Stitzer's Take: Broadway Brett, Is He a Salvation?

Our esteemed colleague, Andrew Stitzer, has weighed in with his initial, quick take on his beloved JETS trading for Bret Fav-rah (as Ben Stiller would say). Overall, my opinion is that this is a great move for the Jets, who improved their most important position by a lot and created an air of excitement around the team, without giving much up. But here is what Mr. Stitz is saying......

It is my understanding that the JETS have contacted Glenn Foley and asked his permission for Brett Favre to wear #4. So old #4, the face of the Green Bay organization for the past 16 seasons, has agreed to substitute Cheddar Cheese Yellow for Cream Cheese White. Readers on THEJETSBLOG have had reactions from “this is a disaster” to “hello Super Bowl.” Here is my take (a full JETS season preview will follow before opening day).

WHY I LIKE THE MOVE: The biggest rift between JETS fans up until late last night was “who should be the QB, Chad or Kellen Clemens? I was a staunch supporter of Clemens – still am – think he will be a good NFL QB one day. So I like the Favre move because it means Chad will not start. Now I love Chad – his leadership, his smarts, his guts, and his work ethic. But after 2 major shoulder surgeries his arm is as dead as Ed Harris’ in “Major League.” As a matter of fact, I heard Chad was working on the old Harris “jalapeno” idea to get more movement on his ball. It is tough to beat a good defense in the NFL when the corners can funnel receivers to a clogged middle because they know the QB cannot throw the deep out. Favre will make defenses have to defend a 50 yard box from sideline to sideline. With Chad, defenses only had to defend a 30 yard box from 10 yards from the sideline to 10 yards from the sideline. Defenses may also overplay the pass due to Favre’s presence; this should open more running lanes for Thomas Jones & Leon Washington.

WHY I DO NOT LIKE THE MOVE: A series of questions/concerns?
· What kind of football shape is Favre in?
· Can Favre learn the whole offense and be ready with the full arsenal the first few weeks of the season? He better as after Miami in the opener it is the Cheaters in Week 2 and at San Diego in week 3.
· What if by mid-season, Favre says “I made a mistake coming back,” and retires? What does that do to team moral?
· Is the Kellen Clemens pick in round 2 2006 now a wasted pick? Will he ever start for this team?

Overall, I still like the move because the Organization realized Chad is no longer a QB that can win 3 or 4 games in January.