Jets Brass On Ferguson
Opening statement…
Tannenbaum:On behalf of the whole organization, we are pleased to announce that D'Brickashaw is our first round pick, fourth overall. He was a four year starter in the ACC playing left tackle. We're excited to have him. In our collective assessment, he represents a rare opportunity where the board marries the need. We really feel like we killed two birds with one stone. We are going to get a person who started at a high level of competition at a position where we obviously need some help. As a person, doing all the research that we did, D'Brickashaw is an outstanding individual and when we put those three aspects together, it all came back to D'Brickashaw. He plays at a program that we have a lot of familiarity with and we have a lot of information on him. He is someone who we are comfortable with. He's someone that we think will be here for a long time and help us win ball games.
On the scenario with Matt Leinart and how difficult the decision to draft Ferguson was…
Tannenbaum: Over the last few weeks as different scenarios evolved, we put a lot of time, effort and energy into creating our board and we tried to stick to the boards that we made. We think Matt Leinart is going to be a very good football player and we are excited about the decision we made with D'Brickashaw.
On Ferguson being the Jets first-round pick…
Mangini: We're extremely happy about D'Brickashaw. With my background on defense, one of the things I appreciate the most is a good LT. If you look at it defensively, you're always looking for a weakness which is normally at the LT. For us to get a LT of D'Brickashaw's caliber and the type of program he's from, he's a nice fit for us in terms of what we need. We're excited to get D'Brickashaw here.
On the possibility of trading with New Orleans to land the number two pick…
Tannenbaum: I would say there were a lot of phone calls today that we made and we received; I am sure the phone company is going to be very happy with the bill. We assessed every opportunity. Something that Eric and I are committed to, on behalf of the whole organization, is every opportunity that comes along we are going to assess it and make the decision that is best for the New York Jets. That is something we have tried to do since February. That is what is going to turn this team around. There were a lot of situations out there that we evaluated, but we are very pleased with D'Brickashaw. As Eric said, he is a player who can really help the offense with his defense.
On investigating trade possibilities…
Tannenbaum: I would characterize it as us investigating opportunities. Sometimes opportunities present themselves and sometimes they don't. Rarely is it so pronounced that the need and the board match up, and that is why we are so excited about D'Brickashaw.
On if any offers were made to the Saints…
Tannenbaum: I would say there were conversations and I will leave it at that.
On why it took 10 minutes to hand in the pick…
Tannenbaum: There are always a confluence of circumstances that go on before a pick that you need to make sure everything is buttoned up. You have to be sure to assess every opportunity from other teams, the signing of that player, his medical situation, security situation. It is obviously a big decision when you take a player in the first round. It was my decision to wait. I didn't think there was any reason not to wait. You have 15 minutes for a reason. I thought it was a good idea to wait just to make sure.
On conversations with New Orleans about trading up after learning the Texans had not selected Reggie Bush…
Tannenbaum: I did not speak to anyone from New Orleans until today.
On Ferguson being from Long Island…
Tannenbaum: It is a nice story that he is from a local school, but as Eric said, we have been focused on getting good players and quality people. We have researched players thoroughly. It's nice to have a good relationship with Al Groh. We think those were more important aspects than him being from Freeport.
On alluding to his experience as a defensive coach and philosophy of choosing a LT over a RB…
Mangini: When we were picking at four we had another RB on the board. We were comfortable staying at four and D'Brickashaw is a dominant player at his position. The LT position is extremely difficult to fill offensively. When that position isn't as dominant, it's something you enjoy defensively. Filling this position with a player of D'Brickashaw's caliber is an excellent opportunity for us and something we are pleased with.
On his value of the LT position…
Mangini: I think that the LT position is extremely difficult to fill and especially pronounced when there is a weaker player at that position.
On how D'Brickashaw Ferguson fits in with the Jets and with the veterans that are on the line…
Mangini: I think he fits in anyone's offensive-line, regardless of who else they have. D'Brickashaw fits into our team because he goes back to the core we believe in. We want great players and great people. D'Brickashaw impressed me when he came to visit us. Here's a guy who's been successful in college and has had all the hype that goes along with the draft process, but he's grounded. What he's looking forward to is improving as a player and working hard to go from a really good college player to a really great professional player. To hear that was impressive.
On how the draft will shake out now with Ferguson…
Mangini: There is a lot of time left in the draft and what Mike (Tannenbaum) said before the draft is that there is no position we wouldn't address except kicker and punter. We'll see at the end of the weekend where we are. Once we get into camp and see how the competition shakes out, I think those pieces will fall into place.
On Ferguson being a RT with Adrian (Jones) currently at LT…
Mangini: Right now Adrian is a T, but he can play LT. That's another nice thing about Adrian, he has a lot of position flexibility. To have two LT's on the roster with both having the flexibility to play RT, gives us a lot of versatility.
On Jay Cutler…
Tannenbaum: I think Jay is going to be a great player. We spent a lot of time with him and he is a great person who I think is going to be very productive. (He comes from) a small school and didn't have a lot of success, but we felt where we were, assessing different opportunities, we felt comfortable with D'Brickashaw. But for the value of what it would take to do something else in the first round, we were comfortable staying where we were.
On possibilities of trading the pick…
Tannenbaum: I am not sure about the hypotheticals of where we would go or not, it was more just assessing different players going to different spots within the round and we were assessing all those possibilities. Looking at all the factors, we felt comfortable staying where we were. We still have another first round pick, the 35th pick and two in the third (round), so we will see what opportunities comes along.
On being in an uncomfortable position after Houston made their decision…
Tannenbaum: That is their feeling. We are happy with D'Brickashaw. We have a great player at his position and a good guy in a position we needed. That is the total package. What other people's positions are I can't control, but we got a heck of a player and a heck of a guy.
On why they decided to pass up Matt Leinart…
Tannenbaum: We spent a lot of time with Matt. He is a good person and a good player and he is going to be very successful. As an organization, the best thing to do at the four spot was to take D'Brickashaw looking at all the factors. We still have a lot of picks. It's not going to be a kicker or a punter and we are going to go from there.
On fan support for the decision…
Tannenbaum: I just hope that they have that same feeling after opening day
