s doing a good job.”
Turner: “There probably were questions about why he was a third-rounder when he was drafted, but at the end of last year and obviously during the playoffs, he showed up and put himself out there.”
As for the effect Greene and Tomlinson together can have as the Jets attempt to become just the sixth team since the 1970 merger to notch back-to-back No. 1 rushing seasons, tackle Damien Woody likes what he’s seeing.
“Our goal is to be ascendant as the season progresses,” D-Wood said. “We feel we’ve got really good players in place, really talented runners in the backfield who complement each other very well. The line is in sync. I think we’re doing pretty well.
“So now we’ve got one more practice to get it tuned up. And on Monday we’ll put it on the showroom floor.”
The five teams, with their leading rushers, who led the NFL in rushing for two or more consecutive seasons since 1970:
Miami — Larry Csonka, 2 seasons, 1971-72
Chicago — Walter Payton, 4 seasons, 1983-86
Cincinnati — Ickey Woods, James Brooks, 2 seasons, 1988-89
Buffalo — Thurman Thomas, 2 seasons, 1991-92
Atlanta — Warrick Dunn, 3 seasons, 2004-06
Tags: Damien Woody, LaDainian Tomlinson, Nick Mangold, Rex Ryan, Rob Turner, Shonn Greene
Posted in Randy Lange | 18 Comments »
By CCY on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
Question about the depth chart listing on the site, Randy.
Matt Mulligan is listed as first team, Cumberland 2nd, & Keller 3rd. Really???
By Randy Lange on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
CCY, believe it or not, that is a glitch in the NFL platform’s software. I will attempt to correct it immediately.
By scjoe on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
I am not that concerned with the changing of the guard at the running back position from last season to this season, the only “guard” I am a little worried about is the left guard. I know Fanaca was on the down side of his career, but he still excelled in run blocking. I believe the run is going to be even more important this year then last. I think this week the Ravens will throw everything in their pass rushing play book at Sanchez and I expect that trend to hold true each and every week, that is until Sanchez learns to read the defenses much better then he has to date and consistently beat the blitz, you know, like a guy named Peyton? I think we as Jet fans are going to have to be patient with his progress, for right now just get that run game going baby!
By jet80 on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
The running game will be fine,loaded with nothing but talent and skill and still running behind one of if not the best O-Line in game.Slauson will be fine I believe just wonder if he gets hurt,Vlad?not sure that would work.The game will come down to how well we can stop the run,passing not worried at all.Revis is back changes the game plan for the ravens! Rex still has to know he was responsible for the whole thing buy sayin hes the best in the game,sometimes as much as I love the brash talk Id like him to hold his breath
By IRA on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
Greene should be a 1200-1400 yd back even with spliting time with LT. He really has improved his pass catching skills. Thats what impressed me the most about him this summer.
Talk about a ground and pound attack. Here are some #’s to chew on.
2009
Runs, first down 73%
runs, second and long 47%
That first down # is high. And when facing teams like the Ravens they are going to have to bring down that # to about 60% or less. They are going to have to put Sanchez in 3rd and short as many times as they can. They can’t expect him to keep moving the chains when he is faced with 3rd and 6-7 yds all night. I think it very important to set up the run with the pass early on. Doesn’t have to be an air attack. But 3 step drops and get rid of the ball for short gains of 5-6 yds.
By IRA on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
Another trend i see about Greene is that in the he carried the ball 71 times for 341 yds to the right side of the line. But to the left side he ran only 28 times for 92 yds. Up the middle 8 times for 74 yds. Wonder if Schotty will continue that trend or not? And wonder how much of that rs running was due to the fact of Faneca pulling and if Slauson can do the same?
By Row on Sep 11, 2010 | Reply
TJ is irreplaceable. I just finished watching game tape from last year and think we will struggle to find a way to replace a guy who did nothing but succeed!
I will say I like how physical Greene is and how he does little dancing at the LOS. LT deserves carries. LT outperformed Greene this preseason. Will teams put 8 in the box vs us? Is Sanchez able to make defenses honest? We will find out on Monday night. Go Jets
By IRA on Sep 12, 2010 | Reply
Row,
TJ was a great Jet. But they had to move on to Greene and bring in LT if they wanted to have a different look and add the passing game from the backfield to their offense.
Still think Greene gets about 250 carries and LT 150-175.
GO JETS and GO Ciny and Buff!!!!!!
By carl on Sep 12, 2010 | Reply
The Man IS READY!!!! BRING THE PAIN BRO!!!!GET READY FOR A STREET FIGHT!!! GO JETS!!!!!!
