Speaker 1: Welcome to another edition of the Official Jet Podcast. Hope
Speaker 1: everyone's been enjoying the podcast profile series. I know we have.
Speaker 1: It's been a been a fun project throughout the off season,
Speaker 1: and to be able to share it is great. Now
Speaker 1: we're getting really into the thick of things training camp
Speaker 1: around the corner. We're gonna talk about some training camp items,
Speaker 1: maybe some position battles, and then we have Steve Wish
Speaker 1: on the podcast. On a sad note, because Wish wrote
Speaker 1: this great article on NFL dot com detailing the life
Speaker 1: of Greg Knapp, who passed away at fifty eight years old,
Speaker 1: and of course was gonna have a prevalent role here
Speaker 1: with the Jets as an assistant coach. I think the
Speaker 1: New York Jets organization from the top down, they start
Speaker 1: training camp with heavy hearts. If you read what people
Speaker 1: have said about Greg Knapp of late, it's amazing the
Speaker 1: connection he had with people, staffers, following, fellow coaches, the player.
Speaker 1: He loved teaching, and he also was a guy who
Speaker 1: had a smile on his face everyday, lived life with
Speaker 1: a tremendous passion. And I think there's a lot to
Speaker 1: learn from a guy like Greg Knapp because he connected
Speaker 1: to people, and he did such a great job in
Speaker 1: the National Football League he was entering his twenty six season,
Speaker 1: but beyond that, he left such a legacy that a
Speaker 1: lot of people who came into his life they exited
Speaker 1: it that meeting or that introduction or those experiences better people.
Speaker 1: And I think you saw the impact he had on
Speaker 1: the current roster even in a short amount of time,
Speaker 1: just based on players reactions on social media. I mean,
Speaker 1: Jack Wilson of course worked a lot with Greg Nap
Speaker 1: throughout the spring. He posted about him on Instagram, and
Speaker 1: I think you really saw the ripple effect that Greg
Speaker 1: Knapp had in the organization in a short amount of time.
Speaker 1: And we're gonna detail more with Steve Is, who I
Speaker 1: think brought up a great point. You don't stay in
Speaker 1: the in the NFL twenty five years without being really
Speaker 1: good at what you do. And with that being said,
Speaker 1: you know, we'll get to that in a little bit.
Speaker 1: But training camp is around the corner, which is crazy
Speaker 1: to think about because it feels like yesterday we were
Speaker 1: in the studio talking about Robert Sala as the new
Speaker 1: head coach of the New York Jets, and now fast
Speaker 1: forward about six months and he's about to take the
Speaker 1: field as head coach of the Jets for the first
Speaker 1: time in his first training camp. Yeah, and how about that,
Speaker 1: it's been a quick forty days since the Jets finish
Speaker 1: that final mini camp practice. In forty days, that's what's
Speaker 1: Alla said. I think at the end in mini camp,
Speaker 1: you take those forty days and see how you can
Speaker 1: better yourself individually. And now the Jets are gonna come
Speaker 1: together collectively. And what Sale is looking forward to with
Speaker 1: this group, and I think this is just in his
Speaker 1: d n A. His makeup is how will they ultimately
Speaker 1: respond to adversity because the Jets are a young team,
Speaker 1: a young roster, and they're gonna go full throttle bull
Speaker 1: speed ahead. But the rule be bumps in the process.
Speaker 1: And also remember that this is the first training camp
Speaker 1: or and really the first preseason that have had three
Speaker 1: preseason games. The cuts timeline in terms of when you
Speaker 1: have to reduce the amount of players on your rosster
Speaker 1: a little different this year. And the Jet will have
Speaker 1: two joint practices as it stands, one in Green Bay
Speaker 1: then hosting the Eagles here. And you know, there are
Speaker 1: a couple of different things I think we should get
Speaker 1: into but training camp, the pads come on next week.
Speaker 1: Right now, it's like an acclamation period. When the players
Speaker 1: come back, they'll report, then they'll have similar to what
Speaker 1: was O t S and Mini camp in terms of
Speaker 1: style and shells and no pads, and then before you
Speaker 1: really ramp it up. And I'm curious, just to kick
Speaker 1: things off here, which Jet are you most excited to
Speaker 1: watch and training How about which new Jet are you
Speaker 1: most excited to see in training camp for the first time.
Speaker 1: I would say Carl Lawson because we weren't able to
Speaker 1: watch these guys with the pads on, and he's a
Speaker 1: dynamic pass rusher, so I think you'll get a better
Speaker 1: sense of what he's able to bring to the table.
