Reluctant Reid Pressed On Jarrett

Andy Reid did not have any particular interest in discussing the failed marriage between the Eagles and Jaiquawn Jarrett Wednesday.

“With J.J., I really don’t have anything to say. I have respect for the kid. I know he’s going to hook on with a team that probably plays a little more his style in the secondary,” said Reid. “I know he’ll do a great job. The kid’s all class.”

Reid reiterated that he believes Jarrett will land with a team where he can play a style “where he’s up there and knocking the heck out of people. I have a lot of respect for him. That’s really where I’d like to end that right there and let’s move on with the Ravens.”

But Reid was pressed. Fans would like to know, a reporter said, what went wrong in the evaluation.

“Well I think the Ravens are a good football team,” Reid responded.

So the reporter tried again.

“I know you want me to keep repeating it but I don’t want to do that,” said Reid. “This gives him a chance to hook on with somebody and be a contributor in this league and make a living. I think that’s probably what the fans care most about.”

With the former second-round pick cut to make room for wide receiver Mardy Gilyard, David Sims and Colt Anderson become the primary options behind Nate Allen and Kurt Coleman. Reid said that Anderson, who is coming off an ACL injury, is ready to play. Anderson has mainly been a special teams contributor over his three years in Philadelphia, while Sims, recently acquired from the Browns, is an unknown new to the system.

“[Anderson] has a possibility to get in the game and possibly contribute. That’s what he wants and that’s what we want,” said Reid. “And Sims, we liked what we saw on tape and we liked what we saw out here last week in practice. It was just a matter of picking up the techniques that we use and some of the verbiage that we use. He’ll continue to do that this week. We obviously felt some comfort there to make the move that we made.”

Jarrett’s former teammates in the secondary echoed Reid’s sentiment that he will find a home.

“Sometimes things just don’t work out,” said Allen. “Certain things change scheme-wise or something. You never know.”

With Reid saying Jarrett will find a system that will be a better fit for his skill set, Allen was asked what a safety needs in this defense to thrive.

“You’ve got to be able to do it all,” said Allen. “We come down in coverage a lot and  we do have to cover tight ends a lot man-to-man. We obviously play a lot of man-to-man. But be physical, too. We blitz a lot, so you’ve got to be able to do it all.”

Not to be lost in all this is the fact that Jarrett was drafted a year ago to play in this defense, so it’s not as if he’s a casualty of a defensive overhaul. He was selected with the 54th overall pick in 2011 to “do it all” for the Eagles. A week into the 2012 season, he is off the team.

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