FanHouse Brian Schottenheimer

FLORHAM PARK, NJ -- For a guy who was generally acknowledged to be "winning" the first couple of days of the competition, Kellen Clemens had an interesting take on the fight for the Jets' starting quarterback spot.

"We're getting a lot of attention through all of this, but really, if you look at the five guys in front of us, our offensive line, they're going to make it easier for whoever the quarterback is," Clemens said. "Add in our special teams and our defense, and the way I look at it, whoever's playing quarterback for this team, the group that surrounds him is going to make it easier to perform."

Coming as it does from a man who very much wants the job, this is a jolting dose of perspective. Clemens is almost saying that it doesn't matter who the Jets' quarterback is, because the rest of the team is so good. But maybe it shouldn't be a surprise that Clemens has done so much deep thinking about this. After all, the competition for the Jets' starting QB job can't really start until after this weekend's NFL draft is over.

With the draft approaching, we ignore projections and identify the dream scenario for each team in a series we call The Perfect Draft.

The 2009 draft finds the New York Jets in an uncomfortable predicament. They have spent the last two years spending on free agents to put many aspects of a contending team into place. That's a big part of the reason why they started last season 8-3, and briefly had Jets fans thinking that big things were in store for their team. But a strong running game, sound defense and dangerous special teams are being undermined by an invisible passing attack.

I wouldn't blame Romeo Crennel if he just went through the motions for the next month; after a promising 10-win campaign a year ago, and all the preseason hype this summer, the Browns are 4-8 and one of the most disappointing teams of 2008.

According to ESPN's Chris Mortensen, it'll take an act of God to keep Crennel in Cleveland after Dec. 28, the Browns' final regular season game. Specifically, Mort gazes into the ol' eight ball and surmises that, according to sources, "Crennel will need a miracle finish to save his own job." You don't say.

The big guy has the support of his players, but the same can't be said for general manager Phil Savage, who sorta sold Crennel down the river earlier this week.

As to Crennel's possible replacements, ESPN.com cites Bill Cowher, Marty Schottenheimer, and coordinators like the Jets' Brian Schottenheimer, the Giants' Steve Spagnuolo, the Titans' Jim Schwartz, the Falcons' Mike Mularkey and the Ravens' Rex Ryan.

I think it might've been easier to just tick off the guys the Browns aren't considering.

I guess we can slow down on all that New York-New York Super Bowl talk, huh? A week after getting manhandled by the Raiders, the Broncos came east and did the same to the Jets, ending the New York side's five-game winning streak and putting a cap into the premature notion of the Big Apple relocating to Tampa come February.

It was a disturbing return to the early part of the season for the Jets. Abysmal play calling by offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer marked those rougher times and returned for an unwanted encore at the Meadowlands today. Thomas Jones carved up the Bronco defense in the first half but Schottenheimer insisted on calling empty backfields, passes on short yardage plays and, disastrously, a pitched reverse to Jerricho Cotchery. That final one led to a fumble and touchdown for the Broncos in the first quarter and set the tone for a frustrating day.

Even more troubling than the return of evil Schottenheimer, though, was the complete no-show by the Jets defense. Peyton Hillis gashed the normally stout Jets for nearly six yards a carry and Jay Cutler continued to expose the Jets secondary as Darrelle Revis and a band of clowns masquerading as NFL defensive backs. Brandon Marshall was held to five catches for 55 yards, but Eddie Royal, Brandon Stokely, Tony Scheffler and Daniel Graham combined for 20 catches, 277 yards and two touchdowns.

When the Jets ran the ball to start each of their three drives in overtime against Oakland last weekend, you couldn't help but wonder if Brian Schottenheimer shouldn't have been the Republican candidate for President of the United States. Offensive attacks don't get more conservative than that.

It seems like Schottenheimer's father, Marty, is calling the plays, and he'll never be mistaken for a forward-thinking offensive mind.

So Schottenheimer's hearing criticism. Not all of it's justified -- Brett Favre's had more bad days than good -- but it won't stop until the Jets offense produces on a weekly basis. He's shrugging it off, telling curious reporters that the game plan varies from week to week to keep defenses guessing and make the most of match-ups. That's a fine answer, but he may have revealed more than he wanted to in other comments.

Now that Jason Garrett is out of the picture, the Ravens are back to the drawing board in their search for a head coach. Although they were sending out signals that John Harbaugh was their fallback if Garrett passed them up, the team is only now interviewing the Eagles secondary coach for the second time. They are also rumored to be interested in speaking with Jets offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer again in a search that's starting to appear more than a little aimless.

Whether or not Garrett was the right guy for the job, the Ravens believed he was. He offered a new direction for the team, a fresh outlook and a long-term solution. Which is why it's odd to keep hearing Marty Schottenheimer's name linked with the opening. After making several denials of interest in returning to the sidelines, Schottenheimer changed course yesterday when asked about the Ravens.