By Ray on Sep 12, 2010 | Reply
Apparently TJ IS replaceable….he’s not here and you really need to get over it Row. How can you watch game tape of TJ and ignore what your eyes are telling you? He was the easiest guy to tackle on the field. If there wasn’t a hole the size of a tractor trailer then he was getting two yards. In all those tapes how many times did he do nothing and then break off a run for 60 yards to pad his stats? Bottom line Row, TJ is GONE, Justin Miller is GONE, and soon KC will be as well. Get your mind wrapped around it and deal with who is HERE.
By Jets Fan Since '64 Tom on Sep 12, 2010 | Reply
Row, try watching this year’s game tape of TJ, if there is any. He’ll be lucky to carry the ball 5 times a game the way he looks in back of the Chiefs’ other RBs. Aside from that, everything Ray said is what I’ve been saying for a year. At this point, Woodhead’s tougher to bring down than TJ. And I’d like to add, Ray, that even when TJ got that huge hole, he was always caught from behind on plays that should’ve gone for TDs. You didn’t see that with SG last year and you sure won’t see it with him and LT this year.
By Row on Sep 12, 2010 | Reply
Okay Ray, when Sanchez gets hurt and we start Brunell, we’ll go 3-13. There is a reason the JETS kept KC. They ARE going to stack the line this season. With “vanilla” defenses, Sanchez looked like he was still a rookie this year. He will play poor, he will be our weakness. We need those guys. I can’t believe I’m not hearing more about McKnight and his wasted roster spot. It’s just conversation, it’s a blog. I know Greene is all we have and LT. I know for some reason Rex has all his confidence in Sanchez. He kept him in after 4 picks to throw another one vs the Bills. I understand the politics. I think I’m allowed to voice my opinion on offseason moves at least until the season starts. Go Jets
By 37 year fan on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
Shonn Greene is going to tear it up ….. not only is he a great running back…..he’s the best we got,…and he one of the best players on The Whole Team . …. He is fearless…..that’s rare ….He Runs like a runaway Freight Train …
By 37 year fan on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
Pound it baby , Pound it .
By Christopher on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
Ira, you made a point that worries me. How much of our running game relied on Faneca pulling out of that LG spot. I know we’ll use Mangold more, like they did with Martin and Mawae, but it does concern me. The running game should be fine, but if the running game is all we have, then it may become a problem with teams stacking the box.
Sanchez needs an outlet pass, and he needs to learn when to use it and when not to get you guy killed. He wasn’t going to get that with TJ, I’m more upset they let Leon go. Leon is a playmaker, and I’m sad to see him go (especially after seeing his “replacement” McKnight).
I love the pickup of LT, if Sanchez can make some plays down the field and utilize LT out of the backfield, this team will be fine, that’s the big if though, Sanchez will struglle at times which is why this team will go as far as the defense takes it.
By wayne on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
I’m not very optimistic about the first 4 games of the season, unless MS’ preseason was a complete aberration and he comes out and hits better than 60% of his attmpts…otherwise, the box will be stacked, with each mediocre performance….Once Holmes gets back, it will be insane for any DC to stack the box with Keller, LT, Holmes, Edwards and Cotchery on the field at once…..So for the Jets to have a truly outstanding year, Mark will have to show some maturity these first 4 games Jets don’t need spectacular play from its QB, just some more completions to his team….And a little more maturity from its 50yr old coach wouldnt be a bad thing either. It might rub off on the young QB.
By freezee3 on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
Well I believe if the Jets follow the philosophy of the 85 Bears and 2000 Ravens and ground and pound and have a dink and dunk QB management game plan along with screens, They beat the Ravens and Patriots. After watching Miami yesterday I have less concern with the Wild Cat. Its looks a couple of steps slower even against Buffalo’s somewhat of a no-name D. The team they will have most problems with be Green Bay because of Rodgers. He gets rid of the ball quickly like Marino used to.
By Jets Fan Since '64 Tom on Sep 13, 2010 | Reply
Christopher, the Leon I saw in the Seahawks game, and I watched the whole thing, ain’t nothin’ close to a playmaker. He looks like he has exactly zero left, no speed, no power, no acceleration. I differ with Ira re rooting for ex-Jets, while I have nothing against their doing well out of the green and white (unless they do it against us), they’re not Jets anymore so they’re history. When they let their greed and attitude get themselves bounced off the team as in TJ and Leon’s case, I’m even less sympathetic. I will say that pickoff Rhodes made yesterday was the kind of play Rex wanted out of him and he looked like a different guy running the ball back, I’ll bet they had him doing sprints from the minute he got back from his Caribbean vacation. Anyway, I say chill regarding McKnight, all high draft choices are basically on the same three-year plan to show results.