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It’s going to be a major challenge, but perhaps they can pull this off . . .
Some would strong argument the Jets’ offensive line is going to struggle big-time early in the season.
After all, they will have five new starters on the line compared to the beginning of last season.
And they will only have one guy starting on the line, who started games for them last year, left guard Alex Lewis, who took over at left guard in-season last year.
Now you throw in the fact that there will be no preseason games, some might argue this could be an unmitigated disaster early in the season.
Offensive lines needs to be five guys thinking as one, and when you throw a bunch of guys together in Week One, who have never played in a game together for, and will have no preseason games, that is a huge challenge.
But after listening to the team’s two guards, Lewis and Greg Van Roten speak to the media today, I think perhaps they can pull this off.
These are two extremely bright linemen, who get it, and can help lead the Jets through this challenge. They also have a veteran center Connor McGovern, and veteran right tackle, George Fant.
The rookie left tackle is bright, but he’s a rookie, but so much of the work at left tackle is on an island, so he should be able to handle a lot of that mano a mano stuff.
And Lewis will help him a great deal out there.
“I’m there to help him along with the mental aspect – you don’t want him thinking too much and playing slow,” Lewis said. “So if I can be out there dialing the calls, and there isn’t a whole lot of thinking, and he can just play football, that’s what I’m going to do.”
The biggest challenge for the new group is dealing with the communication involved with picking up blitzes and stunts.
“Working your fundamentals and technique – when they are working twists – you can’t be different levels – you need to be on the same levels to pass them off, you have to be on the same page communication-wise and you have to master that stuff, and that is what we are attempting to do right now,” said Lewis.
Van Roten says one of the biggest challenge is to get all five guys speaking the same language.
“The biggest challenge when you have a new group like that, we all speak football, but we all call things by different names, so we have to pick up our communications, if we want to be effective, and hit the ground running fast,” said Van Roten, a Penn graduate.
Van Roten made a really interesting observation about the advantage of having no preseason.
While you don’t have elaborate game plans for preseason games, you do prepare to a degree in practice and meetings. This summer all the focus will be on Week One.
“We have four-six weeks to get ready for Buffalo in Week One,” Van Roten said.
Look, I’m not saying there won’t be bumps in the road, but it looks like Joe Douglas focused on adding really smart, assignment-savvy guys up front, like Lewis, Van Roten, McGovern, Fant who will do whatever it takes to be get ready for Week One.
I’m not being negative here about Becton, but he’s obviously a raw rookie.
But perhaps the other four guys, mainly Lewis, can buttress him as he learns on the job.
But after talking to Lewis and Van Roten today, I’m a little less negative on this lines chance to get up to speed sooner, rather than later.
Really smart cats who aren’t going to short circuit much.
August 6, 2020
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