Speaker 1: And not only just because the pads are going to
Speaker 1: be on here in a few days, but also because
Speaker 1: Lawson he wasn't at all the offseason workouts that we
Speaker 1: were able to witness on the field, and he is
Speaker 1: a game changer potentially for this team, for this defense,
Speaker 1: and I think he's entering a system that suits him
Speaker 1: quite well. And you're getting a guy's twenty six years old,
Speaker 1: and I think he's really relishing the opportunity with this
Speaker 1: team I'm in a similar vein as you are because
Speaker 1: we didn't see this player a whole lot in the spring,
Speaker 1: but because he was sidelines Corey Davis and Corey Davis
Speaker 1: another young ascending player, and Corey Davis and Tennessee. We've
Speaker 1: documented before his success in this la Fleur offense. Now,
Speaker 1: what Matt Lafleur and what michaela flore will do probably
Speaker 1: a little different, but also a little similar as well.
Speaker 1: And I think that you saw what he could do
Speaker 1: last year in Tennessee where he was sixteen yards shive
Speaker 1: a thousand yards and working with a rookie quarterback and
Speaker 1: two other quarterbacks who have who haven't taken a snap
Speaker 1: in the NFL. I think Corey Davis will be a
Speaker 1: stabilizing presence on the outside. And he's not on the
Speaker 1: physically unable to perform list, he's not on the non
Speaker 1: football injury list, which you would assume means that he's
Speaker 1: ready for activities. Yeah, you would imagine he would be
Speaker 1: in When we talk about laws and talk about Davis
Speaker 1: the Jets best positional group, you can make the strong
Speaker 1: argument that it is indeed the defensive line, but the
Speaker 1: jets most improved positional group. On paper, I would say
Speaker 1: it's the wide receiver position because, yeah, Corey Davis a
Speaker 1: free agency Yeah, Keeling cole or versa dial uh player,
Speaker 1: was very productive with the Jacksonville Jaguars. And then Elijah More.
Speaker 1: We saw glimpses of what he is on the field
Speaker 1: out there in the spring, and I think More is
Speaker 1: going to be a very good performer for this team,
Speaker 1: not only as a rookie button of years to come.
Speaker 1: And then don't forget about Jameson Crowder because he became
Speaker 1: an afterthought in the spring just because we didn't see
Speaker 1: him a lot, at least when we were out there
Speaker 1: on the field, and then he had the acclamation period.
Speaker 1: But Sala expects him to make plays in all the
Speaker 1: flour lead offense as well. Also, I think what excites
Speaker 1: a lot of Jets fans is each year the rookie class,
Speaker 1: and of course this rookie class headlined by Zack Wilson.
Speaker 1: You mentioned Elijah More also the first time we'll see
Speaker 1: Elijah Vera Tucker in pads as a New York Jet.
Speaker 1: But is there a rookie whether it be the guys
Speaker 1: I mentioned, let's say X, including Wilson and More, not
Speaker 1: just excluding Wilson. Well, how about the storyline now that
Speaker 1: we're taping here on Monday, the Jets are reporting the
Speaker 1: training camp on Tuesday. The first practice will be on Wednesday. Uh,
Speaker 1: by the time many people listen to this podcast, the
Speaker 1: Jets will already be on the practice field. But how
Speaker 1: about those practices in Green Bay the eighteenth and nineteenth,
Speaker 1: Because earlier today it sure seems like Aaron Rodgers is
Speaker 1: gonna be there for the Packers this year. And one
Speaker 1: guy that the rookie who's gonna be slinging it for
Speaker 1: the Jets here in training camp has been compared to
Speaker 1: a lot do not because he's gonna duplicate the success
Speaker 1: he's had, but just from a stature standpoint and his
Speaker 1: athleticism and the way he can bring it from all
Speaker 1: different angles. Jack Wilson, Yeah, I also think that would
Speaker 1: be in a great experience for Zach Wilson after going
Speaker 1: up against just the Jets defense throughout the spring and
Speaker 1: then the first week or two of training camp. And
Speaker 1: also the Jett receiver is gonna see j R. Alexander,
Speaker 1: assuming he's healthy. That's a pretty good corner that the
Speaker 1: Packers have. But going back to my original question, is
Speaker 1: there a rookie you gotta go back? Is there a
Speaker 1: rookie that you're excited to see in pads that's not
Speaker 1: Jack Wilson. Well Vera Tucker, you know, And obviously the
Speaker 1: Jets feel like they got first the three first round
Speaker 1: talents in the draft, and Joe Douglas loved this kid.
Speaker 1: He goes up nine spots in order to get him.