"I think it's a terrific organization. They know how to win football games, and that's the most important thing to any decision I might make with regards to my coaching future. That having been said, I'm not going to rule out anything at this juncture."

So which is it, youth or experience?

It's a good thing that the Ravens are committed to taking their time in the search for a new head coach. Candidates keep dropping out - Kirk Ferentz isn't interested and Rob Chudzinski signed an extension with the Browns - and they get replaced by new names on the interview front. The latest contender to join the fray is Brian Schottenheimer of the New York Jets.

He's a bit of an odd choice for a team looking to jumpstart their offensive production. The Jets have finished 25th and 26th offensively in his two seasons as their offensive coordinator and his playcalling choices drew derision from Jets fans and New York media all season. He was briefly rumored to be in the mix for the Miami job before Cam Cameron got it last year but seems too inexperienced and lacking the appropriate resume to get the job.

Of course, he may not be the Schottenheimer the team really wants. According to Jay Glazer of Fox, the team has reached out to Marty Schottenheimer as well and GM Ozzie Newsome's old coach hasn't said no. He doesn't want to interview in the early part of the process, though that shouldn't be a problem. You know what you'll get with MartyBall, for better or worse, and his candidacy will only be helped by a series of underwhelming interviews.

Previously on FanHouse:
Ravens Job Most Attractive of the Bunch
Bill Cowher to Ravens Talk Won't Die
Ravens Starting Interviews for New Coaches, Emphasizing Offense

All it takes is a glance across the morning editions of New York's many dailies to figure out what the defining story will be for the final weeks of this Jets season. Is Kellen Clemens the guy to lead this franchise? That's no surprise. The first half of this season was devoted to hand wringing about Chad Pennington, so it makes sense that Clemens would be treated with the same scrutiny now that he's in the driver's seat. It does lead us to ask the question of how one judges a young quarterback.

Clemens has started four games in his NFL career. He had a strong outing against Pittsburgh and passable showings against Baltimore and Washington and an abject disaster against Dallas. Those are four sturdy defenses, though, and the Jets have flaws everywhere you look, something Eric Mangini recognizes when he evaluates his QB.

"Receivers have to get open. The line has to give him a chance. He has to make good decisions when he gets that chance. If any of those three things break down, that's when you have problems with the passing game."

It's not like Clemens is taking the field with the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse in the backfield and the Hogs on the offensive line. There are also serious questions about Brian Schottenheimer's play calling this season that add to the issues on offense.

Over at Deadspin, Will Leitch wonders if the producers of The Sopranos aren't rethinking their decision to feature Eric Mangini on the penultimate episode of the series this Spring. If David Chase is having second thoughts about having Tony and Artie Bucco waxing rhapsodic about "Mangenius" they aren't the only ones wondering what's going on with the coach of the Jets.

With two plays to get a yard for a first down on the Eagles four-yard line yesterday Mangini and offensive coordinator Brian Schottenheimer came up with a Chad Pennington quarterback sneak and an easily sussed out fade to Laveranues Coles. Neither play succeeded and the Jets lost the game.

The calls weren't just questionable because they failed, though. The bigger question was why the Jets didn't hand the ball to Thomas Jones after he gained 130 yards against the Eagles. Tight end Chris Baker wondered why the Jets didn't just put their noses to the grindstone.

"Thomas had 100 yards in the first half ... and we don't give him the ball on third-and-one ... no, it didn't surprise me. That's the problem; I wasn't surprised by it. What can you do? The guy [Jones] has been running the ball all over the place and he doesn't get it ... it's unfortunate. Nothing surprises me anymore."

A week in the crosshairs of every newspaper, blog and radio station in New York would take its toll on anyone. Chad Pennington has more reason for confidence than many, he is a starting quarterback in the NFL after all, but even he had to be feeling the bayonets pointed at him. His team's losing, there's a strong-armed young buck nipping at his heels and many fans want his head on a pike because of it. Luckily for him, the team's offensive coordinator isn't being swayed by popular opinion.

Brian Schottenheimer's reputation is on the line every time the Jets turn in a lackluster offensive performance but he's prepared to keep casting his lot with Pennington.

"I can't think of many balls since I've been here that Chad's underthrown to the point where I go, Wow. What was that? He's done a nice job and he throws a good deep ball and gives guys a chance to go get it."

Pennington threw one of those "What was that?" balls last Sunday and Aaron Ross picked it off the way a centerfielder catches a lazy pop-up. Schottenheimer might proclaim faith in his quarterback's ability to throw deep but his game plans show none of that belief. The Jets are predictable and limited each week and a big part of that is an inability to spread out the defense. Pennington's biggest strength was never a big arm but all the intelligence in the world can't help you overcome defenses that are onto your every move. If the Jets lose to the Eagles this weekend it shouldn't surprise anyone if Kellen Clemens is starting a week from Sunday.