Jets waive Quinton Coples

Panthers love tall, long DEs. Giants do, too. Cincinnati could use another DE behind Dunlap and Johnson and he's similar in size to them.

Wow. Quinton Coples had extraordinary athleticism coming out of North Carolina where he spent a year inside and a year as DE. He was a terrific run stopper, mostly because of his quickness to get into the backfield. He was also good at getting after the quarterback, but sacks in college don't mean much with all the option plays they run.

Coples thrived in that Animal House atmosphere at UNC that resulted in his coaches getting fired and Carolina getting sanctioned for running a corrupt program. I thought he'd be a good fit in Rex Ryan's undisciplined locker room, which he was.

When the Pats drafted Jamie Collins, he reminded me of Coples. Belichick and Patricia had a plan for Collins that took advantage of his speed and ability to run with backs and tight ends. The Jets could have done the same with Coples, but Rex is committed to making players fit his system. The Jets immediately went about getting Coples stronger and adding weight that forfeited quickness.

Coples has been durable and played in all but two games his first three seasons. I wonder what the deal is this year. Coples has been on the injury report every week of the 2015 season. My guess is he's dinged up and doesn't fit Todd Bowles buttoned-down style, and they weren't going to pick up his option anyway.

That said, the Patriots should be cautious about this guy if they take a look at him. He could be a great camp addition, but not somebody they should try to plug into the defense as presently configured.

Brady6 said:

His 7.57 3-cone drill time was just one of the multiple reasons I agreed with your rating back then.

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Coples thought it was a 4-cone drill.

Danny said:

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LOL I was about to post this. It needs to be updated!

goheels22002 said:

Wow. Quinton Coples had extraordinary athleticism coming out of North Carolina where he spent a year inside and a year as DE. He was a terrific run stopper, mostly because of his quickness to get into the backfield. He was also good at getting after the quarterback, but sacks in college don't mean much with all the option plays they run.

Coples thrived in that Animal House atmosphere at UNC that resulted in his coaches getting fired and Carolina getting sanctioned for running a corrupt program. I thought he'd be a good fit in Rex Ryan's undisciplined locker room, which he was.

When the Pats drafted Jamie Collins, he reminded me of Coples. Belichick and Patricia had a plan for Collins that took advantage of his speed and ability to run with backs and tight ends. The Jets could have done the same with Coples, but Rex is committed to making players fit his system. The Jets immediately went about getting Coples stronger and adding weight that forfeited quickness.

Coples has been durable and played in all but two games his first three seasons. I wonder what the deal is this year. Coples has been on the injury report every week of the 2015 season. My guess is he's dinged up and doesn't fit Todd Bowles buttoned-down style, and they weren't going to pick up his option anyway.

That said, the Patriots should be cautious about this guy if they take a look at him. He could be a great camp addition, but not somebody they should try to plug into the defense as presently configured.

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We always blame the player, but you really have to wonder about the organization's role, from management to head coaches to strength and conditioning to game plans.

I mean sometimes it's one of those WTF picks like the 2nd rounder on a kicker. But quite often, the Jets are drafting guys who are highly-rated on many draft boards. They're some of the most talented players available. And then they turn into pumpkins.

Milliner was projected as the #1 corner in his draft class and easily worth a mid to high 1st-round pick. If the Jets didn't draft him, some other team in the top 15 gladly would have. Ditto Coples, who was the top DE on a lot of draft boards. Kyle Wilson was projected as a 1st rounder and a top-3 cornerback in his class. Gholston was projected as a top-10 pick.

Yeah, you can argue a great player will be great no matter what. But maybe the difference between a good player and a useless one comes down to coaches and systems and whatnot. Even a great talent like Revis can be affected, like his useless year in Tampa.

For guys without passion, putting them on a frat-house style team like the Jets is probably a terrible combination. They need a schedule, they need veterans, they need structure. Look at the way the Cowboys have babysat Dez. For a few years, it was very very very dicey. He's grown up quite a bit lately though, and it took a lot of hand holding to get there. They had extra security and extra people to follow him and help him. I doubt the Jets put that much thought into anything.

Does he have practice squad eligibility left?

convertedpatsfan said:

We always blame the player, but you really have to wonder about the organization's role, from management to head coaches to strength and conditioning to game plans.

I mean sometimes it's one of those WTF picks like the 2nd rounder on a kicker. But quite often, the Jets are drafting guys who are highly-rated on many draft boards. They're some of the most talented players available. And then they turn into pumpkins.

Milliner was projected as the #1 corner in his draft class and easily worth a mid to high 1st-round pick. If the Jets didn't draft him, some other team in the top 15 gladly would have. Ditto Coples, who was the top DE on a lot of draft boards. Kyle Wilson was projected as a 1st rounder and a top-3 cornerback in his class. Gholston was projected as a top-10 pick.

Yeah, you can argue a great player will be great no matter what. But maybe the difference between a good player and a useless one comes down to coaches and systems and whatnot. Even a great talent like Revis can be affected, like his useless year in Tampa.

For guys without passion, putting them on a frat-house style team like the Jets is probably a terrible combination. They need a schedule, they need veterans, they need structure. Look at the way the Cowboys have babysat Dez. For a few years, it was very very very dicey. He's grown up quite a bit lately though, and it took a lot of hand holding to get there. They had extra security and extra people to follow him and help him. I doubt the Jets put that much thought into anything.

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The Jets are certainly no strangers to draft busts and may not always develop guys correctly. Don't think that's the issue with Milliner and Coples though.

We obviously do well developing young Dlinmen. See: Wilk, Snacks, Sheldon, Williams. Coples just the odd man out. I think he has the potential to be a great typical 4-3 DE in the right system w/o awesome players in front of him.

Milliner just can't stay healthy. He's made of glass. The one month he was healthy, December of his rookie season, he won defensive rookie of the month. Tons of skill. Hell we were planning on him being our #1 CB the following season. But again... more injuries. My guess is they're slow-playing him back now in hopes he can build strength to hopefully play a larger (possibly starting CB role) from next season on. Too much talent to toss away.

Coples on the other hand has the talent. Just not what we need.