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A week in the books . . .
Sheldon Rankins made some news praising the talent of the Jets defensive line.
“The amount of talent we have in that room is pretty crazy,” Rankins said.
They certainly seem more talented on paper. We will see what happens in the games.
The addition of defensive end Jermaine Johnson is one the Jets are particularly excited about. The 2022 first-round pick out of Florida State could help, but he’s still got a lot to prove, like all rookies.
One small concern, not a big one at this early stage, is his size. He’s kind of a lean end, and when we saw him get locked up and twisted by tight end Lawrence Cager early in camp, it was perhaps a slight wake call that he needs to get a little bigger and stronger, which I’m sure he will.
Another area that needs to improve with this unit is setting the edge against the run. This was a problem last year, and it still rears its head in camp.
Carl Lawson should help in this area. He’s playing very limited in camp coming off an Achilles injury, but he’s an absolute powerhouse, so he should be able to set a hard edge on one side.
Another area that needs to improve from last year is guys not shooting too far upfield, giving quarterbacks easy escape lanes.
This is a no-no in football, because last time we checked, quarterbacks don’t run backward. When you shoot too far upfield, you are basically giving the defense just 10 defenders to deal with, because you are taking yourself out of the play.
John Franklin-Myers is working on improving in his area.
Speaking of Franklin-Myers, with the new additions at end, he’s getting more chances to play inside at defensive tackle, which is a good spot for him. He’s a mismatch for a lot of guards and centers. He’s not much of a mismatch for most offensive tackles. He matches up better with interior linemen, and now that the Jets have a lot more depth at end, they will be able to move him inside more.
And if you have a four-man DT rotation of Quinnen Williams, Sheldon Rankins, Franklin-Myers and Solomon Thomas, that could be special.
Thomas is an underrated signing for Gang Green. He’s a perfect fit for the system and has a great motor and top-shelf technique. While he might have been over-drafted going third overall in the 2017 draft to San Francisco, he certainly was a late first-round talent, and will help the Jets DT rotation a great deal.
Speaking of DT’s, watching 2022 fourth-round pick, end Michael Clemons early in camp, his future might be inside. He might not be twitchy enough coming off the edge, but with his long arms and brute strength, he could be a problem for guards and centers. Also with his long arms, he could be good at disrupting QB passing lanes inside.
But overall, Rankins makes a good point, there is a lot more talent in the defensive line room this year.
But now that talent needs to lead to results to help the NFL’s 32nd-ranked defense last year take a big step. There needs to be more discipline and gap integrity.
Because inconsistent defensive line play was certainly a contributing factor to that poor ranking.
August 4, 2022
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