As the Jets try to get a new offensive coordinator, a new quarterback and three new wide receivers on the same page with their returning playmakers …
And sort out three position battles on the offensive line … and wait to see when running back Breece Hall will return from injury … and try to sign defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to a contract extension so that he doesn’t skip the start of training camp … and teach starter Jamien Sherwood a new linebacker position …
Internal comfort stems from a secondary that was among the best in the league last season and offers the much-needed stability that could allow the Jets to have enough early-season success to buy time for other pieces to gel.
“Everyone’s mindset is, ‘Last year is last year,’” senior defensive assistant and cornerbacks coach Tony Oden said. “What they write on social media is different. When they come in this building, work on winning today. Win this meeting. Once you win this meeting, win this play. Once you win this play, win this [practice] period. We don’t even let [ego] things in our building. It definitely doesn’t come into our room. It’s not something we talk about a lot. We just do it. We breathe it. We live it.”
In starting cornerbacks Sauce Gardner and D.J. Reed, free safety Jordan Whitehead and slot cornerback Michael Carter II, the Jets return a quartet that combined to play an astounding 4,113 defensive snaps last season. The Jets jumped from ranked No. 30 in passing yards allowed per game in 2021 to No. 3 in 2022.
“The style of defense we play is not about smoke and mirrors, it’s not about a whole lot of schematic stuff that razzles and dazzles you,” defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich said. “It’s more about doing the same thing over and over and over … and getting guys to play with subconscious confidence. To have continuity is critical for the system that we run.”
The Jets twice reaffirmed prioritizing a strong secondary in replacing likely-to-retire starting safety Lamarcus Joyner: First, by trading a draft pick for Chuck Clark, and then by signing free agent Adrian Amos to a mid-level deal last week, almost immediately after Clark suffered a potentially serious knee injury.
But perhaps the ultimate sign the Jets believe in their foundational secondary is that the reserves weren’t reshuffled during the offseason: Cornerbacks Brandin Echols (suspended for one game) and Bryce Hall and safeties Tony Adams and Ashytn Davis all return. That’s eight of the top nine defensive backs absorbing schematic and coach familiarity, plus the new challenge of facing Aaron Rodgers in practice.
“If there are mistakes that you show or certain tendencies that you show, from an alignment standpoint or a disguise standpoint, he’s going to find it,” Oden said. “Also you have to be careful with your communication when you have a high-level quarterback because they can pick up on certain things. Some of the things that we talk about in the game that could happen, we are experiencing live-time. It’s forcing our guys to get to that level that much faster.”
Gardner was the NFL’s top-ranked cornerback by analytics-driven Pro Football Focus and the Defensive Rookie of the Year after notching a league-high 20 passes defended. Ulbrich challenged Gardner to increase his interception total (two) because takeaways is “the next step for him to become the great corner we know he can be.”
If Oden — whom players refer to as T.O. — wanted to play favorites, he could weep “That’s my cornerback!” But instead he stresses that the secondary is deeper than just Sauce and the nuggets.
The Jets were the only team with three cornerbacks graded among the top 23 by PFF last season, and are one of four teams (along with the Cowboys, Dolphins and Eagles) with two cornerbacks (Gardner and Reed) ranked among the top 21 entering this season.
“Going against A.R. …the corners are definitely going to be able to work defending deep balls,” Reed said. “I’m looking forward to that because I want to get better at defending back-shoulder throws.”
Better? Quarterbacks throwing against Reed’s coverage managed a woeful 75.7 rating last season.
“D.J. wants to win this down at a high level and let you know that ‘I’m here,’” Oden said. “He is going to get better because of another year in our system. Now he’s woven into the fabric of our defense. He’s not learning it. He’s part of it. He can interject more.”
Carter, in his second pro season, ranked No. 20 among cornerbacks in the MLB-popularized Wins Above Replacement statistic and No. 22 in forced incompletion rate, per PFF.
“He’s mature beyond his years in regards to his approach and the way he studies the game,” Oden said. “The things you can do with him in the game from a game-plan perspective, the adjustments he can make live-time, he is definitely an underrated player in that regard.
“We know inside the building, and his teammates know, he is really one of the important keys to unlock our defense because we can do so much more with him because he can adjust and communicate. I’m excited to see him in Year 3. He’s stronger, he’s bigger, he’s more efficient in his footwork.”
