Jets News

"The Jets and representatives for their first-round pick, pass-rushing linebacker Vernon Gholston, are close to a deal that could put Gholston on the practice field as early as today or tomorrow. Gholston, who is in New York, is said to be eager to report, especially after he missed nearly all of the offseason program because he had to wait until his class at Ohio State finished out the semester. He was the No. 6 pick in April's draft. The stumbling block in contract talks is that Gholston's camp wants a five-year deal and the Jets want six, according to someone with knowledge of the negotiations. That person spoke on condition of anonymity because he's not authorized to speak publicly ..."

"The Jets, doing their best to forget the 4-12 mess from a year ago, convene for the start of training-camp two-a-days this morning, with the first session set to begin at 8:45. With a September move to their new facility in Florham Park looming, this will mark their final training camp at Hofstra in Hempstead. When the Jets break camp at the end of next month, they'll be headed to New Jersey. As of last night, there was no news on the contract status of Vernon Gholston, the Jets' top draft pick, though Jet GM Mike Tannenbaum has a history of getting his draft picks into camp on time. Gholston's agent, Ben Dogra, did not return several calls yesterday. However, Gholston, the sixth overall ..."

"Trying to savor an NFL training camp isn't easy, even if you're not wearing pads and a helmet. Even for those neutral observers on the sideline, it's a matter of coping with the heat and humidity while watching individual plays, appropriately called reps. The repetitiveness of it becomes mind-numbing after a while. But when the Jets' 41st training camp at Hofstra University begins Thursday, it will have a slightly different feel than the ones before it. That's because it will be the last one at the Hempstead, N.Y., college."

"One year ago Eric Mangini stepped onto the podium at the NFL combine and announced Chad Pennington would be the Jets' starting quarterback. He did not repeat the performance Thursday. While the Jets' coach still exhibited a liking for his more experienced signal-caller, he said the competition for the starting job will be open between Pennington and Kellen Clemens in 2008. "We will be able to look at that season during OTAs, training camp and the preseason games," Mangini said, "and then make the evaluation about what gives us the best chance to win." Mangini dismissed any thought Pennington might be traded by saying he likes his attitude and what he brings to the ..."

"The Jets yesterday signed free-agent defensive back Ahmad Carroll and waived defensive back Nate Lyles. Carroll, 5-10, 190 pounds, spent the 2008 season with the Arena Football League's Orlando Predators, starting 15 of 16 games with 68 total tackles (60 solo), three fumble recoveries and an interception."

"Some Giants and Jets season ticketholders have muttered lately that there ought to be a law against the teams charging fans for “personal seat licenses.” Now state Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone is threatening to do just that. It may be a longshot, but Chiappone, D-Bayonne — a lifelong Giants fan — said today that he plans to introduce legislation when the Assembly returns this fall that would prohibit any New Jersey team from issuing the seat licenses, known as PSLs."

"Disgruntled tight end Chris Baker reported to Jets training camp over the weekend, but he won't take part in the team's first practice Thursday. The Jets placed Baker on the Active/Physically Unable to Perform list yesterday but didn't announce his injury. Baker tweaked his back after the first minicamp practice in June after boycotting the team's voluntary workouts in a contract dispute. Baker, who didn't have offseason surgery and didn't appear seriously injured at minicamp, is unhappy with his contract. He blasted the team on a daily basis during minicamp and was expected to do the same during training camp and become a huge distraction."

"The Pete Kendall-esque staredown between the Jets and disgruntled tight end Chris Baker took another ugly turn yesterday when the club placed him on the Physically Unable to Perform list, meaning he will not be joining his teammates on the field when training camp begins Thursday. If he were to remain on the list once the regular season begins, he would be stuck there for six weeks. Baker, who missed the last two practices of minicamp last month with a sore back, has blasted the Jets over what he maintains is a broken promise regarding his contract, which has two years remaining."

"Chris Baker hurt his back and will not play during the opening day of traning camp on Thursday. Tight end Chris Baker, who made a pay-me-or-trade-me demand last month in minicamp, won't be in uniform when the Jets open training camp Thursday at Hofstra. Baker, bothered by a sore back, Monday was placed on the physically-unable-to-perform list. That means he can't practice until he passes the team physical. The injury isn't believed to be serious."

