The Patriots defense the Jets will face Sunday will be almost unrecognizable to a lot of people.
Cornerstone starters from their Super Bowl run, LBs Tedy Bruschi (retired), Mike Vrabel (Chiefs), DE Richard Seymour (Raiders) and S Rodney Harrison (retired), are all gone.
“They’ve been like the poster children there, the staples of that defense,” Jets S Kerry Rhodes said. “It’ll be weird not to see them out there, but (Bill Belichick) knows how to plug people in there and make plays.”
Jets RT Damien Woody, who played with those players when he was with the Patriots, said, “It’s almost like a new team.
“There’s been a changing of the guard, they’re transitioning to a new style with new people and new leadership,” Woody said. “That’s not to say they don’t have talented guys. One of the things Bill does very well is he gets guys prepared.”
Jets WR Jerricho Cotchery said, “Every time I turn on Patriots film I expect to see Bruschi, Seymour, Vrabel and Rodney Harrison. To see all those guys leave in one year and not be there anymore is kind of weird. Obviously they’ve got a youth movement going on.”
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Jets special teams coordinator Mike Westhoff had the line of the week when he was asked if he was happy with the performance of punter Steve Weatherford, who averaged 41 yards gross and net in his Jets debut Sunday.
“It was one game,” Westhoff said. “That’s like one date.”
Turning more serious, Westhoff added, “I thought he did a good job. I couldn’t have been happier with what he did, with no returns. He’s off to a good start.”
Punting, of course, has been the bane of Westhoff’s existence this offseason with seven different punters trying to win the job.
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Jets DT Kris Jenkins (back), DT Sione Pouha (ankle) and WR Wallace Wright (hamstring) were all limited in practice yesterday, but expected to play Sunday. The only addition to the Patriots’ injury report was G Stephen Neal (back), who was limited yesterday.