Speaker 1: And you know, for my money, clean this offensive line
Speaker 1: prospect McKay Beckton, who was dealing with some soreness. I
Speaker 1: guess during the spring he's been cleared to go. So
Speaker 1: we'll be able to see that left side of the
Speaker 1: offensive line here early in training camp. And I just
Speaker 1: want to see Vera Tucker with the pads come on,
Speaker 1: because we just talked about it before. This is very
Speaker 1: good Jets defensive line. So let's see how he lines
Speaker 1: up early on in his career and then let's move
Speaker 1: on later in the draft class. I'll take two guys
Speaker 1: for it. Oh boy, I think you're about to take
Speaker 1: my guys. I'm taking it a linebacker or two. No,
Speaker 1: you know, I'm gonna leave the linebackers to you. I'll
Speaker 1: go on the outside and take Jason Pinnoch out of
Speaker 1: Pittsburgh because I think he brings a physical presence to
Speaker 1: the game. He's a big guy, had very good ball
Speaker 1: production at Pittsburgh. Let's see how heat bears once the
Speaker 1: paths come on and you could see the cornerbacks get
Speaker 1: after a little bit more in terms of press coverage
Speaker 1: and getting their hands on receivers. Yeah, you know Pennock
Speaker 1: was gonna be I was thinking about going with Pinnock.
Speaker 1: But I'm excited to see Jamie Sherwood and Hams of
Speaker 1: nozz real being in pads because those are two guys
Speaker 1: who were box safeties in college and now they're full
Speaker 1: time linebackers, and how are those guys going to translate
Speaker 1: to being full time linebackers. And this is step well,
Speaker 1: I know Mini camp was step one, but this is
Speaker 1: really step one because it's with pads on and you
Speaker 1: can really start to hit people and get after people
Speaker 1: to simulate what will be the NFL for them. So
Speaker 1: I'm curious to see how they acclimate in this defense.
Speaker 1: And Jamie and Sherwood listening to Jeff all Brick speak,
Speaker 1: the defensive coordinator is talking about how how Jamie Sherwood
Speaker 1: seems to already be in control of the defense and
Speaker 1: at least up top, meaning he understands what his roles
Speaker 1: and responsibilities are. And I'm curious to see how that
Speaker 1: translate if it does. And that leads me to my
Speaker 1: next question. How about a veteran in training camp that
Speaker 1: you that you're excited to see. And the reason why
Speaker 1: I'm bringing it up is, you know, I was thinking
Speaker 1: about the linebackers. First time we're seeing c J. Moseley
Speaker 1: and essentially two years or a year and a half,
Speaker 1: and I think that c J looking a little slimmer,
Speaker 1: and Quinn Williams said he looked a little slimmer too.
Speaker 1: I think that c. J. Mosley has something out to
Speaker 1: prove and he could potentially be a game changer for
Speaker 1: the Jets defense. There's no doubt about it, you know,
Speaker 1: and we're going to keep our eye on Mosley. But
Speaker 1: let me go back a level. Um. Marcus May started
Speaker 1: camp on the n f I list. How about LaMarcus
Speaker 1: Joyner because the Jets like what he brings from a
Speaker 1: coverage perspective. He's a safety you can come down and
Speaker 1: play that nickel spot and he also in bass figure
Speaker 1: you can use. Marcus May maybe more as your box
Speaker 1: safety where LaMarcus kind of handles center field. But then
Speaker 1: in sub packages, you know he's a natural to come
Speaker 1: down and then play some man to man and that's
Speaker 1: what the Jets like about him. And then that's a
Speaker 1: crowded offensive backfield, who's gonna separate themselves? How many running
Speaker 1: backs are the Jets going to keep about? Well? Michael
Speaker 1: p Ryan, the second year player out of Florida. I
Speaker 1: want to see how it all shakes out for him
Speaker 1: this summer. Yeah, I like the p Ryan. I like
Speaker 1: that you brought up p Ryan because last training camp
Speaker 1: I think you could make the argument Michael p Ryan
Speaker 1: had one of the best camps, not even among rookies, Like,
Speaker 1: he had a very impressive camp and he got hurt. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I think it was a Green and White practice when
Speaker 1: he uh rolled his ankle, had an ankle sprain, and
Speaker 1: then he battled a couple of injuries throughout the season
Speaker 1: and or eight yard scamper when he did and I
Speaker 1: was against the first team defense as well, So I
Speaker 1: do think that I'm I'm very interested to see Michael
Speaker 1: Peter Ryan. You mentioned Jamison Crowder. I want to see
Speaker 1: how quickly he can get on the same page with
Speaker 1: Zack Wilson, because Jamison Crowder is a quarterback friendly option.
Speaker 1: No matter where he's been, he's always been a quarterback
Speaker 1: friendly option because he's quicken and out of his breaks,
Speaker 1: he knows how to find holes in the defense, whether
Speaker 1: that's man coverage or zone coverage. And I think that
Speaker 1: he could be a real nice addition to this offense
Speaker 1: that has Elijah Moore, Corey Davis, Keelan Cold, Denzel Mims.
Speaker 1: I'm also I mean, I mentioned I really should talk
Speaker 1: about Mims because he's another second year player who we
Speaker 1: didn't see training camp at all. He was hurt all
Speaker 1: of last training camp, So what does he look like
Speaker 1: when the pads come on, when he can be a
Speaker 1: little physical and on the defensive side of the ball.
