On Saturday 8/12, the Jets dismantled the Panthers winning 23-0. Yes, it was only a preseason game but this is one of the most one-sided preseason games in recent memory, with the Jets putting up 333 yards of total offense compared to the Panthers' 165 yards and winning the turnover battle 2-1. This is even more impressive when you consider the Jets didn't play many defensive starters as well as star offensive players Aaron Rodgers and Garrett Wilson. At the same time, the Panthers started first-overall pick Bryce Young and many offensive starters. Let's break it all down and then go over some key takeaways, starting with the three key players we
highlighted before the game.
Highlighted Players
Mekhi Becton: Everyone is watching Mekhi's every move. From Jet fans to Twitter doctors, the 340-pound tackle is constantly under scrutiny. The big thing with Mekhi is that he hasn't played a full football game in over two years, suffering a broken kneecap in the first game of the 2021 season and then missing all of last season with another lower-body injury. These injury concerns only grew when Becton only played 7 snaps in the Hall of Fame game and came off limping at one point. Nobody knew exactly how long Becton would play but the consensus was if Mekhi couldn't handle at least a half, there wasn't much hope of him being a contributor to the Jets this year. Mekhi took a step in the right direction, playing 27 snaps against the Panthers, and looked really good outside of one bad play that might've been a miscommunication.
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| 2nd Round Pick, Joe Tippmann |
Joe Tippmann: Joe Tippmann is coming along quicker than expected. After being deemed a "pleasant surprise" by Coach Saleh after the Hall of Fame game, Tippmann is continuing to stack good days, playing 51 snaps against the Panthers and looking very good doing it. Per Zack Rosenblatt, Tippmann has allowed 1 pressure in 44 pass-blocking snaps this preseason, and he could be looking to work his way into the starting O-line (more on that in the takeaways section below!)
Zach Wilson: We wrote two words that we wanted to see from #2 this week: Stack Days. This has been a motto of Coach Saleh in terms of becoming great. Whether it relates to coming back from an injury or developing into the best player you can be, Coach encourages his players to "keep stacking days." Zach Wilson is doing a mighty fine job at this. As has been the case the past two years, the training camp hype from the Jets organization has been all positive for #2. However, this is the first year we're seeing it actually translate to the field. Zach has looked like a totally different QB than we've seen the past two years, being quick and decisive, while also having improved accuracy. Wilson's still mostly completing passes to tight ends and running backs, but you have to hope he has just had more time to build the chemistry with these players, and the completions to starting WRs like Corey Davis, Mecole Hardman, and Allen Lazard, will come in due time.
Other Positives
Offensive Line: As a whole, the offensive line did well on Saturday, allowing 1 sack in 30 dropbacks. However, it's important to note that star pass rusher, Brian Burns, didn't play for the Panthers and he terrorized the tackles all week. There are still a lot of questions that need to be answered (primarily at the Tackle position), but the Jets didn't play Alijah Vera-Tucker and played mostly their backups and third-stringers and still dominated the trenches.
Jermaine Johnson, Will McDonald, entire defensive line: Early in the game, we
tweeted that the Jets' defensive line wasn't a key position group to watch because we know how good they are. After watching this game I don't think we truly understood just how good the defensive line is, as they accumulated 5 sacks without any presumed starters playing and going against the Panthers' starting offensive line.
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| 2nd Year edge, Jermaine Johnson |
Jermaine Johnson is a totally different player from last year. JJ has been the best defensive player in training camp, and it's translating to the football field as he just manhandled the Panthers' offensive line, finishing with half a sack and 2 QB hits, including a bone-crushing hit to Bryce Young, in minimal pass rushing snaps.
Will McDonald is already showing why the Jets were so high on him and has been an absolute monster rushing the QB in the two preseason games he's played. Against the Panthers, Will McDonald had 1 sack and 2 QB hits and is extremely fast off the line. Per
Zack Rosenblatt, through two preseason games, Will McDonald has a pressure rate of 24%, which would've been the highest in the league for a defensive end last year.
