NJ’S FLORHAM PARK (AP) – These days, you never know who may wind up on the offensive line for the New York Jets.
The injured team has been rotating players in and out of the starting lineup. Last Sunday’s 13-10 victory over the Giants saw Zach Wilson, a natural guard promoted from the practice squad the day before, playing snaps in the starting lineup.
Wilson said, “You don’t worry about it, man,” on Wednesday. “This squad consists of combatants. Whoever takes the lead will be prepared to go. Whether someone has been playing or not, I have complete faith in everyone in this locker room, so I think we’ll be great.”
The quarterback for the Jets is adopting a positive mindset. And given that New York will start its sixth different offensive line in eight games when it plays the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night, it’s probably the only one to take at this time.
Laken Tomlinson, a left guard who will start every game this season in the same place for the Jets, said, “I’m not even looking at it like that.” “I see it as though we had these five warriors ready to go into battle and assist the team win. Though the injuries have clearly been very unfortunate, the boys are working really hard, and we’ve been able to get some individuals back in and other guys out.
“However, everything will work out OK. The men in the room are the appropriate kind of guys.”
Throughout the early part of the season, a good number of players have gone through that door.
Think about this: Tomlinson started at left guard, Duane Brown at left tackle, Connor McGovern at center, Alijah Vera-Tucker at right guard, and Mekhi Becton at right tackle in the Jets’ Week 1 lineup versus Buffalo.
After missing five games due to a hip injury, Brown is now cleared to resume practice. McGovern (knee) and Vera-Tucker (achilles tendon) are also on injured reserve; Vera-Tucker is out for the season. Guard and backup center Wes Schweitzer is also sidelined due to a calf ailment. Joe Tippmann, a rookie who is the second-string center and started four games at right guard, missing one due to a quadriceps ailment injured his quadriceps and is not expected to be back this week.
Being versatile is crucial for offensive linemen because you never know what may happen, according to Tomlinson. “That sixth player is free to play at any position. At times, it might even be the seventh man or the player who was recently added to the club.
Tomlinson at left guard, Becton at left tackle, Newman or Tippmann at center, Newman, Billy Turner, or maybe the freshly signed Rodger Saffold at right guard, and Max Mitchell at right tackle might be the Jets’ lineup against the Chargers in Week 9.
Additionally, it’s unclear if Brown will return to his native left tackle position when he’s ready to play, which will again force Becton to switch back to the right side.
Due to knee ailments, Becton missed all but one game during the previous two seasons of football. “I really don’t give a damn where I’m at,” he stated. “I just want to play football.”
Put another way, who knows what the future holds for the Jets’ offensive line? However, it will undoubtedly impact the offense’s total output, since they are still having trouble in the red zone and on third downs.
“Because everything starts up front, it’s very frustrating,” head coach Robert Saleh stated. “You want to experiment and be creative, but the safety needs to be maintained. Furthermore, continuity and players’ instinctive ability to play off one another, hand off games, and sense one another during sets or run games, among other situations, are frequently the sources of protection.”
That’s difficult to accomplish when the cast is constantly shifting.
Saleh remarked, “We like where everyone is at.” We’re attempting to limit the number of moves we make. You’re basically trying to make as few moves as possible to keep players playing and doing what they do best because there isn’t enough continuity already.
However, nothing is off limits. We must perform to the best of our abilities, but we’re attempting to approach it with a more minimalist mindset.”
WORDS: P After he punted three times inside the 5-yard line last Sunday against the Giants, setting a franchise record and improving his career, Thomas Morstead was chosen as the AFC special teams player of the week. DL Chris Glaser was added from the Cowboys practice squad to the active roster. Elerson Smith, a defensive lineman, was discharged, while Bruce Hector was added to the practice squad.
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