New York Jets

We credit Pro Football Focus, STATS LLC and Football Outsiders with OL performance data

The Jets offensive line has been a pedestrian performer in recent seasons. In an attempt to improve the unit, the team selected five offensive lineman in the last three drafts, spanning two separate general managers. It also signed OG James Carpenter in the offseason and re-signed OG Willie Colon and OT Ben Ijalana.

Projected Starting Lineup

D’Brickashaw Ferguson, LT 6’6″ 310 pounds– Age is catching up with the veteran, has been in sharp decline in recent years, the team is financially committed to him, still appears durable and has not missed a start in his career, has been especially poor in the run game in recent seasons

James Carpenter, LG 6’5″ 321 pounds– 2011 Round 1 pick by Seattle, Jets settled for OG Carpenter in free agency after missing on better guards, has struggled with conditioning and has 19 missed games, a better pass protector than run blocker, at only 26 years old the team hopes he still has untapped potential, had been an underperforming LG in Seattle the last 3 seasons

Nick Mangold, C 6’4″ 307 pounds– 31 years old, arguably still the best center in the league, a dominating run blocker

Oday Aboushi, RG 6’5″ 308 pounds– Round 5 pick in 2013, Willie Colon and Brian Winters will also compete for this spot, Aboushi played reasonably well in 10 starts at LG last season, was a positive run blocker, was a player we had major question marks regarding coming out of college physically as far as projecting to tackle; better suited at guard

Breno Giacomini, RT 6’7″ 318 pounds– 2008 Round 5 pick, played with the Packers, Seahawks and Jets, has been a poor NFL OT journeyman in recent years

Notes-

At first glance, outside of Nick Mangold, this offensive line looks pretty trashy. Although, the Jets did make solidifying the interior portion of the line a priority in the offseason- the jury is still out on that experiment. But, it at least indicates the team is committed to the run game between the tackles with Chris Ivory. Ivory is a terrific gamble in the mid-to-late rounds of fantasy drafts.

This is a C-to-C- group, which is no great news for surprise starting QB Ryan Fitzpatrick. However, we do expect Brandon Marshall to be a target monster and safety blanket for the veteran beardsman. We don’t consider Fitzpatrick much, if any, of a downgrade from Geno Smith in terms of Brandon Marshall’s fantasy value. We don’t have the same feelings about deep-threat Eric Decker who may not be reachable down the field via Fitzpatrick’s squirt-gun arm.

Depth–

Willie Colon– 32 years old, horrible 2014, terrible run blocker, was only slightly better in 2013, was an average performer in 2012, Colon struggled last season with nagging injuries

Brian Winters – The 72nd overall pick in the 2013 draft, coming off of an ACL injury, Winters has started 18 games and is now competing for a roster spot, has been a poor OG since entering the league – especially in the run game

Jarvis Harrison – NFL Draft Expert Mike Loyko’s #13 ranked OG in the 2015 NFL Draft, Loyko writes:

“Jarvis Harrison is a highly intriguing Interior OL prospect. If he ever puts all the “off-the-field” issues to rest he could develop into a starting Guard in the league. He’s a former basketball player with light feet and solid movement skills. His wide- bodied frame is tough to navigate around in pass protection and he has strong enough hands to latch on, shut down rushers. Harrison brings some position versatility as well as an attractive combination of mobility and power for the position. Unfortunately, there are a lot of red flags surrounding his character and work ethic. His conditioning isn’t up to par and he’s allowed his weight to fluctuate”

Dakota Dozier– Round 4 pick in 2014, took reps at backup C in offseason workouts, has OG versatility

Dalton Freeman – started 1 game in 2014, has no other experience

Ben Ijalana – Was limited to six snaps with the Jets last year, 2011 Round 2 pick, career has been derailed by injuries thus far