The NFL is back, and Sportsnet is breaking down everything you need to know about each of the 32 teams in the month leading up to kickoff on Thursday, Sept. 7. Today, the New York Jets.
Head coach: Todd Bowles
Last season’s record: 5-11
Playoff result: Missed out on post-season for sixth straight year
Key free agent gains: It’s arguable that no team turned its roster over as drastically as the Jets did this off-season, and the results will show on the field. New York is widely expected to be the NFL’s worst team in 2017 as general manager Mike Maccagnan focused on ridding the team of aging players with hefty contracts in favour of young, cheap talent.
However, the Jets did bring in some veterans to shore up a roster with plenty of holes. Quarterback Josh McCown joins his eighth team in 14 NFL seasons and will likely start for New York this Sunday against the Buffalo Bills. The 38-year-old is 5-30 since 2013, so with one of the league’s weakest rosters it’s safe to say the Jets are the frontrunners for the first-overall pick in the 2018 draft.
New York’s best non-rookie addition of the off-season came just last week when they added receiver Jermaine Kearse via trade with Seattle. The sixth-year wideout adds consistency and experience the Jets were desperately lacking after cutting Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, then losing Quincy Enunwa and Devin Smith to season-ending injuries. New York re-signed Jeremy Kerley as well.
The Jets also added a couple of experienced starters in free agency in former Steelers and Jaguars tackle Kelvin Beachum and ex-Dallas corner Morris Claiborne, while picking up inside linebacker Demario Davis in a June trade with Cleveland.
Key free agent losses: There are plenty. Whether they let players walk in free agency or cut them loose, the list of former Jets got a lot longer this off-season as the team shed extra weight and, more importantly, dollars.
To put it all into perspective, here’s a timeline of this off-season’s veteran departures.
Feb. 10: Ryan Fitzpatrick’s contract voided
Feb. 23: Cut Breno Giacomini and Nick Folk
Feb. 25: Released long-time centre Nick Mangold
March 1: Parted ways with Darrelle Revis
March 3: Cut receiver Brandon Marshall
May 4: Released starting free safety Marcus Gilchrist
June 1: Traded starting strong safety Calvin Pryor
June 7: David Harris, team’s second all-time leading tackler, cut
June 12: Eric Decker released
Sept. 1: Traded Pro Bowler Sheldon Richardson to Seattle
The goal of the Jets’ off-season was clear as only three players on the 53-man roster are over the age of 30 (Josh McCown, Steve McLendon and Matt Forte), but the end product is a team that appears to have no clear direction outside of tanking for the 2018 draft and beyond.
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Key draft picks: The Jets surprised a lot of people with their first two selections in this spring’s draft by taking a pair of safeties: LSU’s Jamal Adams fifth overall and Florida’s Marcus Maye 39th.
It’s not only odd that New York selected two guys who play the same position, but also that the team already had a capable safety duo in Calvin Pryor and Marcus Gilchrist.
Regardless of the peculiarity of the moves, these two are likely to be fun to watch for years to come. Head coach Todd Bowles was already raving about his two young safeties in late July.
“They can play,” Bowles said via the New York Post. “It’s rare that these types of things happen, but those guys showed so much in the spring in what we brought them along with. They can only get better. Their maturity level, as far as learning the plays, exceeded our expectations for a rookie, so we think those guys are ready to play.”
Along with their top two picks, the Jets are going to need some production from a pair of rookie receivers this season in third-rounder ArDarius Stewart (Alabama) and fourth-rounder Chad Hansen (California), both of whom will likely play roles in New York’s underwhelming pass game.
X-factor: The quarterbacks. New York isn’t going to win much this season, but this is a problem in desperate need of solving. McCown isn’t the answer — that we know. But if the Jets are able to get a good look at either Bryce Petty or Christian Hackenberg this season, it will help determine the direction the team is headed over the next few drafts.
2017 will be a success if: The Jets figure out their quarterback situation, whether it’s discovering a long-term solution with one of their current signal callers (not likely), or securing a top pick in order to select one of the quarterbacks expected to go near the top of the draft next season in Sam Darnold or Josh Allen.
