Start filing away a mental note on one thing to remember about this 2006 Jets franchise. We can envision a future trivia question. What NFL team has started the most amount of different quarterbacks? That future trivia question will soon be the 2006 New York Jets. The Jets may have zero fantasy football value this season, in fact.
Herman Edwards was quick to dart away from the Kansas City Chiefs without any complaints. He knew the road the Jets were traveling and where the Chiefs are, as well. That's two different directions, and the Jets are the ones pacing backwards. Every year, something is going wrong with their offense. Just a couple of years ago, their team seemed bright and destined to take on the New England Patriots. Now they're soon to be a team in a serious transformation phase with questions all over the place.
It all started with Chad Pennington's injuries. Two years in a row, he has went down with a shoulder injury and some think he may never recover. He already had a weak arm before the injuries, and seeing how his arm can hold up all season will be a hard test. They'll have to lessen the load on his arm, which may be hard considering the Jets may not have Curtis Martin.
Martin's knees are so bad right now that he hasn't been able to respond to the offseason workout treatments. You hate to see a guy leave the game like this, but that appears to be where Martin is headed. Unfortunately for the Jets, they decided to unleash Lamont Jordan last year after keeping him around for a great length of time. He sure would be great to have now.
To find some insurance in case Martin can't play, the Jets went after Lee Suggs. Sugg is a capable back that the Jets felt comfortable trading for, only to see him fail his physical and leave the Jets still searching for a back. There are many names out there that the Jets may go after, including T.J. Duckett or even a Travis Henry. Whoever it is, they may want to come up with an ailment upon physical as the Jets are going to be horrific. The one bright side for any running back joining the team would be the Jets' first-round pick, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, who'll have plenty of runs on his side of the line.
From a fantasy standpoint, the Jets actually have no one worth looking at for the first six rounds of a fantasy draft. In fact, you could stretch it out even further for people still worried about Laveranues Coles and his turf toe problems. As wild as it may sound, the Jets may have zero fantasy value for the upcoming season.
At quarterback, the answer could be Chad Pennington, Patrick Ramsey, or Kellen Clemons. None of which should be taken in a fantasy football draft, and may not be considered even as a waiver wire pickup when a starter is named. At running back, Curtis Martin is still being taken in drafts based on his past 11 years, but people need to move on. The likelihood of Martin stepping on the field this season is looking doubtful, and if he does, he will likely have zero fantasy impact.
That leaves the wide receivers. A group that would be better off with Santana Moss, but, oh wait, they traded him for Coles. A very smart move by the Jets front office. Really, though, Coles should bounce back somewhat as he has played his best with Chad Pennington as his quarterback.
Behind Coles was supposed to be Justin McCareins, but he has reportedly fallen off as a starting receiver, possibly to the point of being traded, as the Jets are extremely disappointed with him. That would move up Jerricho Cotchery or Tim Dwight as the starting opposite receiver of Coles. Don't we all smell an offense that has 2006 Pro Bowlers names all over it?
There is truly no hope for this franchise. It may be a good thing that the New York fans can continue to have a big appearance at the NFL draft every year in New York City since they will be having top-five picks for years to come.
Zack Cimini is a guest columnist and is the founder and editor-in-chief of NotJustaAame.com, a fantasy sports site dedicated to helping fantasy sports players succeed.
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