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The Jets made a lot of bold roster moves this offseason, maneuvers they believe will lead them to the Super Bowl.
They released two of their most valued veteran leaders, running back Thomas Jones and guard Alan Faneca, and traded away running back Leon Washington for a fifth-round draft pick. They bolstered their secondary, pass rush and receiving corps.
Along the way, they took some risks, acquiring receiver Santonio Holmes and cornerback Antonio Cromartie, who have histories of off-the-field problems.
But the biggest risk they might have taken was one of the quietest personnel decisions of the offseason -- a switch at kicker.
The Jets, for reasons no one in management has yet to properly explain, opted not to re-sign reliable incumbent Jay Feely, who was asking for a $500,000 raise at most, and decided to go with former Cowboys kicker Nick Folk.
They quietly signed Folk early in the offseason in a move that initially was viewed as insurance in case Feely signed elsewhere or perhaps as leverage in the Feely negotiations. Few believed when Folk was signed that he was in the Jets' plans as their No. 1 kicker in 2010.
Coach Rex Ryan and special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff, in fact, called Feely when free agency started and expressed their desire to have him back.
But the Jets refused to give Feely the modest raise he sought, so he signed with the Cardinals, leaving Folk as the kicker for 2010.
If you look at Folk's first two seasons in the NFL, that doesn't seem so bad. He went to the Pro Bowl as a rookie with the Cowboys in 2007, making 26 of 31 field goals and producing 131 points. In his second season, Folk was 20 of 22 on field goals and scored 102 points.
Last season, however, he was a mess, missing 10 of his 28 field goal attempts before being released by the Cowboys.
"Yeah, I have to prove myself again," Folk told The Post. "But that's something I enjoy. I don't have any problem doing that. Mentally, I'm just as confident as I was my rookie year."
That confidence comes in large part from his work with his personal kicking coach, Chris Sailer, a former UCLA kicker who has started a business coaching kickers.
Folk said his struggles last season stemmed directly from a hip injury he suffered at the end of 2008. He had surgery to repair a torn labrum and was not able to kick for seven months leading into last year.
Within days of being released by the Cowboys, Folk paid Sailer a visit and quickly found the problem.
"As soon as I got released, I trained with him for a day, and after five kicks, he said, 'All right, do this,' and it was fixed," Folk said.
Sailer recalled that January get-together, telling The Post in a phone interview that he is positive Folk will be a star for the Jets despite the pressure of following the popular Feely.
"Nick is exactly the guy you want as far as handling pressure," Sailer said. "With his mentality, he's a guy that's going to thrive on that pressure. I have no doubt he'll have success with the Jets."
Sailer, who has trained Folk since Folk was a teenager, saw the flaw almost immediately.
"All we did was adjust his set stance," he said. "He had done something different in his body positioning and I made a slight adjustment that took away from some movement in his approach."
Folk is now looking to get back the mindset he had in Dallas.
He recalled walking into the Cowboys locker room as a rookie and seeing Terrell Owens, Tony Romo and other stars and being "like a deer in the headlights."
"Finally, I settled down and said, 'OK, just go out and have fun,' and that helped me kick pretty well," he said. "That's the plan here -- just have a good time. Having a lot of fun makes life for me go by. If I'm not thinking about kicking, that's when I do my best."
http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/jets/jets_hope_to_get_their_kicks_from_BMRtrVP2e816QAGHUm5spO
They released two of their most valued veteran leaders, running back Thomas Jones and guard Alan Faneca, and traded away running back Leon Washington for a fifth-round draft pick. They bolstered their secondary, pass rush and receiving corps.
Along the way, they took some risks, acquiring receiver Santonio Holmes and cornerback Antonio Cromartie, who have histories of off-the-field problems.
But the biggest risk they might have taken was one of the quietest personnel decisions of the offseason -- a switch at kicker.
The Jets, for reasons no one in management has yet to properly explain, opted not to re-sign reliable incumbent Jay Feely, who was asking for a $500,000 raise at most, and decided to go with former Cowboys kicker Nick Folk.
They quietly signed Folk early in the offseason in a move that initially was viewed as insurance in case Feely signed elsewhere or perhaps as leverage in the Feely negotiations. Few believed when Folk was signed that he was in the Jets' plans as their No. 1 kicker in 2010.
Coach Rex Ryan and special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff, in fact, called Feely when free agency started and expressed their desire to have him back.
But the Jets refused to give Feely the modest raise he sought, so he signed with the Cardinals, leaving Folk as the kicker for 2010.
If you look at Folk's first two seasons in the NFL, that doesn't seem so bad. He went to the Pro Bowl as a rookie with the Cowboys in 2007, making 26 of 31 field goals and producing 131 points. In his second season, Folk was 20 of 22 on field goals and scored 102 points.
Last season, however, he was a mess, missing 10 of his 28 field goal attempts before being released by the Cowboys.
"Yeah, I have to prove myself again," Folk told The Post. "But that's something I enjoy. I don't have any problem doing that. Mentally, I'm just as confident as I was my rookie year."
That confidence comes in large part from his work with his personal kicking coach, Chris Sailer, a former UCLA kicker who has started a business coaching kickers.
Folk said his struggles last season stemmed directly from a hip injury he suffered at the end of 2008. He had surgery to repair a torn labrum and was not able to kick for seven months leading into last year.
Within days of being released by the Cowboys, Folk paid Sailer a visit and quickly found the problem.
"As soon as I got released, I trained with him for a day, and after five kicks, he said, 'All right, do this,' and it was fixed," Folk said.
Sailer recalled that January get-together, telling The Post in a phone interview that he is positive Folk will be a star for the Jets despite the pressure of following the popular Feely.
"Nick is exactly the guy you want as far as handling pressure," Sailer said. "With his mentality, he's a guy that's going to thrive on that pressure. I have no doubt he'll have success with the Jets."
Sailer, who has trained Folk since Folk was a teenager, saw the flaw almost immediately.
"All we did was adjust his set stance," he said. "He had done something different in his body positioning and I made a slight adjustment that took away from some movement in his approach."
Folk is now looking to get back the mindset he had in Dallas.
He recalled walking into the Cowboys locker room as a rookie and seeing Terrell Owens, Tony Romo and other stars and being "like a deer in the headlights."
"Finally, I settled down and said, 'OK, just go out and have fun,' and that helped me kick pretty well," he said. "That's the plan here -- just have a good time. Having a lot of fun makes life for me go by. If I'm not thinking about kicking, that's when I do my best."
http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/jets/jets_hope_to_get_their_kicks_from_BMRtrVP2e816QAGHUm5spO
