"As he was talking up Vernon Gholston to the hilt yesterday, Jets coach Rex Ryan also came clean about one of the team's biggest draft busts in years.

No, Ryan admitted, he would not have taken Gholston sixth overall in 2008 if Ryan had been coach at the time.

"I think when he came out, there probably needed to be some development there and things like that," Ryan said as the Jets prepared to visit the Lions tomorrow. "The sixth overall player? I don't know about that."

In fact, Gholston has been such a disappointment that Ryan admitted yesterday Jets players have talked about creating a "pity sack" for their struggling teammate.

Ouch.

"When you have guys saying, 'I want to throw the quarterback to Vernon so he can get the sack just to get it off his back,' that's what they think of him," Ryan said. "Everybody wants it bad for Vernon.""