A New Coach and New Role For Jets’ Man in the Middle

HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. — Jets linebacker Jonathan Vilma ended last season with a ton of tackles, a spot in the Pro Bowl, and a certain future.Funny how a new coach can change everything.Vilma is learning a slightly different position now that Eric Mangini has taken over, moving over to an inside linebacker position and away from the middle as part of a new 3–4 defensive scheme. The system features three down linemen and four linebackers, a departure from former coach Herm Edwards, who preferred four linemen and three linebackers.The third-year player thrived as a middle linebacker at Miami and in his first two seasons under Edwards, emerging as the face of the franchise. He led the league in tackles last season with 187, securing his first Pro Bowl invite.Though Vilma said the change has not been too difficult, whether he can succeed in the new scheme could determine how successful he is this season.“I am comfortable now,” Vilma said. “I have been studying and doing what I need to do.”If he struggles, Vilma only needs to look at what happened to Ray Lewis in a similar defense in Baltimore — especially since Vilma is most often compared to Lewis, who also starred at Miami.Under defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, the Ravens employed a version of the 3–4. Lewis was not nearly as effective stopping running backs as he was in the 4–3 because he was fighting off blocks from offensive linemen.When Nolan left in 2005, the Ravens changed their defense to allow Lewis more freedom to roam. Lewis was thrilled, saying he felt like “a little kid all over again” knowing he was not going to be manhandled.Of course, Lewis was hobbled for most of 2005, missing the final 10 games of the season. He then caught flak in the offseason when he blamed the small defensive line for his inability to make plays. Though Vilma and Lewis often talk, they have not spoken about the new role for the Jets player.But the at 6-foot-1, 230-pound Vilma is aware of the idea that smaller linebackers are not able to make as many plays in the 3-4.“Back in the ’70s or ’80s or whenever they started the 3-4, you could line them up on the line and do things with the bigger guys. Now everybody talks about the smaller linebackers being athletic and they can do more things athletically than the bigger linebackers,” he said.All the linebackers are having to learn new roles. Nobody seems to mind the change for now.“After a 4–12 season I want to run whatever it takes to help us win. It doesn’t matter,” Eric Barton said.Vilma said the biggest adjustments are learning the new language, understanding how the offense is going to block him and reading plays from a different angle. To help him get a better feel for what he needs to do, Vilma decided to watch tape of Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi.After Mangini was hired from New England, Vilma figured the Jets would use some of the same schemes as the Patriots. Bruschi is the perfect person to study because he has excelled in that system for so long.“I wanted to see how Bruschi did it,” Vilma said. “He was obviously in that system for eight, nine years so he did a good job in it. I wanted to see what he did and the little tweaks they put into the system.”Taking that initiative is part of what makes Vilma so special.“That’s very typical of Jonathan, to be proactive like that,” Mangini said. “From the day we got here he said, ‘I want a playbook, I need a playbook, and I need to start studying.’ It doesn’t surprise me that Jon would do that extra work and try to study and give himself any edge he can give himself.”Considering Vilma is the best player on the team, having him adjust to a new role could be a questionable move.The Jets do not have the personnel to run the 3-4, especially along the defensive line, where free-agent acquisition Kimo von Oelhoffen is the only one with extensive experience in it.But knowing Vilma, he will do whatever it takes to excel in the new system.“We’ll see. If we go to the Super Bowl with this one, yeah I’ll take it,” Vilma said.

A New Coach and New Role For Jets’ Man in the Middle

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