Poor TE blocking, Poole’s big game, DL dirty work – Jets film takeaways from Week 3

Michael Nania looks back at some overlooked moments - both good and bad - from the New York Jets in their 30-14 Week 3 loss to New England. Ryan Griffin's blocking Ryan Griffin found his niche in the Jets offense as a receiver - I sang his praises in that department yesterday. However, his lack of ability as a blocker was a major detriment to the Jets running game. There were a few examples in the team's blowout loss to New England. On this play, Griffin takes too hard of an outside angle against Kyle Van Noy, who is standing up wide of the edge. Van Noy throws a hump move to use Griffin's momentum against him, winning to the inside. What could have been a huge running lane for Le'Veon Bell is clogged, and Bell is forced to cut back into traffic. No gain. Griffin had a natural advantage with Van Noy lined up so far out wide, but could not take advantage. Envision what this picture would look like if Griffin had sealed Van Noy outside. Bell would have had an enormous lane with one man to beat. Griffin made the same exact mistake against Van Noy later in the game, leading to a five-yard loss for Bell. This time, Van Noy simply side-steps inside rather than using physicality, which is clearly an adjustment based on his awareness of how Griffin attempted to block him earlier. Always keep in mind how essential a role that tight ends play in the running game. The effectiveness of their block is just as important as that of each individual on the offensive line. Finding sustained success on the ground takes a high-quality effort from everybody. Brian Poole's big game Brian Poole stood out as the clear best player on the field for the Jets in this game. His click-and-close finishing ability was on full display in both phases. Poole breaks perfectly on this drag route by Josh Gordon, cutting him down for a gain of just three yards with none after the catch. The accuracy of the pursuit - Poole lays his shoulder directly into Gordon's thigh/knee - coupled with his speed make this a crushing shot. Poole anticipates the wide receiver's cut block and easily dodges it, getting in on the tackle to limit this screen play to three yards. Poole was one of the league's best run-stuffing cornerbacks, ranking at the 93rd percentile with a run stop percentage of 3.6% (8 stops on 224 run defense snaps). He shows why on this next play. Check out the recognition from Poole. He bolts for the box with no hesitation, identifying almost immediately that a handoff is coming. By the time Sony Michel took the ball, Poole had already advanced three yards. The slot receiver has no chance of laying a hand on him. Poole shoots the gap and finishes low to hold Michel to no gain. Foley Fatukasi and Steve McLendon's dirty work Two other Jets deserve a lot of praise on that play which was statistically credited to Poole. Firstly, lay your eyes upon the beastliness of Steve McLendon. From the 2i-tech, McLendon draws a double-team from the center and the right guard - tossing the center to the ground with ferocity. McLendon's absolute manhandling of the center forces the right guard to stay attached to him rather than peeling off and searching for other threats, which opens up the giant lane for Poole. Michel runs into a sturdy brick wall that allows Poole to cut him down from an essential stand-still. Why? In addition to McLendon, Foley Fatukasi. From the 3-tech, Fatukasi crashes down against the left guard (hyped Jets free agent target and star Joe Thuney). The left tackle assists before heading to the second level, but Fatukasi stays upright and holds his ground tremendously, moving Thuney to the point of attack without giving up an inch. As Michel attacks the A-gap off of the counter action, Thuney is but an obstacle. This rep is a great example of the sheer strength that Fatukasi has. The left tackle's block has Fatukasi's right leg in the air - yet Fatukasi is still able to hold up against one of the best guards in football. That play demonstrates perfectly how the interior defensive line's dirty work can create plays for others - and there may not be a team with better dirty-workers on the inside than the Jets.