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Jets’ defensive ends switched sides today, with Michael Clemons lining up over right tackle Armand Membou and Will McDonald over Olu Fashanu.
It’s well documented that McDonald has been making life miserable for Membou for the first couple of weeks with his speed off the edge.
No such issues for Fashanu, who pretty much shut down McDonald today. Early in practice, Fashanu had a nice block on McDonald, sealing the corner, and allowing Breece Hall to take the corner for a long run.
This isn’t meant as a shot at Membou, who is a rookie, and Fashanu has a year in the NFL under his belt.
But watching Fashanu today blocking McDonald, the Jets left tackle looks like he has the potential to be an elite NFL left tackle.
Membou faired better facing Clemons than he had dealing with McDonald. He didn’t have to deal with edge speed today, but a ton of bull rushes, and seemed to handle it well . . .
One thing about the Membou-McDonald matchups in camp – you could make the argument that while McDonald has given Membou fits as a pass rusher, Membou has gotten the better of the talented edge as a run blocker, like on Saturday, when the right tackle pancaked McDonald on a Breece Hall run behind him . . .
Cornerback Brandon Stephens continues to have a great camp with another strong day today.
Stephens working under cornerback gurus Aaron Glenn and Dre Bly is already paying dividends.
But sometimes, watching practice, you wonder if a small part of Stephen’s strong camp is the QB telegraphing too many passes and sometimes throwing late.
Not looking to take anything away from Stephens, who is doing a fine job, but the Jets’ passing offense has been a tad out of sorts most of camp.
With Stephens, the proof will certainly be in the pudding once the regular season starts and he faces opposing quarterbacks . . .
Watching backup left tackle Samuel Jackson today – saw him get beat off the edge on two straight plays at left tackle. He looks like he might be a better fit at right tackle or guard, and there is nothing wrong with that . . .
It’s well-documented that the Jets need to improve their front-seven run defense from last year, and observing the first couple of weeks of practice, a guy who could help them do that is rookie linebacker Kiko Mauigoa.
He did a nice job of stopping a run by Braelon Allen off left tackle today. He did a nice job of getting to the sideline and not allowing the runner to turn upfield.
This guy is very good with his run fits.
“He has a nose for the football and makes plays,” wrote NFL.com draft analyst Lance Zierlein before the draft. “He reads blocking schemes and shoots downhill into soft spots.”
So true . . .
Jets second-year defensive tackle Leonard Taylor has a lot of natural ability, but as we saw in college (Miami (FL), and as a rookie last year, he needs to be a little more consistent.
Back-to-back plays in today’s practice are illustrative of the inconsistency.
First, he had a terrific run stop on the line, and then on the next play, he got pancaked by guard Marquis Hayes on a run up the middle . . .
Glenn on Fields today – “I’m excited about that player, I’m excited about the things that he is going to be able to create for us, and every day, man, he’s just got to continue to keep chopping wood. And the type of person that he is, he’s going to continue to do that.”
He might keep “chopping wood,” in other words, work hard on his craft, but often hard work doesn’t improve processing. That is not always a work ethic issue, but more an inherent skill set.
We will see what he can do to improve his progressions moving forward, but you can’t always do that, even with diligent work.
August 4, 2025
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