Instant Analysis: New year begins with same old Jets as Bills dominate in Week 1

New York kicked off its 2020 season with one of its typical embarrassing, no-show performances.

A new season usually brings fresh hope for teams around the NFL. After an offseason spent retooling the roster and stockpiling talent in the draft, the thought is that Week 1 could be the beginning of something special.

Unless you’re the Jets.

New York kicked off its 2020 season with a typical no-show performance, as the Bills dominated for four quarters to the tune of a 27-17 victory. Don’t let the final score fool you. The Jets never had much of a chance, as they struggled to move the football and repeatedly shot themselves in the foot with a bevy of mistakes, even as the Bills invited them back into the game.

Things are not going to get any easier for New York when the defending 49ers come to town in Week 2. Considering the way the Jets performed against Buffalo, it’s hard to see them playing any better against the NFC’s Super Bowl representative from a year ago.

Game Balls

Marcus Maye: Maye was one of the lone bright spots on a Jets defense that got torched on Sunday, as he forced Josh Allen to fumble in the first quarter and had 10 tackles, two pass deflections and two sacks.

Bless Austin: Austin was the other member of the secondary who stood out in Week 1, as he forced Allen’s second fumble of the afternoon just before halftime. Austin’s physicality in run support was on display throughout the game and should earn him some additional playing time moving forward.

Jamison Crowder: Crowder picked up where he left off in 2019, catching seven passes for 115 yards and a touchdown. Expect him to continue to serve as Sam Darnold’s go-to receiver throughout the season.

Quick Thoughts

-How did the Jets begin 2020? By getting flagged for an illegal block in the back on the opening kickoff, not recording a first down until the 1:52 mark of the first quarter, and not advancing the ball past midfield until the second. That’s not how you want to start a new year.

-So much for a revamped offensive line. Sam Darnold spent most of the day flushed out of the pocket and forced to make tough throws on the run. Darnold might not have the best weapons at wide receiver to work with, but a little help from his offensive line would do wonders. Gang Green’s running backs didn’t have much room, either.

-Speaking of Darnold…throwing the ball across your body into the middle of the field is never a good idea. You can say what you want about Darnold not being surrounded by an abundance of talent, but he has to help himself. Making senseless throws is not the way to succeed in the NFL. Running out of bounds instead of throwing the ball away like he did at the end of the third quarter doesn’t get the job done, either. Darnold should know that by now, yet he continues to make the same mistakes that plagued him throughout his first two seasons.

-Penalties, penalties, penalties. Brian Poole got flagged for holding in in the end zone and Pierre Desir got called for pass interference 20 yards downfield in the first quarter alone. Jumping offside gave the Bills a free first down in the second. Eight penalties for 87 yards. Not a good day for New York from a discipline perspective.

-Desir’s problems did not end with his early pass interference penalty. He was benched in his Jets debut in favor of Nate Hairston. The hope is that he can bounce back in Week, 2 but not an ideal start to his career with New York.

-Do the Jets know what QB containment is? Josh Allen running wild is downright inexcusable — especially when it is known how much he likes to use his legs. There is absolutely no reason why Allen was allowed to lead the Bills in rushing on Sunday.

-Why was Adam Gase calling screen passes in the two-minute drill with no timeouts at the end of the first half? Absolutely no situational awareness by New York’s second-year head coach.

-It might be time to start worrying about Quinnen Williams. He consistently got blown off the ball throughout the afternoon and, despite making a play in the backfield in the second quarter, did not do much to contribute.

-The Jets are in serious trouble with the 49ers coming to town next weekend. It’s hard to see any scenario in which the Jets win, or even remain competitive, in that game after four quarters of incompetence against the Bills.

2020 New York Jets Position Preview: Special teams

Jets Wire breaks down New York’s specialists with training camp and the 2020 season approaching.

With training camp here, Jets Wire has been taking a close look at the makeup of the Jets’ roster entering the 2020 season. Last up is special teams.

While Brant Boyer’s unit has been one of the most reliable in the league for the past two seasons, New York didn’t exactly get much out of its kicking specialists last season. After Chandler Catanzaro abruptly retiring and the nightmare experiment that was Kaare Vedvik, the Jets finally landed on Sam Ficken after multiple workouts. Ficken was serviceable, but New York will need more reliability out of the kicking position in 2020. As for Lachlan Edwards, the Aussie punter was replaced this offseason.

