Quinton Coples dominant in debut

Posted by Darin Gantt on August 11, 2012, 9:49 AM EDT

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On a night of more heralded debuts for the Jets,Quinton Coples didn’t garner nearly as much attention.

But maybe he should have.

The first-round pick had five tackles, two for losses, a strip sack and a batted pass in his first game with the Jets.

Coach Rex Ryan said Coples had “a tremendous game,” via Jenny Vrentas of the Newark Star-Ledger.

“Some real encouraging things,” Ryan said. “That’s not surprising, but I was happy to see it nonetheless.”

Coaches told Coples to plan to play all four quarters. He didn’t start in the base 3-4 set, but worked with the starters in the four-man front as well as in their 4-3 sub package.

“I did very well,” Coples said. “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.”

If Coples proves to be more than a physical specimen, the Jets have the potential to have a dangerous defensive line, whether it’s three or four men up front.

And if they continue to fiddle with backup quarterbacks, they might need their defense to be dominant.

Coples was flat out impressive during his debut against the Bengals.  He was solid stacking the edge against the run, and he was more than disruptive in both the run and pass game.  He showed good burst off the ball, excellent use of his hands, good strength, and more importantly - he played smart.  The only downside was that he looked gassed in the second half.  Coples didn't impress me leading up to the draft, but he looked like he could be a steal for the Jets.   -Tiger

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