Jets re-sign safety Bennett Jackson

The Jets have re-signed safety Bennett Jackson.

The Jets -signed safety Bennett Jackson on Tuesday, according to The Athletic’s Connor Hughes.

Jackson only played in two games for the Jets in 2019 and recorded one tackle in Week 15 against the Ravens. He started the season with Baltimore before being cut at the end of August. The Jets claimed him off waivers before the start of the regular season, but he was cut and re-signed to the practice squad two weeks later.

In October, the Ravens re-signed Jackson to the active roster. By December, the Ravens moved on from him and the Jets picked him up again. New York decided not to give him an exclusive rights free agent tender this offseason, which made him a free agent.

Originally, Jackson was a sixth-round pick by the Giants in 2014 out of Notre Dame.

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

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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Report: Jets sign CB Pierre Desir to 1-year deal

The Jets have signed cornerback Pierre Desir to a one-year deal.

The Jets have found their new starting cornerback in free agency.

According to The Athletic’s Connor Hughes, the Jets and cornerback Pierre Desir have agreed on a one-year deal. The terms of the contract have yet to be disclosed.

Desir spent the last three seasons in Indianapolis with the Colts. He has become more of a starter in the last two seasons, though, starting in 23 games. In three seasons with the Colts, Desir had 119 total tackles, 26 pass breakups, five interceptions, one touchdown and two forced fumbles.

Before joining the Colts, Desir had stops with the Chargers and the Browns, the team he was originally drafted by in the fourth round in 2014 out of Lindenwood University. He was in Cleveland for two years and San Diego for one year.

The Jets were dying for some cornerback help with both Trumaine Johnson and Darryl Roberts off the roster. Surely, Desir will have a starting role right away, either as the No. 1 cornerback or the No. 2 cornerback. If the season were to start now, Desir would be the Jets’ No. 1 cornerback alongside Bless Austin.

Jets sign veteran OL Josh Andrews

The Jets have signed veteran offensive lineman Josh Andrews.

Joe Douglas continued to beef up the Jets offensive line on Saturday.

According to his agent, Brett Tessler, Josh Andrews is signing with New York. The veteran guard has spent time with the Eagles, Vikings and Colts.

The 28-year old Andrews spent the first three years of his career with Philadelphia. Joe Douglas was there when Philadelphia brought him in as an undrafted free agent out of Oregon State in 2014. Andrews appeared in a total of 16 games in 2015 and 2016 after spending the 2014 season on the practice squad.

After the 2017 season, Andrews signed with the Vikings but was placed on injured reserve in September and was later released. A few weeks later, Andrews had a second stint with the Eagles on their practice squad. In November 2018, Andrews was signed by the Colts and played in nine total games in just under two seasons in Indianapolis.

Andrews is a depth signing for the Jets after the lost fellow backup Tom Compton in free agency.

Jets re-signing LB Neville Hewitt to 1-year deal

The Jets have re-signed inside linebacker Neville Hewitt to a one-year deal worth $2 million.

After finally getting the chance to be a full-time starter, Neville Hewitt has earned his way back onto the Jets.

According to multiple reports, the Jets and Hewitt have agreed to terms on a new contract. It’s a one-year deal worth $2 million, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini.

Hewitt stepped in for the injured Avery Williamson last season at inside linebacker. Then, after C.J. Mosley went down with a groin injury, Hewitt became the mic of the defense and played well.

In 12 games, Hewitt had 44 total tackles, three sacks, five pass defenses and two interceptions.

It took a few years for Hewitt to come into his own. Originally undrafted out of Marshall, Hewitt joined the Dolphins in 2015. He was primarily a backup in Miami, but did make seven starts in three years.

After not being re-signed by the Dolphins in 2018, Hewitt signed with the Jets. Hewitt didn’t see much playing time in the beginning of the 2018 season, but finished strong with 26 total tackles and 1.5 sacks.

Hewitt is a good depth piece for the Jets. New York still hasn’t made a decision on Williamson’s future, so Hewitt could be a backup once again. However, if the Jets decide to move on from Williamson, Hewitt has enough starting experience that it wouldn’t be a big drop off.

4 things to know about new Jets C Connor McGovern

Here are four things to know about new Jets center Connor McGovern.

After numerous failed attempts trying to address the center position, the Jets finally think they have a keeper.

New York and former Broncos center Connor McGovern agreed to a three-year deal worth $27 million with $18 million guaranteed. McGovern will be the fifth Jets center in the last three seasons.

With Denver last season, McGovern allowed just one sack and three quarterback hits. He didn’t commit a single penalty in 2019 and only has nine total penalties since 2017 on 2,510 snaps.

