There is only so much learning that can be done in an online setting — especially in football.
Coaches can teach new offensive and defensive schemes online, but that is not the same as hitting the practice field to work out the kinks. Quarterbacks and wide receivers can discuss developing chemistry, but that can’t happen unless the two partake in a throwing session. Unfortunately, none of those activities were able to take place this spring due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the coronavirus bringing in-person offseason programs in the NFL to a halt, teams around the league have been forced to adapt to a new normal. Virtual meetings have taken the place of in-person meetings and workouts on the practice field. The Jets have done their best to adapt under the circumstances, but considering how many new faces are in the building, they were among the teams that needed spring ball the most this offseason.
According to ESPN Stats & Information, New York returns only 60 percent of its offense from 2019 this upcoming season. The only team with a lower return rate is the Panthers (58 percent), who welcome a new head coach and quarterback in 2020. The Jets have their quarterback and head coach from a year ago, but that does not detract from the uphill battle Gang Green now faces on the offensive side of the ball due to a lack of familiarity.
Le’Veon Bell is back at running back, but his two backups, Frank Gore and La’Mical Perine, are new. The only returning impact wide receiver Sam Darnold has ever thrown to is Jamison Crowder. New York’s other two starters, Breshad Perriman and Denzel Mims, have yet to catch a pass from their new quarterback. The Jets also feature four new starters on their offensive line following an offseason in which general manager Joe Douglas spent most of his time bulking up the unit.
That leaves New York with potentially six news starters on offense entering 2020. Without having the benefit of a normal offseason and two fewer preseason games, the Jets will have to somehow make up for lost time and come together at record speed with a daunting early-season schedule looming.
“Practice reps, preseason game reps, they’re all extremely valuable,” Adam Gase said. “The more you have, the better you feel, especially heading into the season. That’s why, sometimes early in the season, you see sloppy play. Mistakes are made and cost teams games. As the season goes on, a lot of them get eliminated and fixed. It’s going to be about what teams can do a good job of making those adjustments and doing them quickly in a short period of time without a lot of reps.”
The Jets cannot afford to succumb to sloppy play in the first couple of weeks of the season. If they do, they will be out of the running for the postseason before they know it — just like last season.
Coaching is now as important as ever. If Gase and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains can’t get everyone on the same page in a timely manner, New York’s offense is going to struggle to put points on the board to begin 2020.