Tag: Greg Van Roten

Larry Warford is a no-brainer for Joe Douglas, Jets

The Jets Wire makes the case for the Jets making a pursuit after free agent right guard Larry Warford, who was just released by the Saints.

Joe Douglas has done everything in his power to revamp the Jets’ offensive line this offseason, but there’s one more move he can make that would complete his overhaul.

He already re-signed Alex Lewis and added Greg Van Roten to give the Jets more depth at guard. Connor McGovern, meanwhile, was signed to play center. Douglas also solidified the tackle position by drafting Mekhi Becton with the Jets’ first-round pick and signing George Fant.

That leaves right guard as the only spot on the Jets’ retooled offensive line that hasn’t been solidified. So why not sign three-time Pro Bowler and new free agent Larry Warford to play the position?

The Jets are set to have an open competition for two guard positions, with the incumbent Brian Winters currently penciled in as the starter on the right side. Douglas has given Winters a fighting chance to be the Jets’ opening day starter at right guard, but the team can save $7.28 million by releasing the injury-plagued lineman before June 1. He played just nine games in 2019 due to a dislocated shoulder.

Lewis and Van Roten, meanwhile, are better suited to play left guard, their natural position. That’s where Warford comes into play.  It’s rare that a player of his caliber becomes available on the open market, but New Orleans elected to make him a cap casualty in the final season of his contract due to the presence of the team’s first-round pick, Cesar Ruiz.

There’s no question that Douglas should make it a priority to sign Warford, but he won’t be alone in his pursuit. The Chicago Bears and Houston Texans are among teams that are interested in Warford’s services and the two offer a better shot at making the playoffs than the Jets do.

Warford is a special talent and had only missed four games in three seasons, so the Douglas should be willing to outspend the competition. The Jets currently have $18 million in cap space, per OverTheCap. That’s not including the dead money they will have after June 1 thanks to Trumaine Johnson’s release. Adding Warford would also mean cutting Winters, which would free up more money.

Warford would significantly improve the Jets’ pass-blocking for Sam Darnold, who was sacked on more than seven percent of dropbacks in 2019. He would also create room for Le’Veon Bell to run more patiently and freely while bringing a winning pedigree to New York.

Signing Warford would also make Lewis an odd man out of sorts. Van Roten signed a three-year deal to come back to his native New York and started 27 games over the last two seasons. He’s the safer bet to start at left guard than Lewis. With Lewis on the bench, the Jets would have more than capable depth, which is exactly what Douglas has been gunning for.

Adding Warford would mean five new starters for the Jets on the offensive line. Outside of New Orleans’s zone-run scheme, Warford’s play might dip just a bit, but he’s still a bully in the run game and one of the best players at his position when healthy. It’s a no-brainer pursuit for Gang Green, but are the Jets willing to undergo the financial reshuffling that would occur?

Alex Lewis predicts Jets will have a ‘pretty sweet unit’ up front

Jets guard Alex Lewis believes the offensive line will put together a sweet unit.

Returning Jets guard Alex Lewis has the utmost confidence in the offensive line Joe Douglas assembled this offseason.

Lewis was one of five offensive linemen signed by New York this offseason. After having one of the worst offensive lines in football in 2019, Lewis is looking forward to gelling with his new teammates in the trenches.

“I’m fired up for my new linemates,” Lewis said Friday. “To get the signings we did, we’re going to put a pretty sweet unit together.”

There is reason to believe that the Jets offensive line will improve in 2020. While the offensive linemen the Jets did sign aren’t household names, they’re solid under the radar players.

Connor McGovern is great in pass protection, as is Greg Van Roten. George Fant, meanwhile, brings plenty of athleticism. Most importantly though, the Jets signed players who are flexible and don’t commit a lot of penalties, especially McGovern and Van Roten.

It’s not all fine and dandy, however. The Jets still have question marks at both tackle positions. Edoga or Fant will likely get one of the starting jobs, but both are inexperienced. With that in mind, there’s a strong chance the Jets take one of the top tackles in the draft with the 11th pick if any are available.

The biggest thing for this unit is building chemistry. Last year’s offensive line had none whatsoever and it showed as the year went on. So if the line can have the chemistry it needs, then there’s a chance this could be a pretty sweet unit.

We’ll just have to wait and see if Lewis is right.

