I agree with Politi's thoughts here.


I love the line:


Maybe it’s time, in light of their apparent decision to pursue Peyton Manning, for the Jets to put their true franchise philosophy into writing and hang it on the side of their training complex:


“The New York Jets: Committed to -- oooh, look at the shiny thing over there!"

Politi: Pursuit of Peyton Manning would be typical of flawed Jets

Published: Wednesday, March 07, 2012, 12:52 PM Updated: Wednesday, March 07, 2012, 1:42 PM


By Steve Politi/Star-Ledger Columnist The Star-Ledger




Peyton Manning has been cut by the Colts, officially making him a free agent.
Maybe it’s time, in light of their apparent decision to pursue Peyton Manning, for the Jets to put their true franchise philosophy into writing and hang it on the side of their training complex:

“The New York Jets: Committed to -- oooh, look at the shiny thing over there!"

Because you really have to wonder about this franchise today, as they entertain the idea of scrapping their last bold plan three years into the process for their next bold plan.

Who are the Jets? Does anyone know?

Do they know?

They went from the outspoken players’ coach who played to win the game, to the paranoid Bill Belichick clone who shredded practice reports, to the outspoken players’ coach who wasn’t going to kiss anyone’s rings.

They went from the homegrown quarterback they invested years developing, to the future Hall of Famer on the last legs of his career, to the homegrown quarterback they invested years developing.

Are they really trying to go back to the future Hall of Famer on the last legs of his career?

From Herm Edwards to Eric Mangini to Rex Ryan. From Chad Pennington to Brett Favre to Mark Sanchez to, maybe, Peyton Manning. The question isn’t if this is the best move for the Jets. It’s if the Jets have any idea what the best move for the Jets is any more.


Just about any team would want the guy as the face of the franchise, and after watching his farewell press conference, it’s easy to see why. It was equal parts earnest and magnanimous.

When he nearly broke down praising “the best equipment guys in the world,” you knew that if your mother was the general manager of the team, she’d have already traded everyone to get him.

“We all know that nothing lasts forever,” Manning said. “Times change, circumstances change, and that's the reality of playing in the NFL.”

He said he hadn’t given any thought to where he might end up, but at this stage of his career, you’d have to think he’d crave the stability he had for all those years in Indianapolis, something the Jets lack.

The top franchises in the NFL are the ones with a strong identity. You know exactly what the Patriots are. You know exactly what the Steelers are. You know -- and you knew this was coming, Jets fans -- exactly what the Giants are.

They are organizations committed to a direction and a philosophy, who do things in a certain way because they believe it’s the right way. They are predictable for a reason. They’re also the most consistent winners in the league.

The Jets, meanwhile, are like the college senior that changes majors because a cute coed signs up for a class. They had a pretty good plan for three years, then scrap it before they see it to the end.

Because, for all his warts, Mark Sanchez was a pretty good plan. Trading up to select him with the fifth overall pick in the 2009 draft is still one of the bolder and smarter moves this franchise has made.

They saw what happened with Favre, how his body had betrayed him at the end, how he wasn’t totally committed to the franchise after a lifetime in Green Bay. Manning, 35, is younger than Favre was. He was a better quarterback in his prime, but he’s past those days now.

He might be great again in his return. He might be damaged goods after all those neck surgeries. If that’s a 50/50 proposition, then it’s no better than the Jets might get with Sanchez.

Sanchez, without a decent running game or a true down-field threat, completed 56.7 percent of his passes last season for 3,474 yards, 26 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. He was not good enough to elevate a flawed Jets team that finished 8-8 and out of the postseason.

The team made the right decision to bring in a new offensive coordinator, Tony Sparano, in hopes a new voice will help his development. Finding him another reliable target, preferably one that won’t pull a Santonio Holmes and quit on the season, should be the next priority.

You can say Sanchez has been coddled, or that he hasn’t lived up to expectations, or even that he regressed last season. But you can’t say that he’s failed -- not yet, at least, after just three seasons (and two AFC Championship Game appearances on his résumé, in case anyone has forgotten).

