They traded for Braylon Edwards at the NFL trade deadline, giving Mark Sanchez a viable receiving option and the offense an overall deep threat

Defense:

This off season, the Jets have been improving an already top defense, by adding previous shutdown corner Antonio Cromartie.

Cromartie has had off-the-field problems (six different children with seven women), but on the field he is still one of the fastest players around.

He clearly has the talent set to be a top corner, and with Rex Ryan’s defensive coaching he should be able to regain his confidence and play at the level he did in 2007, when he had 10 picks.

Unfortunately, the Jets lost a major player on their defense in Kerry Rhodes. Rhodes was a cog of that unit because of his experience and consistent tackling ability, as well as his knack for the ball and making the big play.

His absence will be felt as the Jets may initially lose out on communication, but with two shutdown corners (Cromartie and Revis) and the fact that Jim Leonhard is generally in charge of defensive play call, the results of Rhodes’s absence will not compound itself. (Result being players not as sharp with their designated assignments).

Offense:

Despite the Jets’s defensive progress, they lost a large part of their offense. Last year, Mark Sanchez was one of the worst quarterbacks in the league in terms of passer rating, as he threw a meager 12 touchdowns while getting picked off 20 times.

While Sanchez will be better in his second season as a pro, I look for the Jet offense to regress. They lost Thomas Jones, their star running back from last season, who gained 1402 yards last year. Without Jones, more of a burden will land on Sanchez, and I don’t know if he can be the consistent passer he was early in the season for a full 16 game season.

While the Jets do have viable backups in Shonn Greene and Leon Washington, Jones was a proven every down back, and Washington suffered a severely broken leg last year. Wash may be slowed up a bit, meaning that Greene, still young and unproven, will have to shoulder the load.

Overall:

At first glance, the Jets may seem to have improved by a lot, especially with the addition of Cromartie. However, don’t look too far into this acquisition, as they lost Thomas Jones and Kerry Rhodes, two main parts of their team last year.

While the Jets may change/add players in the draft, as of now I don’t think they’re better than last season. I think they’re as good, maybe slightly more improved with experience, but not significantly better.”

Source Credits: mkrob.com