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This is the eighth part in a nine-part, position-by-position analysis, breaking down the Jets' needs and draft possibilities.

Position: Linebacker

Depth chart: David Harris, Bart Scott, Calvin Pace, Bryan Thomas, Aaron Maybin, Josh Mauga, Nick Bellore, Garrett McIntyre, Eddie Jones, Ricky Sapp, Matt Berning.

Not under contract: N/A

Scouting Report: Stay tuned, folks, because there could be some significant news at linebacker. Even though they re-signed the venerable Thomas to a one-year contract -- he's coming back from Achilles' tendon surgery -- the Jets want to add another outside linebacker in the draft, possibly in the first round. This unit slowed down and got old last season, and it needs an influx of fresh blood.

The only edge rusher among the group is Maybin, a specialist not big enough to play every down in the base defense. Like Thomas, Pace ($3.1 million base) and Scott ($4.2 million) are on the wrong side of 30, but they're probably locked in because their '12 salaries are guaranteed. But the Jets have to take a long-term view of the position, knowing that Thomas, Scott and Pace all could be gone in 2013. It would be an upset they don't draft at least two linebackers -- one inside, one outside. The only building block is Harris, who's entering the second year of a four-year deal. Bellore and Mauga have some upside, but not enough to stop them from drafting an ILB.

The Last Time: The Jets haven't drafted a linebacker since Vernon Gholston in 2008. He was the sixth overall pick and failed to record a sack in three seasons, when the Jets finally sent him packing.

Potential Targets: The player atop their OLB wish list is Melvin Ingram (South Carolina), according to sources. He doesn't have prototypical size (6-foot-1 1/2, 264 pounds), but he plays with leverage and moves exceptionally well. Position versatility makes him an attractive prospect; he can play OLB, DE and ILB. He recorded 10 sacks, 15 knockdowns and 10.5 hurries, according to STATS. One personnel executive told me most of Ingram's pass-rush production came when he was used inside, stunting against a guard or center.

Other options are Courtney Upshaw (Alabama), Chandler Jones (Syracuse), Whitney Mercilus (Illinois) and Andre Branch (Clemson). Upshaw played 3-4 OLB in Nick Saban's pro-style defense, so he'd be less of a projection than Jones and Branch, both of whom were DEs in college. Upshaw (9.5 sacks), a power rusher, might be the safest pick among the three, but his ceiling is lower. Jones (4.5 sacks), Mercilus (16) and Branch (9.5) are better athletes with the potential to develop into very good edge rushers. In the second round, the Jets could consider the talented, but troubled Bruce Irvin (West Virginia).

Need Rating (scale of 1 to 10): 10.

Next: Secondary

This is the ninth part in a nine-part review of 2011, a position-by-position analysis.

Position: Special teams

Overall grade (scale of 1 to 10): 7.5

Depth chart: PK Nick Folk, P T.J. Conley, PR Jeremy Kerley, PR Jim Leonhard, PR/KR Joe McKnight, KR Antonio Cromartie.

Gold star: McKnight.

Disappointing: Conley.

Stat check: Opponents made 29 or 30 FGs against the Jets, the highest percentage in the league -- including 23-for-23 under 50 yards.

Analysis: This was a weird year for special teams. We saw a lot of good things from the Jets -- McKnight (31.6) led the league in kickoff returns by a significant margin -- but we also saw a lot of bad things, namely butter fingers. They turned it over six times -- two by McKnight, two by Cromartie, once by Kerley and once by Garrett McIntyre. That is simply unacceptable.

Folk was okay, not great. He made 76 percent of his FGs, tied for 27th in the league, but three of his misses came in the 50+ distance. Then again, he didn't have too many clutch kicks, as the Jets played only four games that were decided by seven points or less. McKnight was a revelation, delivering the longest play in franchise history -- 107-yard kickoff return. But his chance came only after an injury to Cromartie, so it wasn't like they expected great things out of McKnight.

