The Jets have an important decision to make

Going into the final preseason game, the questions for the NY Jets and Philadelphia Eagles were easy: How would Mark Sanchez look in his second game as the Jets official starter? How would Michael Vick look at all? The answers came easy: Sanchez looked good in 1 series, going 5-5 with one touchdown, and Michael Vick didn't, getting sacked four times, intercepted once, and generally running scared against the Jets pressure. The big question for the Jets coming out isn't so easy:

Who will the Jets running backs be?

With the Jets RBs questionable for the future, the team needs to figure things out now. Thomas Jones has two years left on his contract and is looking to restructure, as he is making only $900,000 this year. Leon Washington is playing the final year of his rookie deal and wants an extension. He's looking for $6 mil a year, which seems high for guy who doesn't play every down, even though he does have game-changing ability. Knowing this, and not sure Jones would even report to camp, the Jets selected Shonn Greene, a slightly bigger, much younger version of Jones, to start the third round of this years draft. But Greene suffered an ankle injury in camp, then missed the second half of the preseason with a rib injury. And Danny Woodhead got the ball.

If you didn't watch last night's game, here is the important stat line: Danny Woodhead, 18 rush, 158 yards, 2 td, 1 rec, 10 yards, 1 kr, 31 yards. Over the last three games, Woodhead has 221 yards on 39 carries, an average of 5.7 ypc. And yes, it was mostly against second and third stringers, but these were still Ravens, Giants, and Eagles defenses. And somehow you could say those stats are a let-down.

In four years at D-II Chadron State, reading Woodhead's stats are like reading an NCAA record book. His 2,756 rushing yards in 2006 were a single season, all-division record, and his 38 tds were a D-II record. His 7962 rushing yards and 109 tds are NCAA career records. His 9,259 career all-purpose yards are second only to Eagle Brian Westbrook's 9512. For his career, Woodhead averaged 6.9 ypc for 183 ypg. He was a Harlon Hill Trophy(D-II's Heisman) all four years, winning it in 2006 and 2007. After signing with the Jets as an undrafted free agent, a knee injury kept him from playing the 2008 season.

Now Woodhead is back healthy, and looking like he did in college. They have a 24-year-old bruiser back in Shonn Greene who can easily replace Jones if he can get and stay healthy. At the start of next season, Jones will be 32 and scheduled to make $6 million. It would be easy for the Jets to cut him, especially if he performs like he did in 2007 instead of 2008. And Washington's still unresolved contract issue can be easily solved by not signing him. The immediate problem, of course, is who do the Jets go with this year?

With the Ravens last year, Rex Ryan saw an offense that attempted to run a three-headed-monster running game. When they were all healthy, Ray Rice, Willis McGahee, and Le'Ron McClain split carries. Ryan already said this will be a run-first offense, and the topic of rotating three running backs was brought up when Greene was drafted. Jones, Washington, and Greene, look like the likely candidates. But would they keep a fourth on the roster?

The easy answer is, yes, for now. The 53-man roster must be submitted by tomorrow afternoon. However, with Shaun Ellis suspended one game and Calvin Pace suspended for four, that opens up two roster spots for a limited time, essentially extending the preseason for a couple of players. Once that's over, decisions have to be made. Do the Jets cut Woodhead? Aundre Allison hasn't looked spectacular as a return man. Do they make him that for this year? Or do they keep him around as an inactive fourth RB, looking forward to next year?

Personally, I say rotate your three backs and make Woodhead the return man to take some of the wear and tear off of Washington.