Jets continue to retool offense, steal Santonio Holmes

Last season the New York Jets had a shut down defense that carried them all the way to the AFC Championship Game. Their offense is what held them back in a majority of games. A run first team that basically ran an offense to keep rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez from making mistakes. They were not a team that liked to open it up and try to make big plays.

That may change some what in 2010 as the Jets have been making some moves to improve that offense and make the team more balanced. First they decided not to bring back running back Thomas Jones, signing LaDainian Tomlinson to replace him. Tomlinson will likely be the backup and possible third down back as promising youngster Shonn Greene will be the starter. Greene showed his ability to carry the load while also having big play ability in the playoffs last season.

The next move happened last night as the Jets acquired wide reciever Santonio Holmes from the Pittsburgh Steelers for a 5th round pick in this years draft. If you ask me, the Jets just stole a big time wide reciever from the Steelers. Holmes had become one of the main targets for the Steelers offense the past few years, taking over for Hines Ward as their go to guy.

Holmes comes to the Jets who will now have a very good threesome at the wide reciever position. He joins Braylon Edwards and Jericho Cotchery at the position. The question is, will Sanchez mature enough to be able to utilize these weapons?

Last season when Sanchez was allowed to open things up a bit more, more often then not he made mistakes. He needed to control the ball better and not make a mistake that would hurt the team or cost them a game. The quarterback who will be entering his second season in the NFL has the arm to be a big time QB and adding Holmes should help Sanchez as well as other players on offense.

The Steelers likely dumped Holmes because of his legal issues. Holmes has been in trouble with the law the past few months as has Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. Steelers ownership group is not one that normally holds its players at a high standard. Another reason for trading Holmes could be that another young player at the position has been stepping up. That guy is Mike Wallace. Wallace will likely team with Hines Ward as the two starting wide receivers for Pittsburgh.

With the Jets adding Holmes, it opens up opportunities for other players on the offensive side of the ball. Think about it, defenses will need to focus on everyone and not be able to lock in on say Braylon Edwards or Shonn Greene. A three wide out set with Edwards, Cotchery, and Holmes could be used often while Greene is in the backfield. Thats four players right there that have big play capability. It could also help create more holes for the tight ends to roam in.

The potential for a big time offense is now there. It’s all about Mark Sanchez now. Can he develop and really take off with this offense? If so, the 2010 New York Jets will once again be legit Super Bowl contenders.