Santonio Holmes on target, criticizing offense

FLORHAM PARK, N.J.

The lockers of Mark Sanchez and Santonio Holmes are separated by only a few feet, but if you listened to both Jets' players yesterday, you'd swear they were a mile apart.

On one side, Sanchez told reporters that there wouldn't be any more public critiques like the one Holmes delivered after Sunday night's embarrassing 34-17 loss to the Ravens. On the other side, Holmes said it's his job as a team captain to say exactly what's on his mind. As long as it helps his team play better, he'll speak his mind.

Very, very strange day with the Jets Wednesday, but one that illustrates a potential rift inside the locker room that needs to be resolved if the Jets want to recover from this two-game tailspin and get back to being the team that has talked so boldly of making a Super Bowl run.

Sanchez took issue with Holmes' comments after the Ravens' loss, when the wide receiver offered this blunt assessment of the offense:

"It starts up front with the big guys," he said. "They've got to do a better job of protecting Mark, and Mark has to do a better job of making reads and getting the ball where he needs to so his playmakers can make plays."

Now, if this were anyone else -- you, me, or any Jets' fan even remotely familiar with what's going on -- the reaction would be something along the lines of: Duhhhh. With the offensive line unable to adequately protect Sanchez, who has been hit an inordinate number of times this season, Holmes is merely stating the obvious about the pass protection. And with Sanchez having problems completing passes -- he's at a mediocre 55.1 completion percentage -- it's obvious he needs to be better, too.

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But because it's Holmes, and because he's neither an offensive lineman or a quarterback, it's somehow taboo for him to discuss it? Evidently yes, at least as far as Sanchez is concerned. When asked whether Holmes' postgame comments were addressed in-house, the third-year quarterback replied, "Yes, within this locker room, we talk about stuff like that." Sanchez then made it clear that "moving forward, that won't happen. We've talked about it, and those individual improvements and stuff, that happens on a personal level. You go with your coaches and you go through your reads, and I'm going to get better. But that kind of stuff doesn't go past this locker room."

Translation: Holmes, even though he's a team captain, was out of line going public with his criticism.

And what about Holmes? Well, about 20 minutes after Sanchez made his comments, Holmes reiterated his criticism of the offensive line. He did offer support for Sanchez, but said he would continue to voice his concerns when necessary.

"The coach put a 'C' on my chest, and everybody should listen to what I have to say, whether it's good or bad, and let's build from that," Holmes said. "Let's not take it out and say 'OK, we're going to trash this person for saying something bad about the team to the media.' Let's all grab what we've talked about and let's grow from it and let's make this team better."

Holmes is right. As a captain -- and especially, as a guy who can single-handedly win games with a big play the way he did half a dozen times last year -- there's nothing wrong with him pointing out his team's problems.

That's not to say that Holmes should dole out criticism on a regular basis. He shouldn't, at least not publicly. He needs to pick his spots, as he did Sunday night.

Holmes also made a point of showing support for his quarterback, although he reiterated the need for the blocking to improve.

"As far as the things we have to do, we have to get our quarterback protected to give him a little bit of time so he can be able to feel comfortable in the pocket, sit back and pitch and catch a little with the receivers and have a little fun," he said

No argument there. And no argument with Holmes speaking his mind. Especially when he's right.