The 2016 fifth-round pick out of Missouri is a significantly better pass- blocker than run-blocker. That bodes well for Sam Darnold, but not so much for Le’Veon Bell. For now, McGovern will have Alex Lewis and George Fant to his left and Brian Winters and Chuma Edoga to his right. That could very well change as the Jets continue to evaluate their line.

With that being said, let’s get to know the Jets’ latest center.

Family roots in New York

While McGovern is originally from Fargo, North Dakota, his family has origins in the tri-state area.

His father, Keith, was born in New Jersey. McGovern’s grandparents were born in Brooklyn. He has a few other family members living in the tri-state area as well.

So it’s not exactly a homecoming for McGovern, but McGovern and his family should know their way around the Big Apple. Maybe that’s why McGovern picked New York over Minnesota and San Francisco.

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Jets bring Brian Poole back on bargain deal

The Jets have re-signed slot cornerback Brian Poole to a 1-year deal worth $5 million.

The Jets still need some help on the outside, but their slot cornerback will remain the same in 2020.

The Jets are-signing Brian Poole, according to multiple reports. He’s getting a one-year deal worth $5 million, according to the New York Post’s Brian Costello.

It’s another prove-it deal for Poole after he signed a one-year deal worth $3.5 million last offseason. Poole was the Jets’ best cornerback in 2019. In 14 games, Poole had 48 total tackles, one safety, five pass breakups, one interception and one touchdown.

The Jets couldn’t afford to lose Poole. He was the best slot corner on the open market and they weren’t going to get anybody better, especially at that price. It was thought that Poole would get a bigger deal elsewhere, but it looks like he took a bit of a discount to stay in New York.

With Poole back, the Jets have at least one known starting cornerback on the roster. Trumaine Johnson is going to be cut and Darryl Roberts could join him. Bless Austin was decent in the short time he was on the field last year, but he is still just a second-year player,.

More than likely, Poole will be the longest-tenured cornerback on the roster heading into 2020.

Jets re-sign guard Alex Lewis to 3-year deal

The Jets have re-signed guard Alex Lewis to a three-year deal worth $18.6 million with $6 million guaranteed.

The Jets have maintained some stability at left guard ]with one of their own.

The team has officially re-signed guard Alex Lewis. The deal is worth $18.6 million with $6 million guaranteed over three years, according to the Daily News’ Manish Mehta.

Lewis was acquired by the Jets in a trade with the Ravens last August in exchange for a conditional seventh-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. He started the season as a backup before Kelechi Osemele went down with season-ending shoulder surgery.

In Osemele’s spot, Lewis started 12 games for the Jets and played fairly well. According to Pro Football Focus, Lewis played 764 snaps and only allowed two sacks, which was tied for 35th among all guards.

His problem lied with penalties. Lewis committed six penalties last season, which was tied for 16th in the league for guards. There were too many times last season when the Jets had big plays that were wiped away because of a Lewis penalty. The Jets offensive line did improve with Lewis, however.

Right now, left guard is Lewis’ job to lose heading into training camp in July, but don’t be surprised if the Jets bring in more competition via the draft and free agency.

How did the Jets’ top free agent signings perform in 2019?

Here’s how the Jets’ top free agent signing did in their first year with the team.

The Jets were one of the league leaders in available cap space last offseason and they used that money to acquire a ton of big-name free agents.

During free agency last spring, the Jets spent $205.5 million on 12 players, including $119.6 million in guaranteed money. At the time, the Jets looked like they were upgrading their team, but some of those moves didn’t pan out in 2019. The top free agents the Jets signed last offseason included C.J. Mosley, Le’Veon Bell, Jamison Crowder, Ty Montgomery and Brian Poole.

Let’s take a look at how each of these five players fared in their first season with Gang Green.

C.J. Mosley

The Jets paid C.J. Mosley the largest contract ever for an inside linebacker (five-years, $85 million), but they didn’t get their money’s worth in the first year.

Mosley suited up for all of two games the entire season. He hit the ground running in Week 1 against the Bills with four total tackles, two pass defenses, an interception, a fumble recovery and a touchdown. However, Mosley pulled his groin halfway through the game and missed the next four games. He returned in Week 7 against the Patriots and managed to play the whole game, but didn’t look like himself.

The Jets ended up placing Mosley on injured reserve, which ended his season. He is having surgery on his groin and the hope is to have him back in time for the team’s offseason program. While the Jets can still get valuable play out of Mosley in the coming years, his first year was pretty much over before it ever started.

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