Trio of Jets’ free agent signings have yet to take their physicals due to COVID-19

The coronavirus pandemic has prevented Breshad Perriman, Connor McGovern and Greg Van Roten from completing their physicals with the Jets.

Under normal circumstances, Breshad Perriman, Greg Van Roten and Connor McGovern’s contracts with the Jets would have been signed, sealed and delivered by now. Physicals would have been completed days ago, making the trio officially part of the organization.

Unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic has prevented life from being anything but normal lately. With all of the major sports seasons halted and people confined to their homes in quarantine, times are extremely unusual.

Even though it is in the middle of the offseason, even the NFL has been impacted by the virus. Team facilities have been essentially vacated. Executives and coaches working from home, while players are forced to find ways to stay in shape on their own. Free agency has gone on remotely, but players have not been able to take physicals with their new teams due to travel restrictions.

Because of this, the Jets “introduced” Perriman, McGovern and Van Roten via conference call on Friday despite their physicals having not yet been completed. Teams almost never announce free agent signings before they are official, but with the times being what they are, the Jets and many other teams have announced signings with the expectation that physicals will be able to take place at some point.

During the conference call, McGovern said that there is language in his contract that spells out the ramifications of a failed physical. The same goes for Perriman, Van Roten and any other free agent around the league that has yet to take their physical. McGovern is confident that he will pass his physical with flying colors, but any worry about physicals that previously would not have existed is the latest sign of the trying times we are living through today.

Barring any unforeseen circumstances, Perriman, McGovern and Van Roten will all suit up for the Jets next season. It’s just going to take them a bit longer than it usually does for them to officially become part of the organization.

Joe Douglas: There’s a ‘shortage of quality offensive linemen in the NFL’

Joe Douglas thinks there’s a shortage of quality offensive lineman in the NFL.

Joe Douglas has dipped his feet into the pool of offensive linemen this offseason, but he doesn’t think the water is deep enough for a headfirst dive.

In other words, he believes the pickings are slim when it comes to building a solid unit up front. And the Jets general manager isn’t just talking about the free agent linemen that were available to him this spring. He’s talking about the entire league.

“I think there’s a real shortage of quality offensive linemen in the NFL, so we’re going to do our best to get as many quality ones as we can because you can never have too many,” Douglas said on a conference call Wednesday.

Douglas, a former offensive lineman at Richmond, has put New York’s offensive line above all else this offseason, although his hesitancy to spend big money still has some skeptical of Gang Green’s ability in the trenches. That’s why there’s a good chance Douglas takes a tackle early in the draft later this month.

In free agency so far, Douglas’ has signed three guards in Alex Lewis, Greg Van Roten and Josh Andrews, as well as one tackle in George Fant and one center in Connor McGovern. Douglas, however, promised Sam Darnold’s parents he would get the quarterback quality protection, so don’t be surprised if Douglas continues to build the line in the draft. Jedrick Wills, Tristan Wirfs, Mekhi Becton and Andrew Thomas are the four best tackles in this class, but it’s too early to tell if any of them will be available when the Jets pick at No. 11.

If Douglas doesn’t get a shot at any of them, then he can always grab a receiver for Darnold in a draft that is deep at the position. However, it’s clear Douglas’ focus is on protection, so expect him to take a lineman early, if not with his first pick as Jets general manager.

Jets Salary Cap update: Where does New York stand at the end of March?

The Jets signed 10 players in the past two weeks, mostly on inexpensive and short-term deals.

With the first wave of free agency over, Joe Douglas and the Jets brought in 10 players over the last two weeks. The Jets signed a few potential starters but mostly built up some depth at linebacker, defensive back, offensive line and receiver.

New York kept a few of its top players from 2019 by re-signing linebackers Jordan Jenkins, Neville Hewit and James Burgess, as well as defensive backs Arthur Maulet and Bennet Jackson. They also grabbed linebacker Patrick Onwuasor, cornerback Pierre Desir, guards Greg Van Roten and Josh Andrews, and wideout Breshad Perriman on the open market.

Jenkins, Desir and Perriman are poised to start. That’s not guaranteed for Onwuasor, Van Roten, Hewitt, Burgess and Maulet, but all have ample starting experience as well. 

