JET QUESTIONS
The News tells you what to watch for as Gang Green begins practice
The Jets kick off some semblance of normalcy with the start of nonpadded practices today. Although Gang Green won’t put on pads until next week, it will finally have a chance to jump out of its virtual offseason existence.
Here are five burning questions as we enter this important phase of training camp.
1) How quickly will Sam Darnold find a rhythm with his new supporting cast?
The crown jewel of the franchise enters his pivotal third season with plenty of challenges. Although some folks were disappointed that Darnold didn’t make a leap in Year 2, there’s a sense that he must make a seismic jump in 2020. The pandemic-fueled offseason restrictions have prompted everyone to adjust, but Darnold will have to get up to speed relatively quickly with his new skill-position options.
Darnold must develop a rapport with wide receivers Breshad Perriman and rookie Denzel Mims if the Jets have a realistic chance to improve significantly on the league’s 32nd-ranked offense from a year ago.
2) How fast can the revamped offensive line gel?
General manager Joe Douglas was the architect of an offensive line makeover this offseason, but what’s a realistic expectation for this new unit? No group relies more on chemistry and a Vulcan Mind Meld more than the offensive line.
Five guys have to move and think as one. That kind of shared understanding only comes with repetition and trial and error. Mistakes in practice and the preseason are critical. Without a preseason, it’s going to be asking a ton out of a line with four new starters, including a rookie left tackle.
Bottom line: The guys in the trenches need as much work as they can get together.
3) How will the Jets defense make up for losing Jamal Adams and C.J. Mosley?
Gregg Williams is one of the sharpest defensive minds of this generation, but I wonder if he’ll show up to practice with a top hat and wand, because it’s going to take some Copperfield-esque magic to pull off what he has been tasked with right now.
If it weren’t challenging enough to play without Jamal Adams, who was a tour de force for Williams’ defense last season, imagine how difficult it will be now that C.J. Mosley, the second-best player on the defense, opted out for the season due to COVID-19 concerns.
Williams’ flexibility and creativity provide hope that he can mix and match the right way. However, the Jets are sitting on a pile of newfound cash thanks to Mosley’s opt-out and Brian Winters’ oddly timed ouster.
A couple of quality defenders (Logan Ryan and Jadeveon Clowney) are still on the market. Bringing in at least one of those veterans makes a world of sense.
4) Will Le’Veon Bell return to the Le’Veon Bell of old?
Bell’s forgettable 2019 campaign provided plenty of motivation for the former Pro Bowler. He’s in dynamic shape (Exhibit A: Four percent body fat) and eager to prove that he’s much closer to the player that we saw in 2017 in Pittsburgh than the guy who averaged a career-low 3.2 yards per carry last season.
Bell has the right mindset despite a litany of fair reasons to be ticked off. At 28, he still has gas left in the tank.
5) Will Adam Gase formulate plans to accentuate to his players’ strengths?
Gase’s claims last year that his plan was “in pencil” didn’t actually come to fruition. He talked a good game in the spring and summer, but lapsed into the same rigid habits that prompted his ouster in Miami.
Gase has always had good ideas, but that’s not enough. He needs to tailor the right ideas to the personnel at his disposal.
He also must improve as a leader. Adams’ public declaration that he didn’t think Gase was a good enough leader to take the Jets to the Promised Land was shared by many on 1 Jets Drive. Too many folks in the organization didn’t respect Gase when he went into a shell during the team’s struggles.