How important is a strong secondary? Over the past three seasons, 10, nine and 10, respectively, of defenses that graded among the top 13 in pass coverage by PFF went to the playoffs.
The Jets, who were one of the outliers last season, face five former Pro Bowl quarterbacks in the first six games of this season, but the secondary is one spot where excuses cannot be tolerated. Stability breeds expectations.
“There’s still so much more we can do … with our safeties, working together,” Oden said. “It’s pointed in the right direction. Now we have to go out there and do it. We have to win each day. If we continue to do that, we can cash the check on Sundays.”
Want to catch a game? The Jets schedule with links to buy tickets can be found here.
NBA scouts write off 6-foot-6 centers as too small for the position’s demands. NFL scouts worry that 6-foot-6 centers are too big for the position’s demands.
Jets offensive line coach Keith Carter will be familiar with some of the body challenges ahead for rookie center Joe Tippmann (6-foot-6) because he previously coached three-time Pro Bowl center Max Unger (6-foot-5) with the Seahawks.
“At the end of the day, you know what your issues are, and you have to fight like crazy to get your pad level down,” Carter said. “What makes [Tippmann] special is he bends so well and he moves so well that I wouldn’t say it’s as big of a hindrance as maybe it could be. Typically, you don’t like super-tall centers, but I just think he is an exception because of how well he bends.”
The 317-pound Tippmann — a second-round pick and the first center off the board in the 2023 draft — is expected to battle three-year starter Connor McGovern in training camp. Non-padded OTA practices are not a proper forum for evaluating offensive linemen.
“Center is kind of a unique position: They have to have great personality because they are the glue of the offensive line,” Carter said. “First and foremost, Joe is extremely personable and a guy who can rally the troops and bring everybody with him. I’m really excited for him. Like all rookies, he’s got a long way to go.”
Bob Bostad, who coached Tippmann last season at Wisconsin before moving on to Indiana, previously developed two other tall centers drafted in the NFL’s second round: Ryan Cook (6-foot-6) and Peter Konz (6-foot-5).
“Your athletic matchup guy is your left tackle and your next-best athlete is your center — at least in the offenses I’ve run,” Bostad told Post Sports+. “He was athletic, smart, strong, powerful and had the right temperament in the classroom. In our system, the center is the guy who identifies [defensive calls] and distributes people, and he did a great job with a lot on his plate.”
Tippmann reportedly squatted 635 pounds and bench-pressed 435 pounds at Wisconsin.
“Where do you see that strength? You see him knocking people down,” Bostad said. “He can bend and get underneath a player. When you are taller and you can bend, that means you have longer leverage and the time you have that leverage is going to be longer than another guy. He has a lot of good things going for him.”
From seats at Broadway shows to the red carpet at the Tony Awards, the teammate most frequently spotted around New York with quarterback Aaron Rodgers thus far has been C.J. Uzomah. It’s a smart chemistry-building move by the veteran tight end who under-delivered (21 catches for 232 yards and two touchdowns) last season in the first year of a three-year, $24 million contract.
The Jets are heavily invested at tight end with Uzomah, Tyler Conklin (three years, $20.2 million), Jeremy Ruckert (2022 third-round pick), Zack Kuntz (2023 seventh-round pick) and third-year developmental project Kenny Yeboah. Only Ruckert and Kuntz were healthy by the end of OTAs, for what it’s worth.
It all raised the question: How much does Rodgers rely on his tight end as a pass-catcher? Here are the combined reception, receiving yardage and touchdown totals for all Packers tight ends in each of Rodgers’ seasons as the starters, according to Stathead.com by Pro Football Reference. The name of the top option each season is also listed.
2008: 56 receptions, 539 yards, 6 TDs, Donald Lee
2009: 92-936-6, Jermichael Finley
2010: 58-673-4, Jermichael Finley
2011: 67-858-10, Jermichael Finley
2012: 77-938-5, Jermichael Finley
2013: 70-762-6, Andrew Quarles
2014: 51-561-6, Andrew Quarles
2015: 73-643-9, Richard Rodgers
2016: 64-683-3, Jared Cook
2017: 56-627-2, Martellus Bennett
2018: 81-922-4, Jimmy Graham
2019: 63-703-5, Jimmy Graham
2020: 77-845-16, Robert Tonyan
2021: 72-732-4, Josiah Deguara
2022: 76-676-4, Robert Tonyan