LaDainian Tomlinson wasn’t shy about sharing his displeasure with Jets wide receiver Santonio Holmes in the days after the 2o11 season ended and he’s not shy about speculating about more problems with Holmes in the year to come.
In an appearance on NFL Network host Rich Eisen’s podcast, Tomlinson outlined where he thinks the trouble could come. Tomlinson, who retired in June, said that he thinks new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano’s grinding approach to offense could become a problem for Holmes, who complained about the offense last season before sparking an in-huddle argument with Mark Sanchez during the season-ending loss to the Dolphins.
“Santonio was brought there to be the No. 1 receiver and catch a lot of balls through the passing game and if you are a team that’s not going to throw the ball very much that’s going to make for an unhappy receiver, right?” Tomlinson asked. “So, if Week 6 they haven’t thrown the ball more than 15 times a game and Santonio is not getting his catches you may hear some things: him speaking out, him saying things that may rub some teammates the wrong way. It could very well happen, but I hope Santonio learned from last year and that’s all you can really do. You have to learn from your previous mistakes.”
There have been less plausible hypotheticals put forth than the one Tomlinson outlines above. The Jets have talked a lot about more accountability in the locker room this season, but it remains to be seen how well one of the leaders of last year’s dysfunction will handle things if they don’t go his way this time around.