With training camp underway and Week 1 of the preseason already in the books, it’s time to take another look at how the Jets’ roster could look come Week 1 of the regular season.
The first two weeks of training camp practices and one preseason game have afforded Adam Gase and his coaching staff plenty of opportunities to evaluate. Before long, the Jets will begin narrowing down their roster to 53 and a handful of players will be shown the door.
Here, Jets Wire will take a stab at predicting what Gang Green’s active roster will look like when the Jets host the Buffalo Bills in Week 1. Here is version 4.0 of our roster prediction series.
Quarterbacks (2)
Starter: Sam Darnold
Backup: Trevor Siemian
Notable Cuts: Davis Webb, Luke Falk
Sam Darnold led the Jets to the end zone in his lone drive against the Giants on Thursday night, while Trevor Siemian relieved him and played well, going 13-16 for 77 yards and a touchdown.
Darnold’s roster spot was never up for grabs, but there was a chance that either Davis Webb or Luke Falk could overtake Siemian for the No. 2 spot on the depth chart. With Siemian turning in a nearly flawless performance and Webb (2-7, 11 yards, 2 INT), who was considered Siemian’s main challenger for the job, struggling, Siemian all but locked up his spot on New York’s regular-season roster after only one preseason game.
Luke Falk played well, going 9-11 for 69 yards and a touchdown. However, the only way he will be sticking around with the Jets if it’s on their practice squad once the regular season begins.
Running Backs (4)
Starter: Le’Veon Bell
Backups: Ty Montgomery, Elijah McGuire, Trenton Cannon
Notable Cuts: Bilal Powell, Valentine Holmes
This is where things start to get interesting.
Cannon is currently listed as New York’s starting kick returner and handled all kick return duties throughout the duration of the Jets’ preseason opener against the Giants. With Cannon having a prominent role on special teams, that leaves Bilal Powell as the odd man out at running back.
Powell falls victim to a numbers game here. It’s hard to see Adam Gase keeping five running backs once the regular season starts.
Wide Receivers (6)
Starters: Robby Anderson, Quincy Enunwa, Jamison Crowder
Backups: Greg Dortch, Josh Bellamy, Deontay Burnett
Notable Cuts: Tim White, Deonte Thompson, J.J. Jones, Jeff Smith
Not only did Greg Dortch all but lock up the starting punt returner job in Week 1 of the preseason, but he also established that he could be an impact player in New York’s passing attack as well.
Dortch caught four of his six targets for 20 yards and a touchdown. Working on underneath routes, Dortch displayed his explosiveness in the open field and playmaking ability.
New York seems set with this group of wideouts right now. Tim White could challenge for a spot, but he’ll have to continue to impress in practice and break into the catch column in a preseason game for that to happen.
Tight End (3)
Starter: Ryan Griffin
Backups: Eric Tomlinson, Trevon Wesco
New York’s tight ends didn’t contribute much in the first week of the preseason, but the Jets’ pecking order seems pretty much set in stone until Chris Herndon returns from suspension in Week 5.
Ryan Griffin will assume starting duties, while Eric Tomlinson and rookie Trevon Wesco back him up. Daniel Brown has an outside shot at making the team over Tomlinson, but experience and familiarity with the organization will likely keep Tomlinson in the mix until Herndon is activated.
*Chris Herndon suspended first four games of the regular season*
Offensive Line (9)
Starters: Kelvin Beachum, Kelechi Osemele, Ryan Kalil, Brian Winters, Brandon Shell
Backups: Jonotthan Harrison, Tom Compton, Alex Lewis, Chuma Edoga
Notable Cuts: Brent Qvale, Wyatt Miller, Tyler Jones, Jon Toth, Jordan Morgan, Ben Braden, Ryan Anderson, Calvin Anderson, Eric Smith
A lot has changed on the Jets’ offensive line over the past two weeks.
Ryan Kalil is out of retirement and in line to take over for Jonotthan Harrison once he gets back into football shape. Joe Douglas also acquired Alex Lewis from the Ravens, giving the Jets more solid veteran offensive line depth.
Lewis’ arrival likely signals the end for Brent Qvale, who is currently nursing an injury. The addition of Ryan Kalil also all but eliminates Jon Toth’s chance of making the team as a backup center.
Defensive Line (6)
Starters: Henry Anderson, Quinnen Williams, Leonard Williams
Backups: Steve McLendon, Nathan Shepherd, Foley Fatukasi
Notable Cuts: Bronson Kaufusi, Justin Alexandre, Kyle Phillips, Trevon Sanders, MyQuon Stout
Bronson Kaufusi is pushing hard for a roster spot, but Foley Fatukasi stepped up to the plate on Thursday night and proved why he belongs in New York’s defensive line rotation.
Fatukasi registered four tackles against the Giants, while Kaufusi only made one. This battle will likely rage on down to the wire, but right now, Fatukasi has the upper hand by a slim margin.
Linebackers (8)
Starters: Jordan Jenkins, C.J. Mosley, Avery Williamson, Brandon Copeland
Backups: Blake Cashman, Frankie Luvu, Jachai Polite, Neville Hewitt
Notable Cuts: Harvey Langi, Jamey Mosley, Tarrell Basham, James Burgess, Anthony Wint
Harvey Langi has been impressive throughout the first two weeks of training camp but is currently on the outside looking in due to an injury that kept him out of New York’s preseason opener.
Blake Cashman looks like a lock to make the team following a strong NFL debut. Fellow rookie Jamey Mosley is also seriously challenging for a spot.
Cornerbacks (7)
Starters: Trumaine Johnson, Darryl Roberts, Brian Poole
Backups: Kyron Brown, Arthur Maulet, Montrel Meander, Mark Myers
Notable Cuts: Parry Nickerson, Derrick Jones, Alex Brown, Tevaughn Campbell, Dee Delaney
Week 1 of the preseason provided a glimpse of where the Jets are headed at cornerback.
Both Parry Nickerson and Derrick Jones are likely on their way to the chopping block after pitiful performances against the Giants, while Kyron Brown and Arthur Maulet have been strong enough to earn roster spots early on. Nickerson and Jones will likely have a chance to rebound in Week 2, but both are skating on extremely thin ice moving forward.
*Note: Montrel Meander is listed as a safety on the depth chart, but he saw half of his snaps against the Giants at cornerback*
*Bless Austin will begin the season on NFI list.*
Safety (4)
Starters: Jamal Adams, Marcus Maye
Backups: Doug Middleton, Rontez Miles
Notable Cuts: Brandon Bryant, Santos Ramirez, Godwin Igwebuike
Marcus Maye is on the PUP list, but Adam Gase is hopeful the safety will be ready to go Week 1. If not, Doug Middleton will start opposite of Jamal Adams at free safety.
Prior to Thursday night, there was a shot Santos Ramirez overtook Rontez Miles for a spot. However, Ramirez was downright awful against the Giants. Brandon Bryant will have a chance to overtake Miles moving forward as well, but has plenty of work to do if he wants to supersede him.
Specialists (3)
Kicker: Chandler Catanzaro
Punter: Lachlan Edwards
Long Snapper: Thomas Hennessy
Notable Cuts: Matt Darr
Chandler Catanzaro is in grave danger of losing his job after a rough start to training camp and a porous performance against the Giants in Week 1 of the preseason. Until Joe Douglas adds another player or two to compete with him, though, Catanzaro remains in place as New York’s kicker.
