While we’re now thankfully past the midway point of the Jets’ disastrous 2014 season, there are still a few important questions about Gang Green that would be good to answer over the next seven weeks, such as:
Can Chris Ivory be a true No. 1 running back?
Although Ivory had one of his least productive days of the year last Sunday vs. the Chiefs, he has generally been solid when he’s gotten the ball. Ivory has carried the ball more than 20 times only once, vs. the Pats, when he ran for more than 100 yards. Hopefully he can get a few more 20-plus carry games over the next few weeks, so we can see what he’s capable of.
Is Jace Amaro the tight end of the future?
Amaro has had a productive rookie year after being drafted in the second round out of Texas Tech, but he hasn’t been any kind of downfield threat -- he’s averaging less than 9 yards per catch. Too often he’s gotten the ball close to the line of scrimmage and been asked to make the type of play that a guy his size shouldn’t have to make. Given Mike Vick’s arm strength and Amaro’s sub-4.7 40 speed, the two should be able to connect for some big plays in the coming weeks.
Two-parter: Are any Jets DBs worth keeping in 2015 and will they ever get another interception?
On the merits, looks like a no and no. After all, how hard would it be to talk Aaron Glenn out of retirement? And what’s Kerry Rhodes up to? But rookie Calvin Pryor, though disappointing to date, isn’t going anywhere (even when receivers are bypassing him), and he’ll surely be joined by at least a few holdovers from the worst defensive backfield in recent (OK, since early 80s, at least) memory. Sooner or later, some opponent’s pass has to tip the fingers of an intended receiver and fall into the hands of a Jet DB, right? If that happens, though, it will likely be such unfamiliar territory for said defender, that he’ll surely either drop the ball or run the wrong way with it.
Will Percy Harvin stay out of trouble?
Hey, he’s been in town almost three weeks, and, as they say, if you can stay off the police blotter here, you can do so anywhere. That said, if Harvin managed to be a malcontent in Seattle, where the team was winning big, the QB was elite and the head coach ran around singing “Kumbaya” (funny, but Pete Carroll didn’t seem nearly that upbeat when he was finishing his one year at the Jets’ helm with five straight losses), then how will he be in a losing locker room with a coach and GM who encapsulate the term lame duck?
Can the Jets beat out -- or outlose -- others for the first pick in the 2015 NFL Draft?
Not as long as the Raiders -- the only team Gang Green beat this season -- maintain their commitment to excrement.
