New York Jets wide receiver Brandon Marshall needs to forgo the antics which can only do more harm than good.
Sure, Brandon Marshall is an incredible talent, established veteran, and box office name. If it were not for his contributions and eventual dynamic chemistry with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, the New York Jets certainly would not have come within three interceptions of a playoff berth.
Speaking along the same lines, if he is not penciled in for 16 games this year, Gang Green will have extreme difficulty treading water.
With all of the value surrounding a man with tremendous capabilities, one could feasibly expect direct complaints to be completely out of the equation.
However, that is the exact problem riding over a man destined to be the go-to guy yet again this year. His ego is creating unneeded buzz off the field and, in turn, attaching unneeded pressure to his name.
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Let’s face reality here. Whether you like it or not, the Jets have a tough road ahead if they want to maintain relevancy, or at least perform to expectations.
With five of the team’s first six games coming against 2015-2016 playoff teams, and the other opponent being Rex Ryan’s Bills, who they were excruciatingly 0-2 against, Todd Bowles — the second year head coach — has quite the workload to get his team up to par. To make matters even worse, four of those six games will be in venues other than MetLife Stadium.
At this point, preparation is the name of the game. Forming that camaraderie which highlighted a late season five-game surge last year will be vital in achieving the team’s ultimate goal — the franchise’s first playoff appearance since 2010-2011.
The roster is stacked with talent and certainly matches up with numerous playoff-caliber AFC teams. With that said, right now is not the time for preparation to take an aside.
Ironically enough, it is their foremost player, their most effective one-on-one target, and their greatest red zone threat creating the sideshow.
Starting with a nonsensical bet with Steelers’ wide receiver Antonio Brown, Marshall put individual on-field performance at a premium.
Why should a fan, or Marshall, be focused on an extra five receiving yards when the Jets can pound the ball into the end zone with Matt Forte? Simply put: they should not.
In the 2016-2017 campaign, it will be put up or shut up for the Jets, and adding off-the-field factors to a team which gained a new identity last year will not do the trick.
Adding yesterday’s nonsense to the mix will only serve as a detriment. The Marshall-Darrelle Revis feud is the exact opposite of what the team truly needs. It is simply a step towards tearing apart rather than building a winner.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini described the spiteful situation, which got a bit too substantial for anyone’s liking.
“It’s been a spirited practice between Darrelle Revis and Brandon Marshall. Revis got the best of him early, then Marshall beat him for a long TD, trash talking Revis. After the brief scuffle, Marshall yelled a DeAndre Hopkins comment at Revis, reminding the corner of his struggles last season against the Houston receiver — a low blow. Marshall wouldn’t shut up, screaming at Revis when he was on the sideline.”
Come on now. Why even go there?
That rough game against DeAndre Hopkins and the Texans cost him, and his team, a potentially deep run in the playoffs.
Currently fortunate enough to have Darrelle Revis on his side, why would Marshall even try to demoralize him in any way, shape, or form? He is lucky to not be the one getting caught on infamous “Revis Island.”
Even so, these antics display a sizable form of hypocrisy.
Marshall, whose contract expires after the 2017-2018 season, said the Jets deal would be his final NFL contract prior to retirement. That being the case, the 32-year-old is the definition of a “win now” player.
Being that he has the teammates and the head coach to do so, why would he hinder progress?
Coming off a 1,502-yard season with a career-high 14 touchdowns, Brandon Marshall should let his on-field play do the talking. Anything else as a sidebar is baffling.
And he continues to baffle every loyal, ailing, and hungry Jet fan.
