It’s now or never for Jets general manager Joe Douglas to finally correct the team’s offensive line issues.
During his five seasons with the Jets, the offensive line has dealt with inept play and tons of injuries. In just the last two seasons, Gang Green has played more offensive linemen than any other team in the NFL.
In 2022, 11 different players started games on the Jets’ offensive line. Last season was even more brutal for the Jets. Gang Green saw 14 different offensive line combinations.
It isn’t like Douglas and coach Robert Saleh haven’t tried to improve the Jets offensive line. It is just that the two need to make better decisions when choosing the right players up front. Especially with Aaron Rodgers, 40, coming off a season-ending Achilles tear four plays into his Jets’ tenure.
With six of the 14 offensive linemen being impending free agents, Douglas will have some difficult decisions to make.
“Obviously, we’ve invested a lot of resources in that position,” Douglas said when speaking to the media last month. “So, going back, I know I’ve sat here and had conversations with you guys in the past about how much availability is of importance to this group and for the last two years, we’ve been banged up.
“Going back and looking at the performance and availability of this group, I feel like I spent so much time trying to prevent the storm from actually coming when it comes to injuries. I think certain injuries are unpreventable. I feel like we’ve done a lot better job in terms of soft tissue injuries, but I think candidly, one of the things I could have done better with the offensive line is keeping an extra offensive lineman.”
Douglas’ previous decisions have put the Jets in this current position. In 2020, the Jets selected Mekhi Becton 11th overall in the NFL Draft hoping he would be their star left tackle. Not only did he deal with multiple knee injuries during his tenure with the Jets, but Becton struggled when he was healthy last season.
In 16 games, Becton allowed 12 sacks and committed 18 penalties in 985 snaps. He will be a free agent this offseason after Douglas and the Jets declined Becton’s fifth-year option last offseason.
In 2022, the Jets signed guard Laken Tomlinson to a three-year, $40 million contract, hoping he could anchor the offensive line. But Tomlinson’s play has been inconsistent after allowing seven sacks last year.
Then, following Becton’s second season-ending injury in 2022, the Jets signed left tackle Duane Brown to a two-year, $20 million contract. He played 17 of 34 games after suffering first a shoulder injury and a hip injury that limited Brown to five games in 2023. Brown, 38, will be a free agent this offseason and could possibly be considering retirement.
Douglas has found two potential cornerstone players on the offensive line with Joe Tippmann and Alijah Vera-Tucker. However, Vera-Tucker has suffered two season-ending injuries during the last two years (torn triceps and Achilles).
Every team has been hit with injuries at one point or another. But injuries on the offensive line have been a consistent theme for the Jets.
In a critical year for the franchise, Douglas must develop the right plan and find offensive line depth when and if significant injuries occur.
Part of that plan has to involve free agency. The Jets need to find two starters on the offensive line, assuming they decide to bring back Tomlinson, which is likely. Although his performance on the field has been questioned, Tomlinson has started every game the last two years, something no other Jets offensive linemen can say.
The tackle market this offseason is slim pickings. However, there are a few players who could help the Jets.
Cowboys tackle Tyron Smith is the best tackle available, but he has dealt with various injuries throughout his career and hasn’t played an entire season since 2015. Considering what happened with Brown, committing to a 33-year-old offensive lineman with injury issues may not make sense.
Kansas City tackle Donovan Smith could be the best option at left tackle. He has started at least 12 games since entering the league in 2015.
Smith has veteran experience and allowed just two sacks for the Super Bowl champion Chiefs in 2023. And, oh yeah, Smith is a native of Hempstead, New York, an area where the Jets used to train.
In terms of the right tackle, the Jets could go a variety of different ways. If Gang Green remains at 10th overall in April’s draft, Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga makes the most sense.
At 6-6, 332 pounds, Fuaga has a large frame and is a player who is dominant in both run and pass blocking. He also has the potential flexibility to play guard in the NFL if needed.
Pro Football Focus graded Fuaga as the nation’s No. 1 run blocker (90.7) last season. Fuaga’s 86.5 overall offensive line grade was the third-best in the country.
Douglas and the Jets could also trade down and try to recoup the second-round pick the team lost when trading for Rodgers. Oklahoma’s Tyler Guyton could be a potential target if that is the case.
Guyton doesn’t have the experience Fuaga does after starting just 14 games during his college career. But at 6-7, 328 pounds, Guyton has the ideal size for a right tackle, the athleticism, and footwork to stay in front of NFL pass rushers. Guyton is not a finished product, and his potential makes him intriguing.
No matter what Douglas does this offseason, he needs to figure out the Jets offensive line quagmire. After acquiring Rodgers last April, this team put all their chips on the table.
Now it’s do or die for Douglas, Saleh, and the Jets’ regime. Gang Green hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010, the longest playoff drought in North American sports.
Rodgers’ injury gave Douglas and Saleh a mulligan, a luxury they likely will not receive if another losing season occurs in 2024.
