Slauson: Hunter an upgrade over Woody
Wayne Hunter of the New York Jets in action against the San Diego Chargers. (Oct. 23, 2011) Credit: Getty Images
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- When Matt Slauson picks up the remote and channel surfs, he often finds himself tuning in to check out NFL analysts breaking down the Jets' ground attack.
The Jets are ranked 28th in rushing at 92.4 yards per game. But they've showed some improvement of late, running for a season-high 162 yards in their Oct. 23 victory over the Chargers leading into last week's bye.
Shonn Greene has looked more like the featured back the Jets envisioned when Rex Ryan tabbed him their "bell cow," amassing a season-high 112 yards against San Diego. Still, not everyone thinks the Jets' running game is about to take off, and that got a rise out of Slauson.
"I watch a lot of things on the NFL Network and ESPN,'' Slauson said Monday, "and they're all saying, 'Well, the Jets aren't running the ball because they're not the same team. They don't have those guys that can grind on you play after play.' That just isn't true. We have the guys.''
That's when the left guard tweaked the retired Damien Woody, essentially calling Wayne Hunter a better player than Woody, who is now an ESPN analyst. "Our offensive line is the same, except we have Wayne," Slauson said. "And in our opinion, that's an upgrade."
Hunter struggled early in the season but has played well in the last five games. Hunter told Newsday on Monday that a two-hour conversation with left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson after the Sept. 18 win over the Jaguars helped get him on track.
Slauson has taken notice, and it's why he felt the need to talk up Hunter. "I like Damien," Slauson said. "He's a really good player. He'd had a hell of a career, but Wayne is an incredible athlete. As long as we continue to work and learn and execute, our line is going to be better in the coming games and the coming years."
Notes & quotes: The Jets signed free-agent TE Shawn Nelson, a former fourth-round pick of the Bills, to the active 53-man roster . . . G Matt Kroul, T Dennis Landolt, LB Ricky Sapp and TE Jamarko Simmons were signed to the practice squad.
