The first weekend of training camp for the Jets is in the books and there is already excitement in the air on both sides of the football. With the Jets off Monday, let’s round up some observations from across the web on the first few days of practice.
Aaron Rodgers is making the offense fun to watch
This goes without saying, but the offense is going to be much more exciting to watch with Aaron Rodgers behind center than in the past, especially last season. Even the media is feeling the excitement.
“It’s actually remarkable how much of a difference competence makes at the quarterback position,” wrote Connor Hughes of SNY. “It’s night and day from the last few years with the Jets.”
The media is even just flat out having fun getting to watch things unfold on offense and to watch the four-time MVP.
Just going to say it: I’m having a whole lot of fun watching Aaron Rodgers & Garrett Wilson play football.
That, and more, from the first week of #Jets training camp pic.twitter.com/ha1uN34XmB
— Connor Hughes (@Connor_J_Hughes) July 23, 2023
Mekhi Becton may not be a shoo-in at right tackle...or on the team at all
Mekhi Becton was expected to be the favorite to take back his spot at right tackle following his knee injury recovery and his incredible weight loss of about 50 pounds. So far, he’s mostly been running with the second team and blocking for Zach Wilson, not Aaron Rodgers. And keep in mind, Duane Brown isn’t even practicing. Reports have said Max Mitchell has been running with the ones so far in camp and Billy Turner could be the top backup.
So could Becton actually be traded at some point? It doesn’t seem all that farfetched.
Hughes interestingly echos Cimini’s musings that Becton could be traded pic.twitter.com/xAeboHWqqb
— Nathaniel Jackett (@actionjack69) July 24, 2023
Is the coaching staff just not as high on Becton as once thought? It’s early in camp, but if Becton doesn’t start seeing more first-team reps, eyebrows will continue to be raised.
Jermaine Johnson is impressing early and doing so at a new position
The defense has been buzzing, which is not surprising at all. A pleasant surprise, however, has been second-year linebacker Jermaine Johnson. You read that right. Johnson is now listed as a linebacker, though he has still been lining up at defensive end at times. But early reports are that Johnson has been looking strong in camp and posted numerous would-be sacks, since of course, you aren’t touching the quarterback in camp.
Also of note with Johnson, he is now wearing No. 11, the number he wore in college. That number was previously worn by Denzel Mims, who was recently traded to the Detroit Lions. All this freshness could help providea fresh spark in Johnson, who posted 2.5 sacks as a rookie.
Tony Adams is giving Adrian Amos a run fo rhis money
First, it was supposed to be Chuck Clark. Following a torn ACL for Clark, it was then supposed to be Adrian Amos. Now, perhaps it could be Tony Adams.
When the Jets signed Amos, it was thought that he would step into a starting spot with Jordan Whitehead. However, in the early portion of camp, Adams has also been seeing first-team reps and is off to a strong start. The former undrafted free agent is quickly hot on Amos’ heels for a starting spot and could see more playing time even just in three-safety sets at least.
“He’s doing a good job. He’s in a good competition at that safety spot, he wants that starting spot like those other guys do,” Saleh said, via Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. “He’s showing up good, but … we’ll see when the pads come on.”
“Hypothetically, it seemed like the best course of action was to start Adams at free safety considering he is the best fit for deep-field responsibilities amongst him, Amos, and Whitehead, but we couldn’t say for sure whether the team viewed Adams as a potential starter,” wrote Michael Nania of Jets X-factor. “Now, we know the team is absolutely giving Adams a golden opportunity to win the job.”
We’ve quickly gone from who will be the No. 3 safety for the Jets to knowing who the top three are and just needing to figure out the order of those three.