Speaker 1: There's two guys that I'm interested in. One of them
Speaker 1: is Sheldon Rankins because he's one of the guys that
Speaker 1: you saw flashes in New Orleans how good he could be.
Speaker 1: He had that one year when he had eight and
Speaker 1: a half sacks from the interior, which is very impressive.
Speaker 1: And in addition to that, I mean, I might be
Speaker 1: a sucker for the second year players. So how about
Speaker 1: Bryce Hall Bryce Hall with an offseason under his belt.
Speaker 1: And also remember last year he didn't participate in training camp.
Speaker 1: He was recovering from the injury that ended his college career,
Speaker 1: and then he basically played half a year coming off
Speaker 1: the physically unable to perform list. How how improved can
Speaker 1: Bryce Hall be in his second year? I think those
Speaker 1: are the guys that I have my eye. If you're
Speaker 1: a cornerback here and you're on the Jets rosters, this
Speaker 1: is a land of opportunity. You look about and say, hey,
Speaker 1: there are some young guys who are talented here. There
Speaker 1: are some young guys who are unproven. But if you're
Speaker 1: here and you're looking to make your way, I mean
Speaker 1: this is a team you want to be on. I
Speaker 1: mean you would say externally, it is a big question mark.
Speaker 1: There's no doubt about it. Not because there aren't guys
Speaker 1: who can't make plays or not good football players. It's
Speaker 1: just we haven't seen it, maybe for a long time
Speaker 1: in the NFL. Or you have a trio of rookies.
Speaker 1: You're talking about Brandon Ancles from Kentucky. You're talking about
Speaker 1: MC two from Duke, You're talking about Jason Pinnock from
Speaker 1: Pittsburgh where they fit into the equation. Um So it's
Speaker 1: a land of opportunity on the outside and on the inside.
Speaker 1: JA haveon Guidry did a lot of good things for
Speaker 1: the Jets last season. I'm a big fan of his.
Speaker 1: But Michael Carter the second uh, he did some good
Speaker 1: things in the spring and he brings a lot into
Speaker 1: injubles to the table that you like. And just going
Speaker 1: off of the three training camp battles to watch story
Speaker 1: on New York chet dot com. We talked about linebacker
Speaker 1: a little bit with the rookies. Also got a factor
Speaker 1: in Blake Cashman into the equation who's been battling injuries
Speaker 1: his first two years in the NFL, alongside C. J.
Speaker 1: Mosley and Jared Davis. You just mentioned the corners and
Speaker 1: also backup quarterback right now, Like if you assume Zack
Speaker 1: Wilson's the guy at number two and he's the starting
Speaker 1: quarterback week one, right now, the roster is Jack Wilson,
Speaker 1: Mike White, and James Morgan. They all have combined zero
Speaker 1: NFL starts. So how do my White and James Morgan
Speaker 1: separate themselves from each other if they're in fact the
Speaker 1: ones competing for the backup spot. You know, is that
Speaker 1: the preseason which James Morgan, like Mike White, is playing
Speaker 1: in preseason game. James Morgan is not all the rookies
Speaker 1: last year who did not play. I think is James Morgan,
Speaker 1: Cameron Clark off the top of my head, their prese
Speaker 1: and games will be their first NFL action. Yeah, listen,
Speaker 1: this is James Morgan's first professional season because you think
Speaker 1: about last spring, these guys weren't getting any reps on
Speaker 1: the field. So he gets drafted in the fourth round,
Speaker 1: gets no reps in the spring, and the first time
Speaker 1: he's out there on the field is training camp, and
Speaker 1: at that point you're trying to get your starter, those
Speaker 1: top reps. So yeah, it's gonna be interesting to see
Speaker 1: if Joe Douglas makes a move at the quarterback position,
Speaker 1: meaning does he bring in a veteran, how early does
Speaker 1: he do it or to your point, does Joe Douglas,
Speaker 1: Robert Sala, MICHAELA. Fleur take a look at how things
Speaker 1: progress here early in camp before they make that kind
Speaker 1: of play. And you started, you started getting me thinking
Speaker 1: about the wide receivers when you talked about Crowder and more.
Speaker 1: I don't know if people are looking at this the
Speaker 1: wrong way. ME mean that, Hey, it's either Prouder or more.
