It's Friday, and with the penultimate day of the week, we bring to you another round of Around the AFC East. We're pleased to be joined once again this morning Brian Bassett, head writer of The Jets Blog, to learn a little more about our green-and-white clad enemies prior to the start of the 2008 season. Today's topic: second-year cornerback Darrelle Revis.
In the 2007 draft, the Bills reportedly seriously considered three players with the #12 pick - RB Marshawn Lynch (whom they selected), LB Paul Posluszny (whom they would later draft at #34), and CB Darrelle Revis. What are your thoughts on Revis' rookie year as a Jet? With a year under his belt, can he make strides toward becoming one of the league's better corners?
The Jets Blog: I got the pleasure to interview him briefly on Draft Day this year, which you can watch me gush over him. Revis earned the nickname "Baby Lockdown" last year from teammate Kerry Rhodes and came on strong towards the end of the season. Revis was hampered earlier in the season by the fact that he held out of camp for so long while contracts were worked out ... his and last year's holdout LG Pete Kendall's agent were the same. From Week 1, Revis started and played progressively better as the season went along. His worst game came against Braylon Edwards who abused him on a TD scoring drive twice, but when you look back at the NE game in Foxboro (blah blah blah bad weather) it's clear that he held his own against Randy Moss and others during the season. In his first year in the pros, he had 17 Passes Defensed, just one off Asante Samuel's best of 18 in 2007.
All that to say, I think you can expect some good things from Revis this year. I'd expect him to make more than five interceptions this season (just three last year) and to start to be a player that QBs look to throw away from.
I've got to admit, I was a Darrelle Revis fan heading into last year's draft. Sure, I was making every attempt to assert myself as a leader on the Patrick Willis bandwagon (a move I don't regret - Fooch understands), but the Bills needed a corner last year, and Revis is ultra-talented. He's fast, he's explosive with the ball in his hands, he's tough. With Asante Samuel out of the division, Revis may be on the fast track to claiming the title of "best corner in the AFC East". That is, unless Leodis McKelvin beats him to the throne first.
We'll be back with Dolphins and Patriots editions of Around the AFC East later on today.