To address a pass rush that produced just 35 sacks in 2011, the New York Jets selected North Carolina defensive lineman Quinton Coples in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft.
Schein: Why Rex will get a ring
Rex Ryan is truly the perfect coach to lead the New York Jets to a Super Bowl title. Adam Schein explains why. **More ...**
Coples had 17.5 sacks in his final two seasons in Chapel Hill, but there were questions about his consistency, and he was not as highly-regarded a pass-rusher as Melvin Ingram, Shea McClellin, Chandler Jones, Whitney Mercilus or Nick Perry – players the Jets passed on to select Coples – were in this year's draft class.
Ingram, McClellin and Jones had strong preseason debuts on Thursday night, and Coples followed suit last night. In the Jets' preseason opener against the Cincinnati Bengals, Coples came off the bench to post five tackles, including two for a loss, picked up a strip-sack of quarterback Zac Robinson and also defended a pass.
Jets coach Rex Ryan said Coples had "a tremendous game" while the rookie was also pleased with his performance, reports Jenny Vrentas of The Star-Ledger.
"I did very well," Coples said last night. "I don't have a grade for it, but I was very productive. I also have a lot to improve upon as well. It starts on Sunday when we go back to practice. I look forward to looking at this game on film and correcting my mistakes."
Coples' first chance to correct his mistakes from last night will be next Saturday night against the New York Giants, a game that can be seen live on the NFL Network.
