While plenty of New York football fans are pinning the blame for the Jets' recent woes of quarterback Chad Pennington, Newsday's Bob Glauber reminds us that the team's real problem might be on the other side of the ball, in particular, the absence of injured defensive end John Abraham:
There is no question the Jets are a more formidable defense with Abraham, one of perhaps 10 players in this league to whom offensive coordinators must pay particular attention in their blocking schemes. If you want to beat the Jets' defense, you'd better know where Abraham is at all times. That's why his absence makes this defense much easier to attack . . .[Defensive coordinator Donnie] Henderson's play-calling options are limited because of Abraham's absence. Without a pass rusher who can change the course of a game - either with a big sack or a forced fumble or both - Henderson can't be as varied with his calls. It also limits the effectiveness of the Jets' other linemen, who often were freed up with single blocking while Abraham was the focus.
"Yeah, you do miss a guy like that," defensive end Shaun Ellis said. "He is a great rusher, and that always helps. We've just got to step up when he's not here."
But as we've seen in the past, stepping it up is exactly what the Jets haven't been able to do in their post-Super Bowl III history. And now that they'll be facing a Rams team on the road that will have something to play for on Sunday, things are looking decidedly grim for Gang Green.