Speaker 1: I think sometimes you're gonna put your best personnel packages
Speaker 1: on the field, and for the Jets that could mean
Speaker 1: a lot of packages with Jameson Prouder and Elijah Moore. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I think it's a great point, especially when you consider
Speaker 1: what Robert Sale and Michael Ford we're talking about that
Speaker 1: Elijah Moore has that inside outside versatility, especially in this
Speaker 1: offense when you consider the amount of lateral movement that
Speaker 1: goes on, whether that's a Jet SUEEP or just to
Speaker 1: use that as an example, Elijah Moore has that ability
Speaker 1: and he has the speed to do it. And how
Speaker 1: about the motions we're gonna be watching from this offense too,
Speaker 1: That's gonna be different and we've seen that in San
Speaker 1: Francisco to last four years. You go back to Atlanta
Speaker 1: and stuff like that used to a lot of priests
Speaker 1: that motion. I think the forty Niners led the league
Speaker 1: in pre snap motion last season. So that's just something
Speaker 1: to keep an eye on. Honorable mention. We I mean
Speaker 1: the kickers, Sam picking Chris Negar. We'll see what happens
Speaker 1: in camp I mean, that's like you're quintessential training camp
Speaker 1: battle where it's one of you know, it's mono imano,
Speaker 1: two people fighting for one job. Um, And you know,
Speaker 1: I think before we hear from Steve Weish, I just
Speaker 1: want to get your take. Is there any other storylines
Speaker 1: that you really that you have your eye on. Well,
Speaker 1: it's the three preseason games, It's the it's the two
Speaker 1: joint practices. You know you're gonna be in Green Bay
Speaker 1: and then the next week you come back after playing
Speaker 1: the Packers on a Saturday night and all of a sudden,
Speaker 1: you're in there with the Eagles. And I think that's
Speaker 1: gonna be very valuable for sale and the coaching staff
Speaker 1: and Joe Douglas and the personnel staff because they'body able
Speaker 1: to watch their players compete against. Yes, different personnel, but
Speaker 1: also different systems. And I think when you're talking about
Speaker 1: working in a rookie quarterback, uh it, this is all
Speaker 1: about youth. To Randy Lang about a New Yorks dot
Speaker 1: Com the other day, one of his great inside the
Speaker 1: Numbers pieces that this is the youngest Jets roster at
Speaker 1: this point, and then it has been in two decades.
Speaker 1: So the average age of a Jet player out there
Speaker 1: in training camp is just a little bit over twenty five.
Speaker 1: And then take that further, the longest tenure players on
Speaker 1: this team. Do you know who they are? I do,
Speaker 1: Marcus May and Thomas Hennessy and they're both entering year five.
Speaker 1: This is all about a youth movement, but the talent
Speaker 1: has definitely got better here on the field. Now it's
Speaker 1: we're going to be fun watching these guys. Yeah, and
Speaker 1: early on you're going over a lot of review because
Speaker 1: you did installations in the spring, right, But then we're
Speaker 1: gonna see these guys compete, not only against the Giants.
Speaker 1: I love the fact that you're getting in there those
Speaker 1: joint sessions with the Packers and then the Giants, I
Speaker 1: mean the Packers and then the Eagles, and then you
Speaker 1: had that long break, which is interesting this. Yeah, I
Speaker 1: think that's I think probably a lot of teams will
Speaker 1: like that where they have a little bit of time
Speaker 1: before they can start preparing for week one, And for
Speaker 1: the Jets, that will be when they prepare to travel
Speaker 1: down to North Carolina to take on the Panthers. And
Speaker 1: that's that's a training camp preview right there. Now. It's
Speaker 1: here from Steve White, Steve, thanks so much for joining
Speaker 1: us here on the Official Jets podcast. You know, e
Speaker 1: A and I just broke down training camp and we
Speaker 1: said that the Jets are starting training camp with a
Speaker 1: heavy heart with the passing of Greg Nap. And you
Speaker 1: wrote a great article on NFL dot com about Nap
Speaker 1: and from your time around Nap and hearing others speak
Speaker 1: of him, what kind of person and what kind of
Speaker 1: effect did Greg Nap have in the different places that
Speaker 1: he coached. Yeah, I appreciate you guys have me on
Speaker 1: especially to talk about this. Look I make Greg back
Speaker 1: in oh five when I covered the Falcons. He was
Speaker 1: the offensive needed there when Jim Moore was the head coach.
Speaker 1: Um And and the one thing about Greg that has
Speaker 1: carried on because you've been with so many teams, you know, Atlanta, Oakland, Seattle, Denver,
Speaker 1: the Jets, Houston, is that he was a real positive guy,
Speaker 1: very upbeat guy like players. You know, you saw some
Speaker 1: a lot of player reaction, you know, from Matt Ryan,
Speaker 1: from Todd Clure, a lot of offensive lineman from Matt Shaw. Um.
Speaker 1: Just a very positive guy like no matter what was
Speaker 1: going on, lost the ballgame or he makes a you know,
Speaker 1: questionable series of calls or whatever. He was just always
Speaker 1: that guy saying, hey, look, we're gonna get to the
Speaker 1: next play, We're gonna we're gonna make this happen. It
Speaker 1: was constantly educating and you know, I'm not the only
Speaker 1: media member who could say this, but you know that.
Speaker 1: But always take time to spend with us too. You know.