"This is nothing like the Baltimore Colts, who sneaked out of town in the middle of the night, but the moving vans are coming this way, anyway. They'll line up outside Weeb Ewbank Hall and form a caravan that will snake its way over the George Washington Bridge, into New Jersey to a place called Flor.ham Park, not to be confused with Floral Park. Yep, pretty soon, the Jets will wake up and realize they're not in Hempstead anymore. Nor Long Island, for that matter, the place they've called home through many decades and two leagues. They began holding training camp on the Hofstra campus in 1968, the year of the Guarantee, and will cease permanently in a few weeks. Everything's moving to ..."

"There will be questions about the free agents fitting in, the rookies doing the same, the ebb and flow of various position battles and the potential distraction of a tight end unhappy with his contract. But Jets coach Eric Mangini knows the combined queries provoked by those topics will approach the number he gets on a singular topic: Who the heck is going to start at quarterback, Chad Pennington or Kellen Clemens? "I get a lot of questions over and over again," Mangini said last week with a smile. "That's OK, it has to be asked. I appreciate that. It's a passionate group of fans, and they want to know, and I totally understand that.""

"WHAT'S DIFFERENT? The gap between the Jets and the Patriots, seemingly narrowed during coach Eric Mangini's first season, is as wide as ever. Still, few can match the Jets' free-agent signings and the lineup Mangini will put onto the field at the start of the regular season will be markedly different than the one that finished last year's 4-12 campaign."

"As the Jets prepare to begin training camp on Thursday at Hofstra University -- their final camp at the Long Island school -- coach Eric Mangini finds himself entering a new world haunted by one nagging question. Going into his third season as Jets coach, Mangini is coming off his first losing season since 2000, when he was with the Patriots. The Jets finished 4-12 last year, a crash-and-burn that shocked the organization and sparked major changes."

"It would be understandable to look at the 4-12 Jets, by and large a boring team with zero playmakers, and assume that this is a franchise in rebuilding mode. A team committed to youth, patience and long-term solutions. If only the Jets were correctly taking this approach, going after a quick fix like Brett Favre would be totally misguided. In reality, the Jets think of themselves in a different way. Panicking after a disastrous '07, and fearing that an almost always frustrated fan base was about to turn on them, Mike Tannenbaum and Eric Mangini, who had eschewed big-name players, decided to change their approach, doling out huge contracts to veterans. Bizarrely, the Jets are ..."

"Everybody has questions. How soon can quarterbacks Matt Ryan and Joe Flacco start in Atlanta and Baltimore? Where does Brett Favre play in 2008, if he plays at all? Is there another team such as the New York Giants that will come out of the shadows at playoff time to seize the Super Bowl? There are no ready answers in July and August. Training camp is a time to grind, but it's also a time for optimism. Let's set the stage for the NFL's 89th season."

"Yes, the Bears have some issues as they head into training camp this week. But they are not alone. Each of the 32 teams in the NFL will be trying to answer deep questions, tie together loose ends and bury ghosts of the past. Here is a look at the other 31:"

"When the Jets arrive en masse for the opening of training camp this week, they'll hardly look like a team coming off a 4-12 season trudging into the heat of summer two-a-days. There's a bounce to the Jets' step - a bounce that was evident during their offseason workouts, OTAs and minicamp. This has not looked like a team whose destiny is more losing. Eric Mangini's upbeat and always fresh approach, mixed intricately with a heavy dose of discipline, is a part of keeping the players' attitudes well adjusted. So, too, does an offseason of maneuvering that has a chance to catapult the Jets into one of the most improved teams in the NFL in 2008."

"They're not calling you a genius anymore, not after 4-12. Your owner still likes you, but he doled out $140 million for new players and, with a new stadium to market, he wants a winner."

"The Jets yesterday signed tight end Dustin Keller, the second of their two first-round draft picks. Terms of the deal, which is likely to be five years, were not immediately known. That leaves only former Ohio State linebacker Vernon Gholston, the Jets' top first-round pick, the sixth overall selection in the draft, unsigned."

"Quarterback Erik Ainge, who threw 51 touchdown passes in his four seasons at the University of Tennessee, was signed yesterday. The team also announced the signing of free-agent offensive lineman Kyle DeVan, who helped Oregon State's offense average 371.6 yards per game last fall and was an honorable mention all-Pac-10 selection. Linebacker Vernon Gholston and tight end Dustin Keller, both first-rounders, are the team's only unsigned draft picks."