Douglas played it safe with his money and only handed out flexible, cheap short-term contracts. As a result, the Jets officially have $45,016,813 in cap space, according to ESPN’s Field Yates. Counting reported moves that are not official yet, however, they have closer to $32,530,780 – per OverTheCap.com. The discrepancy is because the Jets technically haven’t officially signed a few of their free agents. Typically, a free agent must pass a team physical before the signing can be official, and some teams haven’t conducted physicals on all of their new players with the closure of team facilities due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Douglas looks to have shored up a few positions of need, but there are still positions the Jets should look at as free agency continues. Cornerback and receiver need work despite the signings of Desir, Maulet and Perriman, and the Jets still don’t have a suitable backup quarterback or running back. There is still a chance the Jets cut players like Avery Williamson and Brian Winters to save even more money.

With a little over $32 million left to spend, Douglas can still find some quality players on the market to solidify his roster. 

4 things to know about new Jets G Greg Van Roten

Here are four things to know about new Jets guard Greg Van Roten.

The Jets have made the offensive line a priority this offseason and continued that trend with the addition of Greg Van Roten.

Van Roten and the Jets agreed on a three-year deal Saturday evening after talks heated up between the two sides on Friday. In all likelihood, Van Roten will take Brian Winters’ job at right guard.

While Van Roten hasn’t been an All-Pro or even a Pro Bowler, he has been rock solid in pass protection the last two years, allowing just three sacks and five quarterback hits on 1,144 passing snaps. Like all of Joe Douglas’ offensive lineman signings thus fas, Van Roten is versatile. His primary position is guard, but Van Roten can also play center and tackle if need be.

Let’s get to know more about the Jets’ latest offensive line acquisition.

Grew up a Jets fan

Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Not many athletes get to play for the team they grew up rooting for, but Van Roten is an exception.

Van Roten, originally from Rockville Centre, New York, grew up a Jets fan. He was born in 1990, so he has seen plenty of the same suffering that Jets fans have dealt with in recent years.

Now Van Roten wants to be part of the solution. The last time he saw the Jets in the playoffs was in 2010, when he was still at the University of Pennsylvania. So he’s itching to help his hometown get back to the postseason in 2020.

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Joe Douglas’ offensive line signings have plenty in common

Jets Wire examines Joe Douglas’ offensive line signings and why they are sending a clear message early on in free agency.

It looks like the days of splurging on skill position players and ignoring the offensive line in free agency are over at One Jets Drive.

With Mike Maccagnan running the show, the Jets frequently broke the bank on big-name free agents like Darrelle Revis, Trumaine Johnson, C.J. Mosley and numerous others. Macccagnan all but ignored the offensive line. Any signings he did make usually struggled. Maccagnan and his front office staff relied mostly on the draft to address New York’s offensive line, but failed miserably at landing impact players more often than not.

Only one week into his first free agency on the job, Joe Douglas has established that things are going to be different from now on. Five of Douglas’ nine signings have been offensive linemen. He has spent a combined $72.9 million to fix a unit that was arguably Gang Green’s worst last season. (Contract details have yet to become public for Greg Van Roten and Josh Andrews.)

Not only has Douglas spent as much money to makeover an entire unit as Maccagnan would have on one player, but he has gone about it in a way that affords him a great deal of financial freedom. George Fant, Alex Lewis, Connor McGovern and Van Roten have all received three-year contracts. It remains to be seen exactly how Van Roten’s deal is structured and what exactly the length of Andrews’ deal, but Douglas’ three-year approach allows him to part ways with players on his new-look line if he does not like what he sees out of them in a way that will not hamstring New York’s salary cap down the road.

Fant’s contract is essentially a one-year deal worth $8.9 million in guaranteed money. If he struggles in 2020, the Jets can cut him at no financial loss and go looking for a new starting tackle. Lewis is only getting $6 million in guaranteed money — a cheap deal for a player who figures to slot into the starting lineup at left guard. McGovern is getting the most guaranteed money out of the trio ($18 million), but that is not a number that will set the Jets back if they have no choice but to cut him at any point.

What makes Douglas’ approach to his offensive line rebuild even more impressive is the kind of players he is targeting. Douglas could have gone out and thrown money at some of the bigger names on the market, but has stuck to his guns and handed out deals to players who fit what he wants out of his line. It’s not a coincidence that McGovern has been called for only two penalties over 1,526 snaps at center and Van Roten has been flagged only four times at left guard over 1,800 snaps. Douglas went after guys that could block without being called for holding every other play — a problem that cost the Jets dearly in 2019.