Speaker 1: I would ask him like, hey, look, I know you're
Speaker 1: running this West Coast scheme, but I saw when you
Speaker 1: got in this situation, you guys did this or this
Speaker 1: defense responded like this, and you countered with that, and
Speaker 1: he would take the time to really educate um. And
Speaker 1: you know, I think a lot of the guys in
Speaker 1: the media really appreciated that. But more than anything, you know,
Speaker 1: Napper was just just a super positive guy, Like he
Speaker 1: would have been so good for this Jets locker room
Speaker 1: with so many young players, you know, especially Zach Wilson,
Speaker 1: and everything is gonna be thrown at him to have
Speaker 1: that positive voice in his ear, uh no matter what
Speaker 1: I mean, just a real encouraging guy. And that's why
Speaker 1: what happened with his death, his tragedy is just just
Speaker 1: so painstaking. How rare is that kind of guy in
Speaker 1: this business sometimes it can be so cut throat from
Speaker 1: a player perspective, from a coaching perspective, for even from
Speaker 1: a media perspective. But everybody who's talked about Greg recently,
Speaker 1: he's just raved about that positivity, that presence that he
Speaker 1: was always uplifting people. Yeah, look, I mean a lot
Speaker 1: of you know, it's rare. And I wrote this in
Speaker 1: this column because and you guys know this, most coaches
Speaker 1: you talked about it being cut throat. At some point,
Speaker 1: these coaches are going to speak negatively about a player
Speaker 1: or speak negatively about a coaching staff or coaches on
Speaker 1: the staff he'd been on here or there, because they're
Speaker 1: trying to climb up that rung right there, trying to
Speaker 1: get up to be that coordinator, to be that head coach.
Speaker 1: Greg Napp was always very comfortable, um being an act
Speaker 1: or being a quarterback coach, being a passing game coordinator. Um.
Speaker 1: He he didn't you know, necessarily want to use others
Speaker 1: two benefit himself. You know, he was gonna where he's
Speaker 1: gonna get, buying his own merit and his own connection.
Speaker 1: So it was just a real positive having a guy
Speaker 1: like him, you know around. You know again, like dealing
Speaker 1: even with the media. You know, you would see you know,
Speaker 1: on the field before games, everybody running up to Hi Napper,
Speaker 1: Hey Napper, Hey Napper. You know, and that's really important
Speaker 1: in for a locker room and just relationships to have
Speaker 1: somebody who's not trying to backstab another coach so he
Speaker 1: can move up you know, the food chain or things
Speaker 1: like that. And again, I think Napper just always being
Speaker 1: secure and who he was and what he was was
Speaker 1: vastly important to any coaching staff in any locker room.
Speaker 1: You know, you mentioned in your previous answer about the
Speaker 1: impact you thought Greg Knapp would have in this locker
Speaker 1: room the youngest Jets team in twenty years in July.
Speaker 1: You know what kind of coach we often talk about
Speaker 1: the person Greg Napple was. What about the type of
Speaker 1: coach and influence he had. Well, he he'd apair with
Speaker 1: Michael for right, but they come from the same background
Speaker 1: in terms of the offense that they want to run
Speaker 1: West Coast principles, um, you know, with a lot of
Speaker 1: the schematic tenants. He stretched his own run scheme things
Speaker 1: like that, So I think you know what he would
Speaker 1: be able to do. He was always the voice in
Speaker 1: the ear like even if somebody else's offensive coordinator, he
Speaker 1: tended to be the voice relaying that call into the
Speaker 1: quarterbacks ear. So, let's say the quarterback just made a
Speaker 1: terrible read on the play before he made come in
Speaker 1: the call, say hey, don't worry about it, just get
Speaker 1: onto the next play. We'll we'll fix it, you know,
Speaker 1: the next time we have an opportunity. And so I
Speaker 1: think with this locker room again, because he was so jovial.
Speaker 1: You know, Nap was a real tall guy about six
Speaker 1: war six five, had this kind of you know, old
Speaker 1: school uh John Travolta, slicked back hair, um, you know.
Speaker 1: And and he just would have been the type of
Speaker 1: guy if you know, running back Mrs Block or has
Speaker 1: itard just just struggles to a practice or something, He's
Speaker 1: gonna say some things to make that player not think
Speaker 1: about what has happened. Or if there's a dispute in
Speaker 1: in a coaching room, you know, he'll listen, listen and
Speaker 1: all of a sudden say, okay, hey, look you know
Speaker 1: what this is on me whatever, He'll he'll take the blame.
Speaker 1: He would shoulder on the blame or something for something
Speaker 1: that happened with someone else, just to kind of keep
Speaker 1: it moving because in this in this sport, in this profession,
Speaker 1: if you linger for too long on anything, it's gonna
Speaker 1: come back and have a negative effect. And he just
Speaker 1: was not that guy. And I just think, you know,
Speaker 1: the young locker room to be able to have the
Speaker 1: ability to teach, but to also have guys looking forward. Um,
Speaker 1: you know, look, he's not Ted Lasso positive and he
Speaker 1: and have all the quirky colloquialisms, but he had that
Speaker 1: type of effect or a guy he's like, you know
Speaker 1: what he's saying, it's kind of it's kind of right,
Speaker 1: and I kind of want to be part of that.