"The New England Patriots didn't do much this off-season, which is why not much has changed in the American Football Conference. New England did lose All-Pro cornerback Asante Samuel, but otherwise looks like the same team that went 16-0 last season. The Patriots have won 20 regular-season games in a row, dating to a 21-0 loss at Miami on Dec. 10, 2006. They have broken their own NFL record of 18 consecutive victories set in 2003-04. The Indianapolis Colts, the San Diego Chargers and the Jacksonville Jaguars didn't change much in the off-season, either, which is why they are given the best shots to challenge the Patriots for AFC supremacy this season."

"The Jets will not go after Brett Favre if the Packers decide to release him. Brett Favre came much closer to being a Jet in 1991 than he will in 2008. They have virtually ruled out pursuing him if the Packers trade or release him"

"To make sure there are no more signal-stealing scandals like the one involving the New England Patriots last season, the NFL has hired Pennsylvania's police chief. Col. Jeffrey Miller was appointed to the new post of director of strategic security today and begins work Aug. 18. His job will involve overseeing everything from pregame security screening for people entering stadiums to ensuring that team signals are not intercepted by opponents through electronic bugging or other devices."

"The Jets yesterday signed free agent safety Cameron Worrell, a five-year NFL veteran who spent the 2007 season with the Dolphins, playing in 12 games, making seven starts and 56 tackles. Worrell originally entered the NFL with the Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2003, appearing in 46 games in four seasons for the Bears and recording 20 tackles, two sacks, and two fumble recoveries on defense along with 45 special teams tackles."

"The Jets made several front-office moves official yesterday, including the hiring of Scott Cohen as an assistant general manager. Cohen was the directory of player personnel with the Eagles for seven seasons, and will assist Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum. The move frees up Terry Bradway, who is the senior personnel executive after four years as GM and executive vice president. He will be less tied to the office and can do more regional scouting."

"The relationship between the Jets and disgruntled tight end Chris Baker is deteriorating by the day. The club hit Baker with a $3,000 fine for missing an injury-treatment session at last week's mandatory minicamp, his agent, Jonathan Feinsod, confirmed Wednesday night. Baker will appeal, contending he did what was required. Baker, who boycotted voluntary workouts during the offseason because he's unhappy with his contract, showed up for minicamp and "tweaked something" in his back during warmups on the second day."

"At one point during the Jets' spring minicamp last week, Kerry Rhodes reacted to a hip-hop song played on the loudspeaker with a between-plays shimmy before the action resumed. The Jets want the fourth-year strong safety to set the tempo for the defense this season, and not just with his moves. With his words, too. The trade of linebacker Jonathan Vilma to New Orleans on Feb. 29 left the Jets without the player who had been the face of the defense since his rookie season in 2004. It's now up to Rhodes, his close friend, to fill that void."

"The testy tight end spent yesterday's mini-camp practices on a stationary bike after tweaking his back. But he would not talk about the injury, as per coach Eric Mangini's mandate. He was more talkative on other subjects, though. For the second day in a row, he ripped Jet management, which he said promised would rework his contract after last season and didn't... "My advice to guys would be if you're going to do anything, as far as with this organization, get it in writing, because things may be said with a wink and then the next thing you know they say something has been misconstrued."

"On day 2 of the Chris Baker soap opera, the tight end's bulky back tightened up. But his lips remained looser than ever. Claiming he had "tweaked something" in the morning warmups, the disgruntled Baker sat out both minicamp practices Friday at Hofstra, fueling speculation that he feigned the injury to send a message to the Jets. Baker scoffed at such a notion, defending his toughness by revealing that he played last season with an aching back that required three pain-killing injections."

"The Dallas County Medical Examiner has released a preliminary finding of suicide in the surprising death of convicted steroid dealer David Jacobs, describing two ?self-inflicted? gunshot wounds, one in the abdomen and another in the head. Jacobs, 35, was found dead in the early morning hours of Thursday in his Plano, Texas home, where he mixed raw materials imported from China into the potent drugs he claims he sold to NFL players. Law-enforcement officials initially investigated the case as a double homicide. Also found dead of gunshot wounds, alongside Jacobs, was his on-again, off-again fianc?e Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell, a fitness model. The medical examiner has not finalized a ..."

