Frank Mazzola

The New York Jets will open up their training camp on July 24th.

Here are some key position battles to take note of:

Quarterback:

Clearly, nothing has been solved yet in terms of naming a starting signal caller.  I fully expect Kellen Clemens and Chad Pennington to slug it out until the bitter end of preseason where, barring injury, the younger and stronger Clemens will claim the job.

Running Back: 

Thomas Jones and Leon Washington have nothing to worry about as the primary backs.  Neither does Tony Richardson at the FB position.  However, Jesse Chatman and Musa Smith will be competing hard with each other to determine the backup spot.  Look for Chatman to take the lead on this one.

Cornerback:

Darrelle Revis is a lock to start at one corner, but Justin Miller will return from his injury to challenge veteran David Barrett at the other position.  Barrett has the necessary skills and experience to hold the job, but Miller’s physical plays and speed may be too much to overlook.  I’d say Miller gets the nod in this photo finish.

Frank Mazzola

The Chris Baker Soap Opera continues….unfortunately.

As reported by NJ.com, during mini-camp, Baker upped the ante on his embarrassing behavior (all in an attempt to draw sympathy to his contract situation) by parking his red Bentley in the Team President parking spot and then refused to move it.

I don’t know about you, but I have a hard time feeling sympathy for anyone who actually owns a red Bentley.

The Baker situation only illustrates a larger problem affecting the NFL and, to a lesser extent, all of the Sports world:  Immature players who are convinced they are legends are still allowed to perpetrate these types of circuses in order to disrupt their teams (i.e biting the hands that feed them) without fear of repercussion.    What makes this lack of respect even more disheartening is, once they are traded, their childlike behavior is then rewarded with a new contract from some other team.

This sense of entitlement has grown out of control and needs to be curbed now.  The owners of all NFL teams should make a pact among themselves to not honor this conduct in any way, shape or form.  Believe me, players like Terrell Owens, Chad Johnson or Baker are not so irreplaceable that they need to be coddled.  How many rings do those three players share?  Oh, that’s right…none.

I only write about professional athletes.  I was not blessed with an inordinate amount of ability to run fast, lift heavy things or jump high.  However, if I had been, I still don’t think it would give me the right to insult my employers in an overt fashion.

Baker needs to be cut right now.  He may find that he has sullied his reputation and no team will take a chance on him.  Then, he might actually learn his lesson.

Regretably, you’ll see me run a 10 second 100 yard dash before that happens.

Frank Mazzola

Team president Jay Cross resigned on Tuesday to become president of Related Hudson Yards, a development company trying to build high rise apartment buildings and retail stores on Manhattan’s West Side.

Cross had been the NY Jets president since 2001 and failed in his attempt to get a new stadium built in the same area.  His efforts were contested by numerous neighborhood associations (who felt the construction would add more traffic congestion to an already teeming area).

The Jets entered into an agreement to share a new stadium with the New York Giants, which is currently being built and should be operational sometime during 2010.

No replacement has been named as of yet.

(Source: New York Daily News)