Conley (40.1 net average, 21st) was average at best. Former P Steve Weatherford, in the Super Bowl with the Giants, isn't looking half-bad right about now. Kerley (10.9 average) wrested the punt-returning job from Leonhard and did a nice job, save for one hiccup in Washington. The coverage units, both punt and kickoff, were very good. The standouts were Nick Bellore (31 tackles) and Josh Mauga (20), but Bellore needs to be more disciplined (five penaltes for 55 yards).

2012 free agents: Folk (UFA), Leonhard (UFA).

On the bubble: Conley.

Former Canadian Football League star Garrett McIntyre is used to being called “O Canada” by Rex Ryan.

But during Tuesday’s practice, the Jets coach called his rookie outside linebacker/special-teamer something else: Garrett.

“I hadn’t heard that before,” McIntyre said.

“Yeah, I don’t know how that slipped out,” Ryan joked Friday. “but we’ll go back. If all of a sudden, he’s not playing very well, we’ll go right back to 'O Canada.'"

Quite frankly, McIntyre doesn’t care what Ryan calls him. He’s just glad to have a job in the NFL and a sense of security -- something he’s never had before.

On Friday, the day before his 27th birthday, McIntyre reflected on how he was able to defy the odds and get to this point: never giving up and rising from anonymity to become a starter in the Jets‘ highly touted base 3-4 defense -- though the team is expected to utilize more sub-packages against Buffalo on Sunday.

• He remembered how he wasn’t recruited out of South Tahoe High School as a senior following his team’s 0-9 season.

• He remembered how Fresno State was the only Division I program in the country willing to give him a chance to walk on.

• He remembered coming out of nowhere to win the WAC Defensive Player of the Year award four years later.

• He remembered being undrafted, signing with the Seahawks in May of 2006, then being cut after a month.

• He remembered a week stint with the Cardinals in mid-August, 2006. A week stint with the Titans followed, as did a league suspension after he tested positive for a banned substance.

“I took some stuff that I probably shouldn’t have been taking,” McIntyre told ESPNNewYork.com. “When you come out of college, you’re not big enough, you’re not fast enough, so you want to do everything you can to make it. It’s something I regret. I wish I had never done it. But it’s something I’ve learned from.”

And then, just like that, there was nothing.

“It was tough,” McIntyre replied when asked how it felt to be cut. “You play all through college, you finally get somewhere and then you get cut. It was real hard to deal with. I kind of had to go home and ask myself if I wanted to play football. And then you get called into camp -- I think in Arizona they were already two or three weeks into it -- and essentially you’re a camp body.

“When you’re young, you don’t realize it. After I was cut a third time, I kind of thought, ‘All right, I’m probably not going to make it.' And you think to yourself, ‘Is this what I really want to do? Do I still want to play?'"

The answer was always yes. But how?

First, a two-year stint in the Arena Football League with San Jose. Then, a two-year stint in the CFL with Hamilton. That’s how.

• • •

Garrett McIntyre’s dream was always to play in the NFL -- and it was during the offseason after his first year in the AFL that McIntyre realized just how badly he wanted it.

To supplement his income -- his father worked in construction and built houses -- McIntyre decided to latch on with a concrete and foundation crew.

His first day, he said, he worked 14 hours in the scintillating Lake Tahoe sun. He thinks he lost six or seven pounds.

“I actually went home and said, ‘I quit,'" said McIntyre, who stands 6-3 and weighs 255 pounds.

A couple weeks later, McIntyre went back. He worked for another month. That was it.

“I learned a lot. I was pouring and brick-laying by the end,” McIntyre said. “But it didn’t take me long to realize that I loved football a lot more than pouring concrete.”

When McIntyre began his AFL career in 2007, he figured he’d be better than everyone else. He was wrong. So he learned to be modest. He learned to work hard. He became content collecting a paycheck -- albeit not a seven-figure one -- playing the game he loved.

