NFL

Namath rips Jets again

Joe Namath took aim at the Jets again yesterday, but this time he ripped Santonio Holmes, general manager Mike Tannenbaum and the offensive line instead of coach Rex Ryan.

Namath took issue with Holmes’ postgame comments after the 34-17 loss to the Ravens when the wide receiver criticized the offensive line and quarterback Mark Sanchez.

Holmes said Sunday: “It starts up front with the big guys. They’ve got to do a better job of protecting Mark, and Mark has to do a better job of making reads and getting the ball to where he needs to, so his playmakers can make plays.”

“That was a mistake, it surely was,” Namath said on 1050 ESPN Radio. “For Holmes, as a captain, to go outside, to the media, and start pointing fingers. . . . I mean, he’s right about the ball getting out late to him [on Sanchez’s third-quarter interception], and he’s right about the offensive line, but that can create a problem in the locker room. . . . That divisiveness can bury a team. They’ve got to correct that right away.”

UPDATES FROM OUR JETS BLOG

Ryan said he did not have a problem with what Holmes said.

Namath called the offensive line “scary” and called it a “reach” to take center Colin Baxter out, replacing him with Matt Slauson and inserting Vlad Ducasse at left guard.

The Jets legend then took a shot at Tannenbaum for selecting Ducasse and not admitting it was a mistake.

“I’m not sure what’s going on there,” Namath said. “We picked some poor players and we’re not owning up to it. That’s what it amounts to. You’ve got guys on the roster who have been picked and you keep trying to say, ‘OK, they’re going to work out.’ Well, guess what? We tried that with [Vernon] Gholston and it didn’t work out.

“You have to [say], ‘Hey, I made a bad pick, a bad selection,’ and move on. The Jets didn’t do that and it’s a little late for the season to get it righted.”

Last week, Namath criticized Ryan for having the Jets overconfident. Despite Namath’s stature in Jets lore, his comments do not carry much weight inside the locker room.

“We don’t care one bit what Joe Namath has to say,” Slauson said. “He means nothing to us.”

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Sanchez was hit 10 times Sunday, enough for Ryan to worry about keeping him healthy.

“He’s not going to make it through the season if he keeps getting hit 10 times a game,” Ryan said.

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Ryan said he is hopeful the Jets will have All-Pro center Nick Mangold back this week after missing the last two games with a high right ankle sprain. . . . Reserve linebacker Garret McIntyre has a concussion and is day-to-day.