Off Topic » Christian Hackenberg spent his final day with the New York

FLORHAM PARK Marquise Brown Jersey , N.J. (AP) — Jets much as he did in his first two seasons.As a spectator.The Jets traded the 23-year-old quarterback to the Oakland Raiders on Tuesday for a conditional seventh-round draft pick next year, ending Hackenberg’s tenure with the team before he ever took a regular-season snap.“Some players, it takes a while for them to get going,” said coach Todd Bowles, who announced the trade after his post-practice news conference was delayed for two hours as the deal was being completed.“We did everything we could to try to help him as best we could,” Bowles added. “Sometimes it just works out somewhere else.”Hackenberg was a second-round pick out of Penn State in 2016, but never played a regular-season snap for the Jets. The 23-year-old quarterback was clearly No. 4 on New York’s depth chart, behind veterans Josh McCown and Teddy Bridgewater and first-rounder Sam Darnold.“We’ve got three quarterbacks and obviously we drafted Sam in the first (round),” Bowles said. “We like Teddy and we like Josh. We just had one too many to get all of them reps.”Hackenberg stood back and merely watched as McCown, Bridgewater and Darnold took their snaps during 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 team drills during the first practice of organized team activities. Hackenberg threw during position drills, but that was it — and, as it turned out, that was by design.“We held him out today because we had things in the works,” Bowles said, “in case something happened.”Hackenberg joins a quarterbacks room with the Raiders that includes Derek Carr, EJ Manuel and Connor Cook. Oakland coach Jon Gruden worked with Hackenberg for his “Gruden’s QB Camp” series before the 2016 draft, so he has some familiarity with the young signal caller.With the Jets, Hackenberg was considered a project when he entered the league and has been an enigma so far in the NFL. His mechanics have been the subject of much debate and criticism.So, he went back to the basics this offseason http://www.ravensauthorizedshops.com/authentic-jaylon-ferguson-jersey , working on shortening his motion and trying to become more efficient. After two years with no results, Hackenberg was asked a few hours before the trade why it took so long to take that step.“I don’t know,” he said. “I think there were some times where I threw it really good throughout my first two years here. That was the frustrating part for me, is the ups and downs and not knowing why, if that makes sense, and not really getting any information from anybody on how to fix that and how to address it.”That immediately raised some eyebrows, and came off as a veiled shot at the Jets’ coaching staff.“No, I don’t put the blame on anyone,” Hackenberg said. “I think my thing is I’m happy I got the opportunity and someone stepped up outside of me to help me give me the tools to do it. So, being able to take that by my control, if that makes sense, being able to handle that and do it myself, I think is really cool.”Bowles insisted that Hackenberg’s critical comments had nothing to do with the deal.“No, Hack’s a great guy,” Bowles said. “He’s 23 years old — he should want to play. He’s a competitor, so I understand.”After last season ended, Hackenberg sat down with Jeremy Bates, the Jets’ quarterbacks coach and new offensive coordinator, about things the youngster needed to work on. Hackenberg acknowledged that he developed “some inefficiencies Miles Boykin Jersey , some bad habits” and discussed shortening his throwing motion.Hackenberg met with former NFL quarterbacks coach David Lee and went over several things before Lee pointed him in the direction of personal coach Jeff Christensen. The two worked together for 60-plus sessions since the end of January in Chicago, Los Angeles and Kansas City with other NFL QBs such as EJ Manuel and Kevin Hogan.“For the first time in a long time, right now, I feel that I have a solid foundation from a fundamentals standpoint,” Hackenberg said. “And the cool thing is, it only started about two months ago and it’s only going to keep on getting better and better and better. So, I’m excited about it.”But it won’t be with the Jets, and Hackenberg will go down as one of the biggest draft disappointments in recent team history. New York spent a second-round pick on a player who never took a snap — and one who was considered, at one time, a possible future franchise quarterback.“Any time a pick doesn’t work out, I guess you can look at it as a waste,” Bowles said. “But when a pick does work out, it’s not a waste. You learn lessons from everything you do in life. It’s not just football and draft picks, so if anybody’s got a four-leaf clover up their butt and that’s going to work out every time, please let me know that person because it didn’t work out here.”—— KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Doug Pederson went through this grind a few years ago, juggling the demands of his primary job as the offensive coordinator of the Kansas City Chiefs with overtures from NFL teams elsewhere.Matt Nagy went through the same process last winter.Now, Eric Bieniemy is getting his turn.The latest hot commodity for NFL head coaching jobs, Bieniemy spent the Chiefs’ bye week speaking with representatives from the Dolphins http://www.packerscheapshoponline.com/cheap-authentic-darnell-savage-jr.-jersey , Bengals, Buccaneers and Jets while turning down an opportunity to interview with Arizona.The Bucs wound up choosing Bruce Arians, but the other jobs remain open even as Bieniemy prepares the Chiefs to face the Indianapolis Colts in Saturday’s divisional round.Bieniemy declined to go into details about the interviews Wednesday, preferring to focus entirely on the only certainty in his professional life.But when asked about his latest sought-after assistant, Chiefs coach Andy Reid seemed resigned to the possibility of losing him.“I think you guys know I am a big fan of his,” Reid said. “I think he would be phenomenal.”So does just about everyone in the Chiefs locker room.Even though he played running back in college and the NFL, the affable and outspoken Bieniemy has been a crucial player in the development of first-year starter Patrick Mahomes . He has taken an offense that was good with Alex Smith under center and turned it into a record-setting group, one that hardly missed a beat with reigning NFL rushing champ Kareem Hunt was released midway through the season.He turned journeymen such as running backs Spencer Ware and Damien Williams into crucial players, and elevated stars such as wide receiver Tyreek Hill and tight end Travis Kelce to another level.All told, the Chiefs scored 565 points this season, the third most in NFL history.“He has that mindset, work ethic and determination you need to be a head coach in this league,” Mahomes said. “I know he’s had the interest, but you know he will still be 100 percent in on what we are doing here. He would be an amazing coach, but I’m excited I still have him here right now.”Many of those traits are the same ones that catapulted Pederson and Nagy to head coaching jobs.Pederson parlayed his success under Reid into the top job in Philadelphia, where he once played quarterback for him. He wound up leading a team featuring backup quarterback Nick Foles to a Super Bowl title, and now has them back in the divisional round of the playoffs.Nagy inherited a struggling Chicago Bears franchise and went 12-4 and won the NFC North, and was a double-doinked field goal away from joining Reid in the divisional round.Those are just the latest branches in Reid’s impressive coaching tree, too.John Harbaugh led the Baltimore Ravens to a Super Bowl triumph http://www.ravensauthorizedshops.com/authentic-justice-hill-jersey , and rebounded from an ugly start to return to the playoffs this year. Ron Rivera has a Super Bowl appearance with the Carolina Panthers, while Steve Spagnuolo, Todd Bowles and Sean McDermott have had varying levels of success.“Who you start with really makes a big difference,” Harbaugh said. “If you start with people that do it the right way — good people, teach you the right things — it gives you a chance, gives you a leg up. And Andy, for me, was a big part of that in every way.”Bieniemy has spoken numerous times about the opportunities that Reid has afforded him. Bieniemy was serving as offensive coordinator of Colorado, his alma mater, when Reid plucked him away to coach his running backs in Kansas City. And once Pederson and Nagy moved on to bigger things, Bieniemy was the easy choice for Reid to make his third offensive coordinator in four years.He’s proven himself just as creative as his predecessors, too, coming up with unique ways to use exotic formations. But his demeanor is far different. Pederson and Nagy were generally low-key, while Bieniemy’s voice can be heard quite clearly across three practice fields.Yet that unbridled intensity only seems to engender more devotion from his players.“He’s very detailed and he pays attention to everything,” Ware said. “If you take a look at his resume and the players he’s coached, and the way they play football, each and every play they get out there on the field. Having an entire offense with that same mentality is pretty exciting.”It’s been pretty productive, too.Notes: Shortstop Eric Berry (heel) did not practice Wednesday after working out on a limited basis the previous day. He missed the regular-season finale after spending the previous few weeks getting up to game speed. … OLB Dorian O’Daniel (foot/ankle) also did not practice Wednesday.