Morris County – One of the reasons the Jets signed free agent safety Dane Belton in the off-season is his versatility.
And in team’s joint practice today against Tampa Bay, Belton had three flash plays that displayed his jack-of-all-trades nature.
First, he came over from his centerfield position to break up a pass down the deep left sideline to Buccaneers receiver Ted Hurst.
Then, in a special teams drill, he did a nice job of covering a punt, stopping Tampa Bay returner Kameron Johnson right after he caught the ball.
Shortly after his work in this special team’s drill, he stopped Tampa Bay running back Bucky Irving right around the line on a running play.
Belton might or might not end up starting at the safety position next to Minkah Fitzpatrick; that remains to be seen. But even if he doesn’t win that job, he’s going to have a lot of roles for the Jets both on defense and special teams.
And while he’s not a star player, the former New York Giant has always been a guy who can help a team in many different ways, which he showed today in practice.
There is an expression NFL coaches and scouts have been throwing around to players for years: “The more you can do.”
And Belton is a guy who epitomizes that.
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