Everyone Accounted for in Cortland Except....

Well, everybody has arrived in Cortland safe and sound, with one exception. Leon Washington has not shown yet. Rex Ryan seems fairly confident that he will show up and indicated he has spoken directly with Washington several times throughout the off-season.

He would not confirm or specify if or what any punishment (fine) might be for Washington so we will have to wait and see when this situation gets straightened out.

Thomas Jones did show. Nothing else to tell you there.

Calvin Pace spoke to the media regarding his upcoming suspension. The league notified him at the end of last season, but did not make it public until several weeks ago. Pace said that the supplement he took was something you can still buy over the counter and is something he has taken for a while because it used to be on the list of supplements that were allowed. "It was a workout supplement that I had previously taken before [the NFL] banned substance list changed. I lapsed and I take full responsibility for it.

Otherwise everybody seemed quite happy for camp to finally be getting underway. Lots of talk about creating a close-knit team.

On the rumor front, have not been able to get any further information about the situation with wide receiver Matt Jones who has supposedly received some interest from the Jets along with several other teams. I spoke with his agent who would tell me only that there is interest but nothing concrete to talk about yet. I'll keep you posted.

Off to Camp...and CBSSports.com

Heading north in the morning in preparation for the opening of Jets camp on Friday at SUNY Cortland. I won't tell you how much stuff I've packed as it is a bit embarrassing.

But enough about my luggage. There should be some interesting things to watch out for right off the bat. The Leon Washington negotiations continue, although I would think it's more likely than not that he'll be there for the first practice. The fine per day is pretty steep - I think around $7K. So that, combined with the fact that the Jets front office supposedly puts a lot of stock in good faith gestures both point toward the Pro Bowler being there.

What will happen with Thomas Jones should be entertaining. If he shows, which I'm sure he will, we undoubtedly won't get a thing out of him. He's incredibly reticent with the media under even normal circumstances.

Curious to see how big of a crowd Calvin Pace draws. This will be our first opportunity to speak with him since the league announced his four-game suspension for using a banned supplement. He is always friendly and accessible so I imagine he will make himself available and answer any and all questions.

Then there's Vernon Gholston. Rex Ryan named him the starter at least while Pace serves his suspension so there certainly will be a lot of eyes on the second year player who many people still have many questions about.

Should be fun to see how rookie running back Shonn Greene progresses - great runner, not-so-great hands thus far. We'll see how that goes.

In the meantime, you can also find me on CBSSports.com this season. Starting on Friday (July 31st) I will be the Jets correspondent for a new section called RapidReports which are available in every team section.

Talk to you from Cortland!

Jets 2009 Training Camp Schedule

The Jets released their training camp schedule today. From Friday, July 31st - Tuesday, August 11th and then Sunday, August 16th - Thursday, August 21st, the team will be at SUNY Cortland in Cortland, NY.

The schedule is as follows (ST indicates a Special Teams practice at that time):

7/31 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/1 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)
8/2 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/3 9:00 a.m. and 3:15 p.m.(ST)
8/4 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/5 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)
8/6 Green and White Scrimmage: 7:00 p.m.

8/7 NO PRACTICE

8/8 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/9 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)
8/10 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/11 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)

8/12 Family Night Practice at Hofstra University: 6:00 p.m.

8/13 NO PRACTICE

8/14 Preseason Game against St. Louis Rams: 7:00 p.m.

8/15 NO PRACTICE

8/16 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)
8/17 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/18 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. (ST)
8/19 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/20 8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
8/21 8:15 a.m.

Team Breaks camp at SUNY Cortland

8/22 Practice at Florham Park, NJ: Time TBA

8/23 NO PRACTICE

8/24 Preseason Game at Baltimore Ravens: 8:00 p.m.

8/25 NO PRACTICE

8/26 Practice at Florham Park, NJ: Time TBA
8/27 Practice at Florham Park, NJ: Time TBA

END OF TRAINING CAMP PRACTICES

8/29 Preseason Game at New York Giants: 8:00 p.m.
9/3 Preseason Game against Philadelphia Eagles: 7:00 p.m.

Generation Jets Fest and Jets Shop hours:
Practice Generation Jets Fest Jets Shop
8:15 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. 7:30 a.m.-Noon
2:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. 7:30 a.m.-Noon
2:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m.
8:15 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. 7:30 a.m.-Noon
2:00 p.m.-6:30 p.m. 7:30 a.m.-Noon
2:00 p.m.-6:30 p.m.
Green and White Scrimmage 4:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m.
Family Night Practice at Hofstra University 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m. 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

Note: Generation Jets Fest will not be open Aug. 11 and 15-21 and Jets Shop will not be open Aug. 20.

Jets Sign TE Richard Owens

On the heels of the release of Bubba Franks yesterday, the team announced today that it has signed veteran tight end Richard Owens. Owens, who was out of football in 2008, was originally signed as a rookie free agent by the Vikings in 2004. He spent 2004 - 2006 with the Vikings and then signed on with the Rams where he played 14 games in 2007.

Owens attended the University of Louisville, also the alma mater of Kerry Rhodes.

Bubba Franks Released

The Jets just announced that they released 10-year veteran, tight end Bubba Franks. After a not-so-stellar season when he only played eight games due to injury, the Jets re-signed Franks in May. He did not participate in OTAs or mini-camp, which Rex Ryan indicated was due to Franks recovering from "a knee thing." Originally the team thought he'd be ready for training camp.

Pace Suspended Four Games for Violating Policy on Performance-Enhancing Substances

Word just came that New York Jets linebacker Calvin Pace has been suspended for the first four games of the upcoming season for violating the NFL policy on performance enhancing substances.

Here is the statement from Pace:

"This is a situation that resulted from an over-the-counter dietary supplement that contained a substance that I did not know violated the League’s policy. I am responsible for what I put into my body and I should have paid closer attention to the League’s guidelines. I regret that this has happened and apologize to my teammates, the entire Jets organization as well as the fans. Hopefully, this does not distract from our ultimate goal of winning the Super Bowl."

And here is the statement from the Jets:

"We respect the League’s decision and look forward to Calvin’s return for our Monday Night game at Miami."

Pace's suspension officially begins on September 5th so he will be allowed to participate in all practices - meaning training camp - and all preseason games prior to that.

This was a mild surprise because Pace is both a smart player and a smart guy. We don't know yet where he got whatever it is he took, although it was clearly stated that it was something over the counter. I just got off the phone with another player on the team who theorized that Pace most likely took something on the recommendation of someone he trusted and just didn't check every single ingredient in whatever it was he took.

As soon as I find out more, I'll let you know.

Right now, third-year veteran Marques Murrell is listed as being behind Pace on the depth chart, but this is also an opportunity for Vernon Gholston to step up.