Let’s break down the specialists at One Jets Drive.

The Starters

After the departure of long-term punter Edwards in free agency, Jets’ sixth-round pick Braden Mann enters the picture as the team’s lone punter.

Mann won the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s top punter in 2018. Over his last two seasons at Texas A&M, he netted a gross average of 51.0 and 47.1 yards per punt, respectively. Mann should have no problem making his presence felt. In addition to his punting duties, he will be New York’s kickoff specialist, according to Boyer.

Returning at long snapper is Thomas Hennessy, who has been one of New York’s more reliable special teamers since arriving via trade from Indianapolis in 2017.

Depth

Going through three kickers before the second week of the season, the Jets didn’t exactly nail down the position in 2019. Ficken was signed off the street and was unable to consistently make his kicks. He was average at best, making 19 of 27 field goals and missing three extra points.

That’s exactly why Joe Douglas brought in former Dallas Cowboys kicker Brett Maher as his competition. Maher is notorious for his big leg, but he’s not very accurate. He hit just 66.7 percent of his field goals in 2019 after making 80.7 percent the season before. After being waived midseason by the Cowboys, Maher appears to be the Jets’ latest kicking reclamation project coming over from Dallas.

Back deep for the Jets in 2020 should be some combo of Ashtyn Davis, Vyncint Smith and Braxton Berrios. Although it was a small sample size, Smith took full advantage of returning kicks for Gang Green in 2019. Smith’s 29.9 yards per kick return would have ranked second in the NFL, but the third-year wide receiver only returned 10 kicks — too few to qualify for league leaders. As for Berrios, he was one of the more reliable punt returners across the league last season . His 11.4 yards per punt return was second in the NFL.

George Campbell and Trenton Cannon could push as competition, but both are looked at as roster bubble players entering training camp.

Outlook

With Boyer in charge of the unit, the Jets should see continued success from their special teams in 2020. While Mann and Hennessy are locked in as starters, the kicking competition between Ficken and Maher should be a battle to watch over the duration of training camp.

If Smith’s and Berrios’ numbers from 2019 are any indication, they should be the favorites for the returns jobs.

See more from Jets Wire’s Position Previews series:

QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | MLB | OLB | CB | S

Jets Rookie Power Rankings: Training camp begins

Where do New York’s rookies stand heading into training camp? Jets Wire ranks them all.

Jets Wire’s Rookie Power Rankings are back!

The beginning of training camp marks the beginning of a month-long journey through an NFL camp for New York’s rookie class. The circumstances are less than ideal with the COVID-19 pandemic still in full swing, but training camp will remain a proving ground for Gang Green’s neophytes nonetheless.

With the pads on, the stakes are higher than ever for New York’s promising nine-man 2020 draft class, as well as some undrafted free agents. The intensity and speed of the game will pick up for some and it may take a while to get adjusted. With that being said, each of the Jets’ rookies have enough talent to make some kind of impact this upcoming season.

Without further ado, here is the first edition of Jets Wire’s rookie power rankings for the 2020 season.

Everyone Else

Before we get into the top five, here is a list of Jets’ rookies who did not make the cut:

RB La’Mical Perine (Fourth-round pick)

Perine is currently New York’s No. 3 running back behind Le’Veon Bell and Frank Gore, which is a good spot for a mid-round draft pick to be. However, with Bell and Gore set to dominate the bulk of the workload in the background, it remains to be seen how much playing time Perine will get at the beginning of the season.

QB James Morgan (Fourth-round pick)

Morgan enters training camp as the Jets’ No. 4 quarterback behind Sam Darnold, Joe Flacco and David Fales. Morgan is all but a lock to crack New York’s 53-man roster at the beginning of the regular season, but he cannot be included in the top five of the power rankings considering his limited role as a backup.

OL Cameron Clark (Fourth-round pick)

The Jets drafted the versatile Clark with an eye on deploying him as a backup who can line up at either guard or tackle in the event of an injury to a veteran starter. Until he enters the starting lineup for one reason or another, Clark will remain out of the top five.

CB Bryce Hall (Fifth-round pick)

Of all the draft picks not included in the initial top five, Hall has the best chance to break into the rankings in the near future. As long as he remains healthy throughout training camp, he has a shot to challenge for the No. 2 cornerback spot opposite Pierre Desir.

