Against Miami, with the Jets trailing by five and less than 2 minutes to go, they faced a 4th and 10 at the Miami 29. Keller made a fantastic 16-yard catch with a defender draped all over him.
Perhaps his most memorable play was his 45-yard touchdown catch against Cincinnati in the wildcard round. I loved his desire to get in the end zone.
Even though the defender had an angle on him and was trying to ride him out of bounds, Keller kept driving toward the goal line and reached the ball inside the pylon.
Later in the game he took a dump off and rumbled for 43-yards showing great athleticism in the open field.
His low point of the season was his fumble at the goal line against Carolina. He took a 17-yard catch and tried to carry a defender into the end zone but lost the football as he tried to extend it over the line.
It was a brutal play and just killed the Jets’ momentum but it is hard to trash a guy who makes a mistake on a high-effort play. It cost the Jets some points but will be a play he will learn from.
Keller’s struggles this year were the byproduct of Sanchez’ turnover issues. Since many of Sanchez’ picks came throwing down the middle of the field, Schottenheimer called more plays to the outside, which limited Keller’s chances in the middle.
As Sanchez matures, Keller will get more opportunities.
Nonetheless, I love Keller’s toughness and run after the catch ability. He is always looking to run someone over and brings that rugged attitude to the offense.
He also plays with a lot of confidence and is often seen jawing away with defenders. He does not shy away from the competition and this infuses confidence into the rest of the offense.
I am disappointed he has not become more of an inline blocker but he has made strides in this area. His best block of the season came early in the Cincinnati playoff game where he got a great seal on the corner to spring Shonn Greene’s 39-yard TD run.
Speaking of blocking, the Jets’ pro personnel department did a nice job of landing Ben Hartsock early in the season. After a surprising release by the Falcons, the Jets picked up the 6-year veteran in October.
He did a solid job at the point of attack and was certainly a key component in the Jets’ running game. Unfortunately, a blocking TE is very much like an offensive linemen in that the only time he gets attention is when he makes a mistake and he made a few in 2009.
In overtime against Buffalo, the Jets were driving for the winning score. They had a 3rd and 4 at the Buffalo 24 and needed to get closer for an easier field goal attempt.
Thomas Jones ran up the middle for 12-yards and a first down but the play was called back for holding on Hartsock. The Jets self-destructed with other miscues and pushed themselves out of field goal range.
Unfortunately for Hartsock his mistakes will be remembered more than his blocking and since blocking tight ends are usually easy to find, he may not be resigned.
The Jets could easily draft a blocking TE in the later rounds or even sign one as a priority free agent. Resigning Hartsock would make sense depending on the price. If they don’t want to pay him they could find a similar guy in free agency with a lower price tag.