"The Jets and disgruntled tight end Chris Baker are heading down Route 66. Hold on, it's going to be a bumpy ride. In a virtual replay of Pete Kendall's minicamp rant from last year - No. 66 in your old program - Baker got down and dirty Thursday at Hofstra, painting the front office as a group of serial liars when it comes to dealing with players who want new contracts. He was the third player in 12 months to claim the organization reneged on a promise to renegotiate."

"We've all seen this movie before. A Jets New York Jets player is unhappy with his contract situation and the team is completely ignoring him. The player skips the voluntary offseason programs but turns up for the first day of mandatory minicamp and publicly spouts off about his displeasure with the organization. No, Pete Kendall was nowhere near Weeb Ewbank Hall yesterday... Yesterday was Chris Baker's turn, and the whole thing is eerily familiar."

"Abram Elam leaned forward, covered his face with his hands and clenched his body to stop the shaking. He wiped the tears running down both cheeks with tissues. Through the silence came the occasional muffled sob. Elam had just finished an interview, the first since his brother’s murder last month and the first time he had spoken in depth about the dangerous neighborhood he grew up in and his family history, including the three siblings murdered, gone. “I would never have been able to script this,” the 26-year-old Elam said. “I would never want to see someone lose a loved one. I lost three in this life.”"

"A convicted steroid dealer who provided documentary evidence and testimony to N.F.L. officials last month that tied several players to the use of performance-enhancing drugs was found shot to death Thursday morning at his home in Plano, Tex., the police said. David Jacobs, who pleaded guilty to federal steroid distribution charges last year, began cooperating with N.F.L. officials shortly after he was sentenced to probation in May. He was found dead at his home with his girlfriend, Amanda Jo Earhart-Savell, who had also been shot."

"Tight end Chris Baker ripped Jets management Thursday, bringing an air of familiarity to the first minicamp practice. This follows the Pete Kendall controversy last year, when Kendall, a guard, argued with management about his contract and was eventually traded to the Redskins before the season opener. Baker connected Kendall’s leaving with the Jets’ 4-12 record. “His situation was ridiculous,” Baker said. “It basically tanked our season last year. It looks like we’re going down the same road.”"

"While Tony Richardson was surveying the free-agent market, signing with the Jets became a no-brainer. While Eric Mangini was surveying the market, signing Richardson became a no-brainer, too. Had one of those dating matchmakers matched up Mangini and Richardson in its compatibility computer, smoke would have been coming out of the sides of the terminal. Richardson, a sage 14th-year fullback who played 11 seasons in Kansas City and the last two in Minnesota, might as well have invented the "core values" Mangini has preached. And Richardson represents the exact football leader Mangini craves - one who instills discipline, structure and vision."

"Just like Kendall, who skipped the Jets' offseason "voluntary" activities, Baker has every intention of being in camp tomorrow, a friend of his told The Post yesterday. Baker, who in an exclusive interview with The Post during the NFL draft in April revealed he was promised by management that the contract would be reworked, was unavailable for comment yesterday. Coach Eric Mangini says there's "a difference of opinion" between Baker and the team. Baker's agent, Jonathan Feinsod, was unavailable yesterday as well."

"NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has worked hard to bring his players' behavior under control. Or at least as much under control as possible. Now, he is turning his attention to fan behavior, saying last week he is working with teams on ways to bring out-of-line fans in line and make games more enjoyable for all fans. Details of how the commish plans to do this are forthcoming, but we thought we'd offer our help in the form of these 10 recommendations:"

"Eric Mangini went home again yesterday. As he's done for the last six years on the first Saturday after Memorial Day, Mangini was roaming the urban playing fields at his alma mater, Bulkeley High School, which sits right in the shadows of the Hartford skyline. You couldn't see it on his face as he smiled and interacted with the 700 kids from 71 high schools and four states at his annual Carmine and Frank Mangini Foundation's Football Fundamentals Mini-Camp - but Mangini is a coach who's just three months away from the most important coaching season of his life following the 4-12 Jets mess in 2007."

"It's an all-too-familiar story: Player receives big contract, seemingly shifts into cruise control and his production suffers. It happened last season to the Jets' Bryan Thomas. That's not speculation - it's fact, according to Thomas, who openly questioned his 2007 commitment. Admitting that "maybe I got too complacent," an unusually candid Thomas delivered a stinging self-evaluation Thursday at Hofstra. The seventh-year outside linebacker doesn't believe money was the root of his decline - he received a lucrative contract extension near the end of the 2006 season - but he conceded that he "slacked off on a lot of things.""