WR Lawrence Cager (UDFA)

WR George Campbell (UDFA)

CB Shyheim Carter (UDFA)

DT Domenique Davis (UDFA)

CB Javelin Guidry (UDFA)

OT Jared Hilbers (UDFA)

DE/OLB Bryce Huff (UDFA)

CB Lamar Jackson (UDFA)

DL Sterling Johnson (UDFA)

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Jets sign Braden Mann to rookie deal

The Jets have signed Braden Mann to his rookie deal.

The Jets have locked up their punter of the future.

According to the Daily News’ Manish Mehta, Braden Mann has agreed to the terms of his rookie contract. It’s a four-year deal worth $3.47 million. Mann’s 2020 cap charge is $654,000.

Mann was taken in the sixth-round of the 2020 NFL Draft out of Texas A&M. He was the first of two punters taken in the draft.

Mann was one of the nation’s best punters while at Texas A&M. In 2018, he won the Ray Guy Award for being college football’s best punter. Along with that award, Mann was a unanimous All-American, First-Team All-SEC and the SEC Special Teams Player of the Year. Mann was also First-Team All-SEC in 2019 as well.

Mann averaged 47.1 yards per punt in college. Of Mann’s 109 total punts, 13 of them were for touchbacks and 46 of them were inside the 20-yard line. His longest punt was 82 yards, which came in his junior season.

New York opened the way for Mann to be their starting punter by not re-signing Lachlan Edwards. The Jets don’t have another punter on their active roster, so unless Mann has an atrocious training camp, then he’ll be the punter for the Jets’ opener against the Bills.

With pandemic slowing sports, Jets have yet to sign any of their 2020 draft picks

The New York Jets have yet to sign any of their nine 2020 draft picks even though most of the league hasn’t signed any of their rookies.

It’s been over a month since the 2020 NFL Draft took place and none of the Jets’ draft picks are officially on the roster.

The Jets have yet to sign any of their nine picks. That includes Mekhi Becton, Denzel Mims, Ashtyn Davis, Jabari Zuniga, La’Mical Perine, James Morgan, Cameron Clark, Bryce Hall and Braden Mann.

The Jets aren’t alone in this, though. Most picks have yet to ink their contracts because of the coronavirus pandemic. Out of 255 draft picks, only 51 have officially signed with their respective teams so far.

All these rookies have yet to even enter their own training facilities. The pandemic has prevented players and coaches from stepping foot inside their training centers. As you see more facilities opening up and fewer restrictions in place, more rookies should begin signing their contracts.

For the Jets, they’ve had some issues in the past with signing rookies. Two years ago, Sam Darnold missed the first few days of training camp because his contract wasn’t signed. Just last season, Quinnen Williams held out of the first day of training camp because he couldn’t come to terms on a deal in time.

General manager Joe Douglas takes a very conservative approach when negotiating, so keep an eye on that as things progress.

At this point, it’s just a waiting game. Players need to get back to the facilities before they can start negotiating contracts. But as of now, the Jets shouldn’t be concerned with not having any of their nine rookies unsigned as the calendar flips to June.

Jets waive punter Ian Berryman

The Jets have waived punter Ian Berryman after officially signing Joe Flacco.

The Jets have cleared the way for Braden Mann to be their punter in 2020.

The team announced Wednesday that it has waived punter Ian Berryman after officially signing Joe Flacco to a one-year deal.

Berryman went undrafted out of Western Carolina in 2019 before signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers. He kicked in all four of the Steelers’ preseason games, totaling nine punts for 412 yards. Berryman averaged almost 46 yards per punt during the preseason.

However, that wasn’t good enough to make the Steelers roster. Berryman was cut right before the start of the regular season. The Jets signed him to a reserve/future contract following the conclusion of the 2019 regular season.

This move all but indicates that Mann will be the punter for the Jets next season.

5 Jets rookies that have a chance at starting in 2020

Jets Wire takes a look at five rookies that have a chance to start for Gang Green in 2020.

Joe Douglas’ approach to the 2020 NFL Draft not only landed the Jets players with the potential to become great down the road, but also players that can come in and make an impact right away.

Of Douglas’ nine picks in his first draft as a general manager, five of them have a legitimate chance to crack the starting lineup at some point in 2020, assuming the develop as expected throughout the offseason and stay healthy. It might take longer than usual for New York’s rookie class to reach its potential given the limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the chance for numerous neophytes to play major roles on both sides of the ball this upcoming season is certainly there.