In 2010, McIntyre finished with eight sacks, tied for fifth in the CFL, and the following summer, the Jets came calling with an opportunity for him to make the team’s roster out of training camp.

“I knew training camp was going to be a grind,” said McIntyre, who to this day considers himself a “grinder.” “I also knew it was going to be my last go at it. ... I had about seven months in the offseason to train because of the lockout. I figured, ‘I’m going to give it everything I’ve got with this last shot.’”

Early on, McIntyre said he was nervous. The Jets were playing him on special teams, unfamiliar territory. But he kept grinding, stayed healthy and amassed nine tackles and two sacks during the preseason.

“One thing we told him after we watched him on tape is like, ‘Man, we love this guy.’ He played like a Jet [with] a relentless motor. I just loved the way he played,” said Ryan, who lived in Toronto for eight years, but claimed he didn't know their anthem (“I can’t sing the national anthem in Canada or anything, but I know they’re glorious and free, I think.”).

“I remember when I was on the phone with him, we talked about, ‘Hey, look you’re going to come in here. From day one, you’ll be lined up as a second [linebacker]. You’ll be running with the two’s, so it will be your job to lose,’ and he never lost it. I was true to my word. [GM] Mike Tannenbaum was true to his word and this young man was true to his in the way that he guaranteed us that he would perform, and that’s what happened.”

The Jets had to pare their final roster down to 53 by 6 p.m. on Sept. 3. The deadline came and went. So did 26 cuts. McIntyre never got a call. He wasn’t among them. Still, he was concerned he might not last that long. After all, there are typically a lot of roster moves made after cut day.

“I knew that guys get moved around that first week,” McIntyre said. “It wasn’t until coach [Mike] Pettine came up to me and said, ‘Hey, I just want to let you know that you’re not going to be one of those guys that gets moved around. Congratulations.'"

At that point, jubilation set in. He immediately called his girlfriend and his parents.

“It was a dream come true,” McIntyre said. “Words can’t even describe it. It’s just a long road that kind of paid off.”

Since then, it hasn’t just been his life that’s changed. His role has, too.

While he still considers himself very much a special-teamer -- McIntyre blocked two Dallas Cowboys, allowing Joe McKnight to spring free for his blocked punt which was returned for a game-changing touchdown in Week 1 -- a season-ending injury to Bryan Thomas, coupled with the struggles of Jamal Westerman, led to an opportunity for McIntyre. He received several snaps at outside linebacker against New England two weeks ago, and made his first NFL start at the position last Thursday in Denver.

McIntyre, who has recorded eight tackles in 10 games this season, said he’s had the toughest time acclimating himself in coverage. He had played defensive end since high school, but now he has to drop back every once in a while.

“I try to never stop learning,” McIntyre said. “In this defense, it’s all about doing the little things and sticking with my techniques.”

Still, he isn’t taking it for granted, and treating every day as though it could be his last in the NFL.

Said Ryan: “I don’t know where he is from, but he went to school at Fresno [State]. His career has had all kinds of turns, Arena League, CFL, played in Canada and all that kind of stuff, but just that resiliency he has [is impressive]. [It is] probably a similar story to James Harrison. Now, I hope we get the same result, but yes, his story is pretty impressive. [He is] a tough kid.”

It was a tactical decision that will be second-guessed for days, maybe weeks. The New York Jets called an all-out blitz at the worst possible time -- and it cost them the game and, ultimately, perhaps a playoff berth.

The blitz accomplished only two things: It gave the Denver Broncos a 17-13 victory and added to Tim Tebow’s rapidly growing legend

On a third-and-4 from the Jets 20, with the Broncos already safely in range for a potential game-tying field goal, Jets defensive coordinator Mike Pettine rushed eight players. Tebow eluded the rush, beat safety Eric Smith around the corner and ran 20 yards for a game-winning touchdown with 58 seconds left -- a play that will keep the city of Denver buzzing for days.

