If Santonio Holmes didn’t understand how seriously the Jets take their practices, even in the offseason, one play during yesterday’s team drills should have gotten his attention.
His assignment on the particularly play was to come out to the flat and block All-Pro cornerback Darrelle Revis. No big deal right? Except Revis never feels like being blocked. Not in a game. Not in practice. So instead of absorbing Holmes’ soft hit, Revis delivered his own blow, knocking the former Super Bowl MVP flat on his rear end. Welcome to the Jets.
“He tried to block me and I kind of moved him out of the way,” Revis said with smile. “I told him I was sorry afterward.”
Actually, Revis wasn’t all that sorry. And after the initial shock of getting decked, Holmes didn’t seem to mind either.
“The more you do to me and the harder I work the better we all become,” Holmes said. “From what I’ve been accustomed to in Pittsburgh, it’s a lot different with these guys. They’re willing to work hard. There are no short cuts during practice and that’s what I like.”
Maybe it’s just me, but Revis’ blow seemed to have more meaning than just an accidental collision. It was as if he wanted to send a message to the newly acquired receiver about how the Jets do things.
Though coach Rex Ryan might run a loose camp, the intensity during the practices is expected to be at a high level even in May.
“The new guys will see on the field how we do things here,” tackle Damien Woody said. “It’s all part of the process.
It’s understandable if the Jets want to make sure they get Holmes’ full attention. They know he comes with baggage. He was acquired from the Steelers for a fifth-round draft pick largely because he fell out of favor after four seasons in Pittsburgh for his numerous off-the-field transgressions.
When there’s talk of the Jets signing guys with character issues for the sake of selling PSL’s, Holmes’ name usually is mentioned.
He recently was suspended for the four first games of the upcoming season after violating the league’s substance abuse policy, and earlier this month he was escorted off an airplane in Pittsburgh for being a “disruptive” passenger stemming from an incident involving his iPod.
This winter, Holmes was reportedly involved in an altercation in a Florida nightclub, where he was accused of throwing a glass at a woman. That followed a domestic violence incident in 2006 and a 2008 arrest for possession of marijuana.
It’s certainly not a good reflection on Holmes’ character when after the trade with the Jets, Steelers president Art Rooney II said: “Clearly, Santonio is a very talented football play, but his multiple violations of league policies and the additional off-the-field problems led us to conclude that it would be in the best interest of our organization to part ways.”
Holmes didn’t seem very remorseful yesterday. He blamed the iPod incident on being “scrutinized” by an attention-seeking flight attendant.
“I just felt I was being scrutinized just for who I am,” Holmes said. “Flying back to Pittsburgh for the first time since being here in New Jersey. She definitely just tried to make a name for herself because she actually was the one who went to the media and reported it. Nobody else did.”
Otherwise, he sounded like he is simply happy to have a fresh start with a new team.
“I felt like I was a kid on the first day of school,” he said of his first full practice with the team earlier in the week. “I kept waking up in the middle of the night eager to get out here and get on the field with these guys and practice and have fun. It’s a sense of relief in that I can start over as a rookie and I’m willing to accept that challenge.”
The Jets seem willing to give Holmes a fresh start if he’s willing to focus on football while on the field and be a good citizen off of it. Maybe that’s the message Revis was trying to deliver.