Speaker 1: But he was a fun guy. You said, he's not
Speaker 1: necessarily like Ted Lasso, but speak to the humor he
Speaker 1: brought to the table and just his enthusiasm for life.
Speaker 1: Because you had a good anecdote following in Atlanta Falcons
Speaker 1: practice where him and Jim Mora used to take off
Speaker 1: for the hills. Yeah. Look there's a big hill to
Speaker 1: facility and they would run it every day and you know, look,
Speaker 1: last time I saw a nap, you needed to hit it.
Speaker 1: Hit a little bit harder. He put on a few
Speaker 1: lbs over the past couple of years, but but look,
Speaker 1: I mean he was he was a dry witted guy.
Speaker 1: You know, he wasn't the dude who was always out there.
Speaker 1: You know, it was it was all about timeless. You know,
Speaker 1: a good good comic, a good comedian strikes hot when
Speaker 1: he when he has a perfect time knowing went to
Speaker 1: deliver something a certain way. And and that was Greg Um.
Speaker 1: He just would not let a guy. I'm sure you
Speaker 1: talked to any of the quarterbacks he dealt with him. Look,
Speaker 1: he really helped out players like Matt job Shop back
Speaker 1: in the day. You know, when he was in Houston,
Speaker 1: he was one of the first guys that have consistent
Speaker 1: forty three honey yard passing seasons with a lot of
Speaker 1: things he did. And and Nap was his o. C um.
Speaker 1: You know, he had Michael Vick when I was here,
Speaker 1: and looking Vick was tough to handle back then. I mean,
Speaker 1: you know, Michael Vick would admit he wouldn't you know,
Speaker 1: he would study the playbook very much. And Nap and
Speaker 1: those guys knew it, but they would still work with
Speaker 1: him in a way instead of saying, you know, hey,
Speaker 1: look we're gonna pound on you for not doing your homework,
Speaker 1: like okay, let's make sure we can improvise and do
Speaker 1: the things that we need to do because we know
Speaker 1: where somethings you're lacking here there. But he always kept
Speaker 1: it in a way where it never got bogged down mentally,
Speaker 1: stress wise, things like that. And you know over now
Speaker 1: we're playing seventeen games. You talked about the Jets having
Speaker 1: a young team or rookie quarterback. That's gonna be important.
Speaker 1: That's where michaela Floor and all these guys are really
Speaker 1: gonna have to step in and just really really be
Speaker 1: positive and encouraging to Zack Wilson, you know, because there
Speaker 1: will be mistakes. May just listen to you talk Steve
Speaker 1: makes me think about Nap taking this position because that
Speaker 1: speaks to everything who he is, right because Michael fleur
Speaker 1: It hasn't been in a league that long. He's in
Speaker 1: his early thirties. But Napper said, Hey, I'm fifty seven,
Speaker 1: fifty eight, I've worked with a lot of Pro Bowl quarterbacks.
Speaker 1: I've been a coordinator in this league, and I'd be
Speaker 1: more than happy to be the passing game uh specialist here.
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, and look, you know, and people like, what's
Speaker 1: the passing game specialists? I mean this is the guy
Speaker 1: who breaks down all the situational stuff, does the special projects. Okay,
Speaker 1: this is what it's defensive personnel. This is what they
Speaker 1: like to do. This what the coordinator does. They saw
Speaker 1: this quarterback fights on stuff. Then he works with the
Speaker 1: coordinator to come up with schemes in the passing game,
Speaker 1: including protections. Um that that really works. I mean again,
Speaker 1: that experience and to be able to have that voice.
Speaker 1: Michael Forest never called plays right, So to be able
Speaker 1: to have that voice to get into quarterbacks yere to
Speaker 1: help guide them through situations you can. Timing is everything.
Speaker 1: When you've got that thirty five seconds on that clock
Speaker 1: to get that play in before and then at fifteen
Speaker 1: seconds that that that monitor in the helmet goes off.
Speaker 1: You know, that is a case that is a gift.
Speaker 1: That is not an easy thing to do. And Nap
Speaker 1: was a guy who could really help the floor get it,
Speaker 1: helps Zach Wilson get it. Um everything that goes on
Speaker 1: without meddling. Again, he is not a guy who's not
Speaker 1: going to step in when he's not asked unless it's
Speaker 1: something that there's a crisis management type of situation. So again,
Speaker 1: there's there's so many things that he brought to the
Speaker 1: table and would have brought to the table for the Jets.
