Just how poor was this season for the New York Jets? Well WR Brandon Marshall used the single most-extreme analogy I have ever heard used against the Jets, so extreme that it makes you laugh as well as cry.
"The best way I can describe it is, having a diaper on and never changing it. And just sitting in that diaper the whole year. That's how our year was. It was a bad year.”
Ouch.
I cannot even get into breaking down the analogy but it felt…accurate? Not good, any time an apology like that actually rings true? Not good.
According to Marshall, and others, Week 3 was the breaking point, saying that in Week 3 the Media was asking if Coach Todd Bowles would make it through the season, and that started to divide the locker room.
Marshall himself also crossed teammates the wrong way multiple times this season with half-time, pregame, and postgame rants that divided the locker room.
DE Sheldon Richardson was very outspokenly against Marshall and it even trickled into the Media, following that fateful Week 3, that Richardson and Marshall had to be restrained in the locker room following an altercation on the sideline.
Richardson did not mince words given the opportunity, saying, “(he) should be embarrassed.” When pressed, he chose not elaborate, but did say, “he knows what he did…the cat finally showed it true colors.”
This is troubling, to have two “Team Captains” trading jabs in the tabloids, and in physically in the locker room.
Not for nothing, but with the lack of effort Sheldon Richardson put forth this season, I am not remotely surprised that Sheldon was took Marshall’s comments personally, because he single-handedly showed the least amount of effort on defense out of any individual player this season; and he probably knows it.
Let’s also not forget: in training camp, Brandon Marshall and CB Darrelle Revis almost took each other’s head’s off during drills.
There was the whole Quarterback Controversy which had veterans wanting to stick with embattled QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, and then had to show support for QB Geno Smith (who ended on IR), and then were forced to play behind second-year man out of Baylor, Bryce Petty.
Allegiance was spread all over the place, with personalities clashing on each side of the locker room.
Overall, the season was brutal from the get-go, training camp had injuries and a contract stalemate, Revis was already talking about moving to safety, and it was our first year without LT D’Brickashaw Ferguson.
This year was destined to fail from the onset, especially looking at the way the schedule unfolded in the first eight weeks of the season.
Additional Stat: Jets used 75 players in uniform this year, which is tied for most in NFL history.
Yeesh. A lot of work is ahead for the now-retained GM Mike Maccagnan and Head Coach Todd Bowles.