Special Teams: We would be perfectly fine if the Jets just started going for it on every fourth down the rest of the preseason. Greg the Leg remains perfect, going 2/2 on FG attempts and 3/3 on extra points. Meanwhile, new Jets punter Thomas Morstead hit three fantastic punts, including one being downed inside the 20. The Jets seem to have found the answer to the special teams' issues that have plagued them the past couple of years with these two key contributors.
Running Back Room: This was exciting to see. Michael Carter looked like his rookie-year self, bringing the elusiveness that was severely missed last year. Bam Knight showed he's a solid downhill runner, despite almost fumbling early in the game. Izzy Abanikanda continues to make a highlight every week, hitting a nasty spin move and coming just short of a touchdown. Overall, Jet running backs ran 36 times for 137 yards without star running back Breece Hall. The RBs also contributed in the passing game, with Carter and Izzy leading the team in receiving yards for the game with 34 and 31 respectively.
Negatives:
Jason Brownlee: Unfortunately, the un-drafted rookie has not lived up to the training camp hype that he has been able to generate. Brownlee finished the game with 2 catches for 10 yards on 3 targets, and still hasn't made any of the highlight plays he's made in practice in a game yet.
Takeaways:
Crowded WR room: As mentioned above Jason Brownlee hasn't done much to stand out in preseason games and is probably a long shot to make the roster at this point. Against the Panthers Brownlee played the fewest snaps (15), of the players legitimately contributing for the last WR spot, as Malik Taylor (21) and Xavier Gipson (24) saw more reps. Brownlee is definitely someone the Jets should try to stash on their practice squad if they decide to go in another direction.
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| Star O-lineman, Alijah Vera-Tucker |
Offensive Line: The only sure thing about the offensive line right now is that Laken Tomlinson will be the Left Guard, and Connor McGovern and AVT will also be on the starting offensive line. The rest is up in the air. It's no secret the Jets have massive question marks at tackle, with Duane Brown penciled in to start at left tackle still on the PUP list. The main players getting reps at the tackle spots in his absence are Billy Turner and Max Mitchell, who were picked apart by the Panthers' D-line in joint practices, as well as consistently beaten by the Jets pass rushers daily. Max Mitchell is still recovering from the blood clogs that cut his promising rookie season short, but Billy Turner is not a starting-caliber tackle. This coming week will be telling as Mekhi Becton is showing he can handle a larger workload, and if he isn't allowed to compete for a starting tackle spot he realistically isn't in the Jets' plans for this year and will probably be traded before the season. He wouldn't bring that much back in a trade, probably a conditional day-three pick, and the Jets should give him a chance to contribute, as he is the most talented tackle on the roster when he's healthy.
However, the already complicated tackle situation became more complicated, as Coach Saleh said they are open to AVT sliding out to tackle again. AVT was extremely solid at tackle last year, and if they're going to trade Mekhi they should do this anyway, as it's easier to fill in a guard position than the tackle position. From a futuristic standpoint, the Jets should move AVT to tackle anyway, as the elite guards are now paid like elite tackles, despite playing a far less premium position. But back to the present, if AVT were to move to tackle, that would open up a guard spot to be filled. Current backup center Wes Schweitzer started in AVT's spot against the Panthers and could fill in at Right Guard if AVT swung out to the tackle spot. Tippmann also could be an option at either RG or center, with McGovern moving to RG if Tippmann were to play center.
We'll learn a lot this coming week about the Jets' plans for the tackle position with their handling of Mekhi, but until then all we can do is speculate.
Deepest Defensive Line in the League: When Robert Saleh took over as the head coach of the New York Jets, he made it no secret he wanted to build a dominant defensive line room. He's accomplished that and more, as second and third-team pass rushers consistently manhandled the Panthers' defensive line. Bryce Huff, Jermaine Johnson, and Will McDonald all looked incredible and aren't going to be starters on the Jets. When you add in All Pro Quinnen Williams, and returning starters Carl Lawson and John Franklin-Myers to this group, you're looking at a pass-rushing group that is deeper than any in the league. Their top 3 pass rushers might not be as good as say the Niners or Eagles, but this team can just constantly rotate fresh edges throughout the game to terrorize opposing QBs.
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