So, which Jets rookies have the best chance to start in 2020? Let’s take a look.

Mekhi Becton

This one is a no brainer, as Becton is a lock to begin 2020 as New York’s starting left tackle.

It remains to be seen how effective Becton will be in his rookie season. He is already a mauler when run blocking, but needs a little bit of work with his technique in pass protection. Either way, he will have the chance to develop as a member of the starting lineup all season.

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Braden Mann not the first Aggies punter drafted by Jets

The last time the Jets took a punter out of Texas A&M was Steve O’Neal in 1969 and he recorded the longest punt ever in football history.

The last time the New York Jets drafted a punter out of Texas A&M, they found a diamond in the rough.

Braden Mann became the latest Aggies punter to hear his name called by the Jets, but long before him was Steve O’Neal. He was taken with the 21st pick of the 13th round in the 1969 Common Draft back when the Jets were in the AFL. Right away, O’Neal made an instant impact with one of the most historic punts in football history.

On Sept. 21, 1969, the Jets were playing the Denver Broncos. The Jets were pinned back near their own goal line and forced to punt, so on came O’Neal. He booted a 98-yard punt, the longest ever in professional football then and still today.

Last time we drafted an @AggieFootball punter was Steve O'Neal in 1969. He set the NFL record with a 98-yard punt in his rookie season.

Your turn, @MannBraden 😂 pic.twitter.com/w4pxoWiIFy

— New York Jets (@nyjets) May 2, 2020

O’Neal only played four seasons with the Jets from 1969 through 1972. His final season in football was in 1973 with the Saints. In four seasons with the Jets, O’Neal only averaged about 41 yards per punt attempt.

Now the Jets have drafted their second punter ever out of Texas A&M in Mann. The Jets took him in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

While Mann is not expected to do what O’Neal did, he does come to the Jets with an impressive reputation. Mann won the Ray Guy Award in 2018 for being the best punter in college football, so the Jets are hoping his leg can translate to the pros.

4 things to know about Jets new P Braden Mann

Here are four things to know about Jets new P Braden Mann, who New York selected with the 191st pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

The Jets came into the draft with a need at punter and Joe Douglas didn’t want to wait until the undrafted free agent period.

With the Jets’ first sixth-round pick, they selected Braden Mann out of Texas A&M. Down in College Station, Mann broke several NCAA records. He’s been consistently dominant and draft pundits like Mel Kiper Jr. view him as a Pro-Bowl caliber punter. The Jets certainly need a punter after electing not to re-sign Lachlan Edwards, who led the NFL with 87 total punts last season.

Here are four things to know about the Jets’ new punter.

Ray Guy Winner

Braden Mann’s first full year punting for the Texas A&M Aggies resulted in him earning unanimous All-American honors and the Ray Guy Award winner as the nation’s top punter.

Mann also set the NCAA record with 51.0 yards per punt, placing 19 of 50 punts inside the 20-yard line and forcing 11 fair catches during his 2018 campaign.

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Grading all 9 Jets picks in the 2020 NFL Draft

Joe Douglas grabbed nine players in the 2020 NFL draft to shore up positions of need for the Jets.

Joe Douglas should be very happy with his first draft as Jets general manager. He manipulated the draft board to finish with nine players, all of which have the potential to play significant roles for the Jets in 2020.

The Jets filled positions of need early with the selections of offensive tackle Mekhi Becton and wide receiver Denzel Mims but added great depth at positions like guard, cornerback, running back and quarterback. This draft featured the most players taken by the Jets since 2017 when they also took nine players. Only two players from that draft still play for the Jets, so Douglas is looking for better results.

Only time will tell, but for now, here are JetsWire’s grades for all nine of the Jets’ 2020 draft picks.

OT Mekhi Becton – No. 11 overall

The Jets got the biggest player in the draft in the 6-foot-7, 364-pound Becton, who’ll become a run-blocking force for New York. Becton can open up lanes for Le’Veon Bell and keep Sam Darnold upright by pancaking any defender in his way.

Becton might have the most potential of any of the top linemen in the draft but he’s also an incredibly raw pass-protector. He’s a bully on the field but that could be to his detriment against smarter and more experienced pass rushers. Becton fits the bill as a dominating lineman who should be a stabilizing presence at the tackle position for the Jets’ offensive line.

Grade: B-

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