Speaker 1: It's just absolutely crushing. Um, you know what happened to
Speaker 1: him that he's no longer with us. And and trust me,
Speaker 1: there's so many people on the league. We're gonna be
Speaker 1: out of service, uh this upcoming weekend and and really
Speaker 1: gonna feel Greg Knapp's presence um every day and especially
Speaker 1: every Sunday and Monday night this season. Steve, one last
Speaker 1: question from me. What do you think it says about
Speaker 1: Greg that he was able to make such a large
Speaker 1: impact just based on the reaction from social media, just
Speaker 1: from Jets players, and he was hired what in January
Speaker 1: and now it's the wies. I mean, he he was easy, man,
Speaker 1: he was just you know, there's some coaches, you know,
Speaker 1: they come in their heads on fire all the time
Speaker 1: and they've got him what presence is me being big,
Speaker 1: you know, and and this type of stuff, and that's
Speaker 1: kind of like, hey, you know, I'm here, I'm here
Speaker 1: if you need me. All right, guys, let's get in
Speaker 1: the room. Let's go over this stuff. And you know,
Speaker 1: he's not someone who would put that add and added
Speaker 1: burden on pressure these guys have so much to do
Speaker 1: with this is learned their playbooks and a million other
Speaker 1: obligations they have to do. And that was just the
Speaker 1: kind of guy. You know, we all had that buddy,
Speaker 1: you know in high school or college who just comes in.
Speaker 1: You're like, thank god he's here, because I'm tired listening
Speaker 1: to this guy. I really don't want to be in
Speaker 1: this environment right now. I can sneak out of the
Speaker 1: room with this dude. We can go get a soda,
Speaker 1: beer or whatever. Um and and just unwined for a
Speaker 1: little bit. And and and Nap was that Guy's why,
Speaker 1: that's why the you know the example I gave um
Speaker 1: in the column I wrote, you know him and Jim
Speaker 1: more like Naper, let's hit it. I mean, those two
Speaker 1: our practices were a grind, let's go round this hill
Speaker 1: just to kind of get the rest of everything out
Speaker 1: of us before we have to go back in these meetings,
Speaker 1: Nap was the guy who Mora sought out. I mean,
Speaker 1: they were best friends, but just to say, okay, let's
Speaker 1: let's go decompress. And and I think that's something Nap
Speaker 1: really brought to the players. Um in such a short
Speaker 1: time with the Jets. Well, we are all praying for
Speaker 1: his wife, his three daughters, his brother, his extended NFL family.
Speaker 1: With all that being said, I hate even bring it
Speaker 1: back to football, but what now I was on the
Speaker 1: horizon for Robert sala who has already shown himself to
Speaker 1: be a tremendous leader throughout his coaching tnure in the
Speaker 1: National Football League. We talked about Mike la Fleur before,
Speaker 1: and they forementioned Zack Wilson because Wilson in his short
Speaker 1: time was very connected to Greg Naw. Yeah, I mean,
Speaker 1: look that that's the interesting thing. That's a conversation that's
Speaker 1: gonna need to be had with these young players because
Speaker 1: think about you know, when you were twenty twenty four,
Speaker 1: we didn't know too many people maybe other than grandparents,
Speaker 1: thought that who died? Right, this is someone this is
Speaker 1: like their first real life workplace, you know, hurdle to
Speaker 1: overcome and and and it's I mean I remember my
Speaker 1: first job in Richmond, Virginia, dealing with guys getting divorces
Speaker 1: and people adopting kids like yo. This is completely different
Speaker 1: from the structure I've grown up around. And so this
Speaker 1: is where Robert Salah, who really has a lot of
Speaker 1: naps type of personality traits quiet easy, but handles business.
Speaker 1: That's where he's gonna have to really get a grip
Speaker 1: on things, and and Lafleur is gonna have to stuff
Speaker 1: been and they're just gonna have to really grind football wise,
Speaker 1: but also have that ear in case, you know, someone
Speaker 1: wants to talk about Greg or talk about a situation
Speaker 1: where they lose a loved one, you know, something like this.
Speaker 1: When you talk to players from forty Niners who dealt
Speaker 1: with Sala, I mean that was a huge, huge thing
Speaker 1: about him. I mean he knew everything about every guy
Speaker 1: because he would listen and he would talk to them
Speaker 1: about it. And that's where he just really has to
Speaker 1: kind of step in at the beginning of training camp
Speaker 1: and in address thisss with the team and say, look,
Speaker 1: if you guys are gonna talk about I'm here, Mike's here.
Speaker 1: You know, our player development people are are over here.
Speaker 1: Just just anything um that you need. But you know,
Speaker 1: we're also here to win football games, and so you
Speaker 1: know they've they've got to keep you know, the eye
Speaker 1: on the prize. But at the same time, again have
Speaker 1: that sympathetic shoulder because he's your young men who are
Speaker 1: gonna need it for a lot of things going on
Speaker 1: in their lives. Awesome, Steve, thank you so much for
Speaker 1: the time on the Official Jets podcast. Were really appreciate it.
Speaker 1: Thank you guys, point as an Unsen and Bet