The offseason is over an the preseason is almost here, actual games will be played soon. They don’t count but they are still real games. It’s been an interesting off season, lots of new players and as always being a Jets fan hope springs eternal. Here are the storylines I’m most interested in and watching.
Number one is Mekhi Becton, and lets be honest everyone has this as their number one. I’m watching one thing with him and thats does he finally get it. The organization has done everything they can for him, if he fails now its 100% on Mekhi. I’m going to play armchair psychologist for a minute but here is my thoughts. Mekhi is an athletic freak, he’s probably always been the biggest strongest guy on the field. He’s probably never had to work hard to get there and could give lower effort on the field and off. I don’t think he’s every failed or faced adversity. I think he chalked up last season to a fluke injury and it wasn’t his fault. He still wants to do things his way, because his way has always worked. This season its on him to realize that he needs to be in peak conditioning to give 100% on the field on every play and stay healthy all year. He’s going to face failure if he’s not ready and thats totally on him. What I’m watching for with Mekhi is if he’s finally ready to be an NFL player and give the commitment it needs.
The receiver room is next, on paper it looks deep and good, but on the field we had mixed results last year. Moore and Davis are great players with a lot of talent and when they look their best its amazing. However we did not get full seasons of consistent top level play from either last year, I just want to see them get through the pre season healthy and hit the ground running. Wilson is new, but good news if Davis and Moore are good to go there is no pressure on Wilson and he can come along at his own pace, again just hoping he has a healthy pre season and is able to absorb the playbook. Berrios is completely fine, just get through healthy and keep doing what he does best. It’s the backend I find most interesting. Jeff Smith seems loved by the coaches so his spot seems pretty secure, Mims is the question. Do they keep 6 WR, does Mims stick on the roster? He quit last season, it was pretty clear, he was completely checked out. I’m watching to see if he’s bought in and committed himself to being the player he has the potential to be.
The running back room should be interesting to shake out, there are a lot of guys there going into the preseason and with 3 maybe 4 spots its going to be a bloodbath. As long as they are healthy Carter and Hall are locks, the offence will run through them, Coleman seems to be the leader right now for the 3rd spot. Johnson, Perine and Knight are all battling for that last spot, which might end up just being a spot on the practice squad. Should be fun to watch this horse race unfold.
The d-line is something I’m just curious about, does everyone stay healthy, fingeres crossed they do. If so I’m just paying attention to who makes the roster, how many interior and edge rushers they carry and who might sneak on to the squad. Performance doesn’t really matter during the offseason this group has something to prove come the games that count.
Linebackers should be interesting to watch, is CJ at 30 still CJ, is this his last season in the green and white, who is the heir apparent. Does Quincy improve and become a reliable starter or is he just a roleplayer. Do Sherwood and Nasirildeen have anything to contribute, they are athletically gifted sure but are they linebackers, or just tweeners who are depth guys.
Corner is fine, this is the least concerning group on the team, I’m just going to sit back and enjoy watching Sauce still amazed he is on the team, that kid is capital S special.
Now safety, this one is a favorite of mine, I love safties. I’m really curious to see if Davis now that hes finally had a healthy offseason was able to work on his pursuit and tackling. He can be a special player given his amazing speed and coverage skills but this is his last chance to show he’s a player. Pinnock is nipping at his heels, he showed tons of nice flashes after being converted last season and has impressed thus far, going to be fun to watch him compete.
Lets close out on a couple of odds and ends. Lawrence Cager, really curious to see how his conversion to tight end goes, I doubt the team carries 4 into the season but if Coach Ron sees some promise there then I’m all in. I don’t think the kicker is on the roster yet but I could be wrong. I wouldn’t be surprised if Bawden is out at fullback and we see Conklin in that role a lot during the season. Braden Mann might not be long for this team at punter, if they bring in competition I think he’s done for.
So thats what I’m paying attention to and watching for. I think next week I’m going to have to do a look back at the 2020 draft and second guess Joe Douglas a little bit, a lot of the storylines I’m paying attention to involve that draft class, and if this team is supposed to be headed in the right direction we can’t have another wash out draft class.
