“New guys, new faces”
Smith’s top target — WR Garrett Wilson — set the tone last week in the Jets’ 17-12 win over the Browns. He had 70 yards receiving on their first drive, including a dazzling 32-yard touchdown to put the Jets on the board. After his 11th career 100-yard receiving game, Wilson closed a chapter and turned the page.
“At the end of the day, it’s just a new season,” Wilson said. “We’re five games in, six games in. There’s a premium on this one because it’s our first one. I don’t know how to say it exactly, but it’s a huge game. We’re going to be ready to play. I’m excited. I think it’s just a new season. We’ve got new guys, new faces here. Let’s go win because this is the opponent.”
Always digging in where his feet are, Smith keeps a mental Rolodex of his opponents. The Patriots have a stingy defense and are ranked No. 5 overall (296.2 yds/g) and No. 4 in points allowed (18.8 pts/g).
“I think about the multiplicity of what they do on defense,” Smith said. “A lot of different fronts, a lot of different coverages on the back end. Really smart guys in the secondary, you’re talking about Kevin Byard, a guy that probably has the most interceptions since he’s been in the league. Carlton Davis is also a guy that’s a ballhawk. We all know what Christian Gonzalez can do – he can cover guys there, and they have a well-balanced group.”
Much like the progressions, Smith has worked at every level of the defense, from the defensive backfield to the linebackers to the defensive line.
“(Robert) Spillane, who leads the defense as far as Mike’s defender goes, and (Christian) Elliss do a great job,” he said. “The young rookie, I don’t know if he’s a rookie, but he’s a young guy, number 91 (Elijah Ponder) was caught on tape, he’s got about five sacks, and we know Milton Williams up front. Just solid up front, Dre’Mont Jones, they have great players, they’re coached by Mike Vrabel, who (is a) defender, so we know he wants this defense to be up front and they want to establish the run also in attack.
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