JET NOTES
Herman Edwards yesterday noted that he’s been taking significant steps toward improving the Jets’ poor in-game clock management, something that has haunted them on numerous occasions in the last three seasons.
“I’ll tell you this right now and you can write it,” Edwards said. “There ain’t no timeouts being called in first and third quarters. You don’t get to call timeout in any odd quarter. The only person who can call one is me. Is that 100 percent? No, but it’ll be about 98 percent.
“You call timeouts in second and fourth quarter, with five minutes or less to play. That’s going to be a standard rule and that’s what we’ll live by, period. We ain’t wasting them.”
Edwards said part of his “streamlining” program in this area is putting together detailed charts with various scenarios on them so that all of the coaches and players know what to do when the situations arise.
Last season, the Jets called six timeouts in the first and third quarters and five timeouts with at least eight minutes remaining in the fourth quarters. On most of those occasions, those timeouts were called as a result of confusion, wrong personnel in the game or the coaches taking too long to get a play into the huddle.
This season, Edwards plans to utilize senior offensive assistant/special projects Dick Curl on the sideline during games to help him with the clock management.
“We won’t go through as many channels as we did last year,” Edwards said. “Will we get them all perfect now? No, but we’ll be better at it.”
*
Jet center Kevin Mawae left the morning practice early with a sore back and sat out the afternoon session.
RB LaMont Jordan, the subject of many trade rumors this offseason, was excused from work yesterday to be at a wedding.
“LaMont wasn’t out there, but he wasn’t traded,” Edwards joked.
*
Among the players who’ve stood out the first couple of practices this weekend included newcomer WR Justin McCareins, who, Edwards said, brings “toughness and a competitive attitude.”
“Whenever they throw me the ball, I want to do something with it, and if my role is blocking and special teams I’m happy to do it,” McCareins said.