It was a curious call. Afterward, a shaken Rex Ryan refused to reveal the exact call, saying, “I’d rather not.” It was a rare no comment by Ryan, who usually is more than happy to share specific game strategy.

Maybe he was too embarrassed.

It was a risk-reward call, but the potential reward didn’t justify it. Even if they had sacked Tebow, the Broncos still would’ve been in field-goal range. Afterward, a few players said they expected Tebow to run. “They basically had the field goal and were going to tie the game, but we called an all-out pressure -- and that’s what happened,” Smith said.

The Jets rushed eight, including Smith and fellow safety Jim Leonhard. Three players were in man-to-man coverage -- Darrelle Revis, Antonio Cromartie and Kyle Wilson, all of whom were downfield because their men ran vertical routes.

It was “Cover Zero.” In other words, there was no deep safety.

“You have to catch him because nobody else is around,” Smith said. “Everybody is running, running up the middle and in coverage with their back to the quarterback.”

Smith allowed Tebow to get to the outside. Smith chased him down and made a diving tackling attempt at the 5, but it was no use. The 6-foot-3, 235-pound Tebow, the size of a fullback, wasn’t going to be stopped.

It was a crushing end to an otherwise brilliant performance by the Jets’ defense, which held the Broncos to 134 total yards for the first 55 minutes. Up stepped Tebow, who delivered The Drive II -- with football czar John Elway in the house, naturally.

It went 12 plays, 95 yards, and all Tebow did was rush for 57 yards and pass for 35. He improved to 4-1 as a starter. If he ran for mayor, he’d win in a landslide.

The frustration among the Jets’ defensive players was palpable. Linebacker Bart Scott refused to speak to reporters. Ditto, linebacker Calvin Pace, who said, “I’ve got nothing to talk about, not one single thing.”

“You know Tebow is going to keep it in that situation, that’s what he does,” Ryan said. “You’re going to keep the ball in your playmaker’s hand. We thought he was going to carry it and he did ... He’s a competitor and he makes big plays with the game on the line. That’s why you’ve got to give him credit.”

If they expected him to run, the Jets could’ve stayed with a more conservative defense. But it was their second all-out blitz of the game, according to Tebow.

“We were kind of expecting it,” Tebow said. “They were going to be aggressive and try to stop us, and could also [have] been expecting a quarterback run or quarterback draw, or something inside. So we had a great play against it ... and I was thankful I was able to get around the end.”

The Jets abandoned their defensive strategy on the final drive, using an extra defensive back on 11 of the 12 plays, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Previously, they used their 3-4 base defense on 32 of 44 plays and limited the Broncos to eight punts, a lost fumble, a turnover on downs and a field goal.

With the game on the line, with everything on the line, the Jets strayed.

“It absolutely hurts,” Ryan said. “You’re thinking they’re going to kick the field goal and maybe go into overtime. You weren’t expecting the guy to pop out there like he did. He made a great run.”

On a questionable call by the Jets.

The Patriots made headlines with all the seldom-used players they employed Sunday night against the Jets, but the Jets used one, too -- OLB Garrett McIntyre.

It went virtually unnoticed, but McIntyre played with the base defense in Bryan Thomas' old spot at outside linebacker. The Jets were in nickel and dime most of the game against the Patriots' spread looks, but when they went to their 3-4 base alignment, it was McIntyre in the lineup.

McIntyre has worked with the first team this week in practice, according to a source, and that's significant because the base defense will get a lot more playing time against the run-oriented Broncos. The Broncos, led by running QB Tim Tebow, rushed 55 times in last week's win over the Chiefs.

The Jets have used a committee approach since Thomas suffered a season-ending Achilles' injury in Week 4. Jamaal Westerman and Josh Mauga have played in the base, but McIntyre (6-3, 255) is considered the best run defender.

McIntyre was one of the free-agent surprises in training camp. He bounced around a few NFL training camps after leaving Fresno State, finally making a name in the CFL. That's where the Jets noticed him.