In 2006, the New York Jets hired head coach Eric Mangini, who became "Mangenius" after leading the team to a 10-6 record that same season. During the 2007 season however, many fans were calling him other names after the team plodded to a 1-8 start on their way to a 4-12 season.

So there needed to be a change, and the Jets wasted little time, becoming the single most active franchise once the free agent period started.

New York started by signing 31-year-old guard Alan Faneca (pictured) to a five-year, $40 million contract, with $21 million guaranteed. After that, the team signed offensive lineman Damien Woody to a five-year, $25 million contract with a reported $11 million guaranteed. In yet another free agent move, the team inked DE/LB Calvin Pace to a six-year, $42 million contract with $22 million in guaranteed ca$h. And that was just the free agent signings.

Because the Jets also traded for Carolina DT Kris Jenkins, and worked out a contract with him for five years, $35 million, with $20 million guaranteed.

So, according to NFL.com's Adam Schefter, the Jets spent $137.75 million on contracts, with $67 million in guaranteed money.

Meanwhile, in the subtraction department, New York traded MLB Jonathan Vilma to the Saints for draft picks, cut WR Justin McCareins and CB Andre Dyson, and were trying to rid themselves of DT Dewayne Robertson by trading him to the Bengals, until that deal fell apart because Robertson couldn't agree on a new contract with the team.

That's one hell of a lot of changes in a few days. But the question remains: are they any better? Our friends at entertaining blog The Legend of Cecilio Guante are Jets fans (well, one of them is) and he offers his opinion on the moves. All told, he's cautious about Jenkins but thinks they're mostly good moves (with the possible exception of trading Vilma), especially the "getting rid of crap" moves. Which is true - it's always best to get rid of crap whenever possible.

And it's hard to argue a couple of the moves. Signing Faneca was a no-brainer, as was getting rid of crap. But there are some red flags out there.

Calvin Pace is probably the least risky of the moves, but it's important to note that he was a bust until last season. He had 6.5 sacks once moving to OLB in the 3-4 in Arizona, but in three of his five seasons, he had just 1 sack. As for Kris Jenkins, his issues have been well chronicled. In Carolina, he had attitude, weight and alcohol problems.

Then there is Damien Woody. Mangini cites his relationship with him in New England as a reason why they went after him. But it's always dangerous to go after a guy simply because of what you once knew him as. Especially after that guy got benched from the starting line-up. In Detroit. For a team that gave up the third most sacks (Detroit gave up 54 while K.C. and San Francisco gave up 55), and had the second fewest rushing yards in the NFL.

So, are the Jets better? Yeah, they probably are. But as important as it was to shore up the O-Line and get people who actually fit Mangini's system, there's still one glaring problem that will probably keep them from truly taking the next step. Quarterback. Kellen Clemens certainly looks promising, but who knows what he'll wind up becoming. And to call Chad Pennington's arm a wet noodle is an insult to water-logged pasta.

It's far too early to make predictions on wins and losses, but if you're a Jets fan, you have to at least enjoy the fact that they're trying. Even if they stepped out onto a couple limbs, they aren't settling. And if all else fails, I hear there's a nice Best Buy in Hackensack that sells Camcorders on the cheap.

(Photo: Flickr)