"The numbers show it, the Jets certainly felt it, and Bryan Thomas admits it. After getting a $25 million contract at the end of the 2006 season, Thomas' play definitely dropped in 2007. "I feel like I slacked off," Thomas said today during the Jets' organized team activities. "Going into the first year of this defense, I felt pretty good. Last year, I felt like I slacked off a lot. There were a lot of things I didn't do that I was supposed to do as far as the pass rush, the running game; in both of those areas I slacked."

"Bryan Thomas didn't need to be told he had a poor season last year. He didn't need the coaches, media or fans to point out his lack of production. He, too, insisted after yesterday's Organized Team Activities (OTA) practice that he didn't need the Jets' signing of Calvin Pace or drafting of Vernon Gholston to know he's on the clock in 2008."

"Thomas Jones was brought in last year to anchor the Jets' running game, and after a season in which he rushed for 1,119 yards but only one touchdown, the spotlight will again be on him - especially after the team signed linemen Alan Faneca and Damien Woody. "I'm ready to run behind whoever is in front of me," Jones said after another organized team activity (OTA) yesterday. "I'm looking forward to playing behind those guys, because I've seen what they can do." But Jones is now part of a crowded backfield that became even more cluttered this week with the signing of former Raven Musa Smith, who, along with the returning Leon Washington and newcomer Jesse Chatman, could all vie for ..."

"Eric Mangini said today he's keeping Vernon Gholston up to date even though the first-round pick can't join the Jets until the end of next week. Gholston, the sixth overall pick in April's NFL Draft, has to wait because league rules state rookies aren't allowed to participate until their class graduates, or complete their finals and have permission from the school."

"The Jets continued their concerted effort to load up on the running game yesterday when they signed yet another running back - former Ravens back Musa Smith, a player they've had an eye on all offseason. The 25-year-old Smith, a 232-pound bruiser who played five seasons with the Ravens but started only one game, could figure as fullback help. The Smith signing represents yet another move toward improving a running game that scared few opponents last season."

"Kerry Rhodes has no desire to dance with the stars, but he'd sure like to be one. The Jets' talented safety, nicknamed "Hollywood" by his teammates, has made no secret of his ambition to pursue a post-football career in show business. But, unlike the dancing Dolphin - Jason Taylor - Rhodes has devoted his entire offseason to football. That represents a departure from last year, when it seemed like he was always in front of a camera, either filming a movie or modeling for a magazine spread."

"That wasn't the beginning of a solar eclipse that Chad Pennington was witnessing as he peered over center across the line of scrimmage in yesterday's offseason practice at Hofstra. It was Kris Jenkins. "You just see a massive wall in front of you," Pennington said. "There's not a lot of wiggle room there." The 6-foot-4, 360-pound Jenkins is what the Jets hope is the answer to the nose tackle dilemma that has plagued their defense since coach Eric Mangini took the reins and installed his 3-4 defensive scheme."

"Alan Faneca leaned forward at left guard, same mop of red hair sneaking out of the helmet, same No. 66 stretched across the jersey, same physics lesson delivered after each snap: force = mass (x) acceleration. Football felt familiar and felt new, often both at the same time. Familiar because Faneca spent his career dominating that same position. New because Faneca used to do so in Pittsburgh, before going green and signing with the Jets as a free agent this off-season."

"Eric Mangini steadfastly avoids talking about Spygate, and that didn't change at yesterday's charity bowling function at Chelsea Piers. But no matter how long the scandal drags on, the Jet coach insists it's no distraction, and praises NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. "It's been around for a little while now," Mangini said. "It's something that I believe is a league matter. I've treated it as a league matter, and I really respect the commissioner and the decision that he makes, and I'll continue to do that."

"David Jacobs, a convicted steroids dealer from Plano, Tex., provided documentary evidence to N.F.L. officials on Wednesday that his lawyer said tied several players to the use of performance-enhancing drugs. Henry E. Hockeimer Jr., Jacobs’s lawyer, said his client gave e-mails, canceled checks and other records to N.F.L. officials at a meeting in the Dallas area. Jacobs, who was sentenced to probation on May 1 for distributing banned substances, has said that he provided two players with steroids and human growth hormone, and that they would then supply other players."