As the Jets get close to training camp, I am going to examine the roster and give you my top 25 players on the Jets roster. Each weekday we will reveal another person on the list, leading right into camp. I am not including rookies on this list because I do not feel it is possible to fully evaluate them before they play a game. Hope you enjoy.
No. 8: QUINTON COPLES
Last year’s ranking: Unranked/rookie
Position: Outside Linebacker/Defensive Lineman
Age: 23
How acquired: Selected in the first round of the 2012 Draft
Contract status: 3 years, $7.2 million remaining
Looking back at 2012: Coples got off to a slow start but emerged in the second half of the season, showing flashes of what the Jets saw in him before the draft.
Coples played mostly inside on the line, but moved around some. He wound up with a team-high 5 ½ sacks. He registered 3 ½ of those in the final month of the season when he really began to flourish in Rex Ryan’s defense.
There is still work to be done with Coples against the run and he committed five penalties, a number he needs to cut down on.
Outlook for 2013: Coples will be one of the most fascinating Jets to watch in 2013. The Jets are training him to play outside linebacker, although it looks like he’ll still be on the interior some of the time, too.
The Jets coaches were very encouraged by what they saw from Coples in the spring. He was inconsistent in his rookie year and sometimes the Jets questioned his effort in practice.
Ryan called Coples out in May about his work in the weight room, a disturbing sign that Coples still may be lacking effort at times.
There is no doubt that Coples can get to the quarterback. The questions for him in 2013 are will he be able to cover tight ends at times as a linebacker and can he improve against the run?
Work ethic questions followed Coples in college and caused him to drop to 16th in the 2012 Draft. Ryan and defensive coordinator Dennis Thurman won’t tolerate Coples dogging it at all in his second year. The Jets expect a big jump from Coples this season.