He should be the starter next season. For the Jets to scrap the plan now and chase Peyton Manning, the latest shiny thing, would be so … well, so totally like them, come to think of it.

Steve Politi: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]; Twitter: @StevePoliti.


© 2012 NJ.com. All rights reserved.

I am with Politi on this one too Rick...

Still nervous about Manning landing in Miami though. The Jets are between a rock and a hard place here.

Everybody knows it's a gamble, a BIG gamble, but you don't want him and Brady both in your division (on other teams).

Reminds me of some of the moves the Yankees and Red Sox made in recent years.

"We may not really need this guy, but we cant let them get him!"

Can't believe the Jets are actually being mentioned as a possible destination. Would be one of the more terrible moves in a half century of terrible moves by the Jets.

It's good to see that I am not the only one who thinks this would be a bad idea. I mentally ascribed 2013 as a deadline for those who want this move to be calling for someone's head when it simply does not work out.

I think this idea is worse than the Brett Favre thing. At least Brett Favre was mostly just old...Manning is getting old and is extremely fragile.

“The New York Jets: Committed to -- oooh, look at the shiny thing over there!"

Haha...I love this! So true.

lirok wrote:How about we stay the course and give the kid a shot with this new OC ? Fortify the O-line, beef up the defense and see what happens.

I agree Rock. If he doesn't improve this year, I think that will have been enough time for him to prove himself.

Like most of you, I think the best course is to use the cap $$ you'd have to create to get Manning and plug the holes they have, and to see if Sanchez will indeed be the QB of the future. He needs to prove that this next season (or at least show signs that he is making improvmeents). I would love to see PM QB my team - one of the best I have watched given what he has been surrounded with for much of his career - but it just doesn't seem like it could work financially. And his neck would always be a concern.

Although, I would love to know EXACTLY what it would take, in terms of players released, guaranteed $$ to him, etc to see if I would be onboard with that. I suspect we'll never get to know.

I'm sure we all want him as far away from Miami as possible. That would not be good. Although the circus type atmosphere of the ownership doesn't seem to mesh with his style.

Let's assume he is healthy and can play at a high level:

I have no idea what their salary cap situation is, but if I'm the Niners I make a big push for him. That defense is ferocious. I feel they'd win multiple rings with him. But they were also one idiotic punt returner away from being in the Super Bowl as is, so maybe they don't want to disrupt that (they say they aren't interested). Seattle also makes sense - they have a decent cast around a below average QB today. Would he go to the Cards? Not sure, perhaps becuase of Fitz. I don't think he'd go anywhere near Dan Snyder and the Skins. Browns? He's not signing with them...

If I picked a landing spot today, I'd say Seattle

MrBlonde49 wrote:


If I picked a landing spot today, I'd say Seattle

Hey, Ted, nice to see you here!

Seattle definitely needs a QB, however, for a guy whose had tremendous success playing indoors, I'm not sure he'd want to finish his career in a place where the weather is cool and rainy. I'm thinking Arizona or Miami.

Off topic just a minute, to shout out a HOWDY to Rock. Good to see the board picking up, and seeing old faces (well, not OLD, maybe EXPERIENCED faces) from AOL.

Like I said today, best case, when we would build a team so Manning would be comfortable and back to his old form, he'd be retired. Age and injury are bad enough if you work behind a desk, and it can't be good behind a line in the NFL.

lirok wrote:I think Arizona is perfect for him. Nowhere near Miami. Don't want to face him and Brady 4 times a year.

It's going to be hard for the Jets to pass up a chance to sign Manning. They should sign him and then try to get a 1st rd pick for Sanchez. Also, with or without Manning the Jets still need to get a good backup QB.

wassejet wrote:Can't believe the Jets are actually being mentioned as a possible destination. Would be one of the more terrible moves in a half century of terrible moves by the Jets.

If the Jets do get Manning I hope people don't compare it to when they got Farve. Manning is an all time great. Manning doesn't take many sacks and he makes way better decisions than Farve. Farve has put up good stats but he's one of the most overrated player in NFL history.