Versatility has also been the name of the game for the four linemen Douglas has signed. Fant is athletic and can play either tackle position. Andrews, Lewis and Van Roten can play either guard position. McGovern is primarily a center but has experience playing both guard positions. This provides Adam Gase with a lot of ways to shuffle his line in the event of an injury to a starter or poor performance.

Douglas hit free agency with the intention of fixing New York’s offensive line and it’s safe to say he has gone about it in the correct manner. Sam Darnold needs blockers that can keep him upright. Andrews, Fant, Lewis, McGovern and Van Roten all profile as players who are capable of accomplishing that with consistency.

That’s certainly one heck of a way for Douglas to establish that he is up for the task of turning the Jets back into a contender.

Jets sign former Panthers guard Greg Van Roten

The Jets continue to bolster their offensive line by adding another interior lineman, former Panther, Greg Van Roten on a three-year deal.

The Jets have made yet another move on their offensive line.

New York agreed to terms with former Carolina Panthers guard Greg Van Roten, according to multiple reports. The deal is for three years.

Van Roten is the latest addition by Joe Douglas to the Jets interior offensive line. The Jets have also added George Fant, Connor McGovern, Josh Andrews and now Van Roten in the middle. In addition, Douglas re-signed Alex Lewis.

Over the past two seasons, Van Roten has started 27 games. It’s likely that he will slide next to Lewis, which doesn’t bode well for Brian Winters. By cutting Winters, the Jets would save $7.2 million in cap space.

Van Roten originally signed with the Packers as an undrafted free agent out of Penn. He moved around before finding a permanent home in Carolina, including stops with the Seahawks, Toronto Argonauts of the CFL, Jaguars and Panthers.

After serving as a depth piece during the 2017 season, Van Roten signed a two-year extension in Carolina. He became a full-time starter in 2018, starting all 16 games at left guard. He was the only Panthers player to play every single offensive snap. In 2019, he played in 11 games before suffering a dislocated toe.

Over the past five seasons, the 30-year-old Van Roten has only committed one penalty.

The Jets have been linked to Van Roten since the start of free agency. Like the other offensive linemen Douglas has signed, he is athletic and versatile. He has experience at center and both guard positions with the ability to kick outside.

Report: Jets signing former Panthers G Greg Van Roten

According to a report by Adam Schefter at ESPN, the New York Jets are signing former Carolina Panthers guard Greg Van Roten.

According to a report by Adam Schefter at ESPN, the New York Jets are signing former Carolina Panthers guard Greg Van Roten.

Van Roten has been a backup for most of his NFL career, but he became a regular starter for Carolina in 2018. He’s developed into a solid run blocker and he should be able to help Le’Veon Bell and the Jets get their run game going. He was problematic in pass protection, though – part of the reason the Panthers offense struggled so much last season.

That said, the team reportedly was interested in bringing him back, even offering a three-year deal according to the Athletic.

Even though there are better guards out there than Van Roten, this development leaves the team extremely thin on both sides. Remember, they already traded Trai Turner to the Chargers for Russell Okung. Now, they have holes to fill on both sides of center Matt Paradis.

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Report: Panthers offered G Greg Van Roten a 3-year deal

The Panthers recently offered left guard Greg Van Roten a three-year deal, according to a report by Joe Person at the Athletic.

The Panthers recently offered left guard Greg Van Roten a three-year deal, according to a report by Joe Person at the Athletic.

Van Roten was a backup for most of his career until 2018, when he began starting regularly for Carolina. He played all 16 games that year, followed by 11 starts in 2019 until he suffered a toe injury Week 12, ending his season.

It’s somewhat surprising to hear that the Panthers offered him a three-year deal. While he’s developed into a quality run blocker, Van Roten’s pass protection is a liability and he just turned 30 years old a few weeks ago. Perhaps the front office is feeling needy at the position since they traded right guard Trai Turner to the Chargers in exchange for left tackle Russell Okung.

Van Roten has more than one suitor, though. According to Matt Parrino, the Bills are also interested.

If Van Roten leaves, we’ll officially have no idea who will be starting at either guard spot in 2020.

It’s possible the Panthers will slide last year’s offensive line draft picks (Greg Little and Dennis Daley) inside permanently to try to fill those two holes, but Little is a true left tackle and both have limited experience.

With Joe Thuney, Brandon Scherff and Graham Glasgow all locked up, it would be a good idea for Carolina to pick a guard in this year’s draft to add more depth. In any case, there’s a strong chance the interior of the offensive line is going to be a problem this year.

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