Jets designate guards Alex Lewis, Greg Van Roten to return to practice

The Jets have designated guard Alex Lewis and Greg Van Roten to return to practice this week.

The Jets may finally have their starting offensive line together in Sunday’s season finale against the Patriots.

New York designated guards Alex Lewis and Greg Van Roten to return to practice this week in preparation for Week 17. Josh Andrews and Pat Elflein have taken the place of Lewis and Van Roten while they’ve been out.

Lewis has been on the NFI list since Dec. 4, when he had to take care of some personal issues. Prior to that, Lewis started in nine games for the Jets this season at left guard.

As for Van Roten, he’s been out since Dec. 12 with a foot injury. He was the Jets’ starting right guard for 12 games before going down with the injury. Van Roten had not missed a single snap until he got injured.

4 things to know about new Jets G Josh Andrews

Here are four things to know about new Jets guard Josh Andrews.

The Jets added a quality depth piece a couple of days ago, signing guard Josh Andrews.

Andrews has spent his NFL career with three different teams over five seasons. That includes the Eagles (two stints), Vikings and Colts. Andrews has appeared in just 25 games over his career and has never made a start.

The 28-year-old will be a backup for the Jets, primarily at guard. He’ll play behind both Alex Lewis and Greg Van Roten in 2020.

With that being said, let’s get to know Andrews a little more.

The Joe Douglas Connection

Jets general manager Joe Douglas is quite familiar with Andrews after the two spent time together in Philadelphia.

Douglas was brought in as the Eagles’ VP of Player Personnel in 2016 when Andrews was entering his fourth year with the team. In 2016, Andrews appeared in three games as a backup guard. Then, in 2017, Andrews was on the Eagles’ practice squad for the entire season.

After letting Andrews go before the start of the 2018 season, the Eagles decided to bring him back to their practice squad again. So Douglas knows the type of player Andrews is and understands that he was just buried on the depth chart.

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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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49ers to sign ex-Jets OL Tom Compton to 1-year deal

The 49ers are expected to sign former Jets offensive lineman Tom Compton to a one-year deal.

The Jets will have to find a replacement for backup offensive lineman Tom Compton.

According to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows, the 49ers are signing Compton to a one-year deal worth $3 million.

Compton joined the Jets on a one-year deal last offseason. He started the season out as a backup interior lineman. However, that changed when Brian Winters went down with season-ending shoulder surgery. Compton started five games in Winters’ place before ending the season on injured reserve.

With Compton gone, the Jets are going to need some help at guard. Alex Lewis and Winters have proven over their careers that they are vulnerable to getting injured, so some depth is definitely needed. Losing Compton is not a significant loss, but the Jets are going to have to find a decent guard to take his place.

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.

Report: Jets want to re-sign guard Alex Lewis

The Jets are interested in re-signing guard Alex Lewis to a new contract.

Joe Douglas would like continue forward with Alex Lewis after trading for him last offseason.

According to NFL reporter Adam Caplan, the Jets want to re-sign the impending free agent. Douglas acquired Lewis from the Ravens for a conditional seventh-round draft pick in this year’s draft last August. The conditions of that trade were met, so the Ravens were rewarded with the draft compensation.

Lewis was originally a backup for the Jets until Kelechi Osemele underwent season-ending shoulder surgery. In Osemele’s place, Lewis started 12 games for the Jets. He was placed on injured reserve before the final game of the regular season with an ankle injury.

Lewis was a slight upgrade over Osemele, as he only gave up two sacks while playing 764 total snaps. The issue with Lewis was that he was penalty prone. He had six total penalties last season, which was tied for 16th compared to all other guards, according to Pro Football Focus.

Originally, Lewis was a fourth-round pick by the Ravens out of Nebraska. However, he got injured so much that the Ravens had no need for him. Lewis missed six games in 2016 with an ankle sprain. Then, he sat out the entire 2017 season due to a shoulder injury. In 2018, Lewis missed two games because of a neck injury.

The Jets need all the offensive line help they can get. They obviously want to improve at the guard position and have been linked to some big name free agents. But keeping Lewis for some depth would be a smart move. He is cheap and has proved that he can start when needed.

Jets G Brian Winters played through torn shoulder all season

Jets guard Brian Winters was playing with a torn shoulder throughout the season before re-disclocating it again.

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Jets guard Brian Winters was playing through more than a dislocated shoulder this season.

According to the Daily News’ Manish Mehta, Winters tore the entire front part of his shoulder during the preseason. However, Winters played through it by wearing a brace that gave it some extra protection.

Winters re-dislocated his shoulder on Sunday against the Giants and is more likely out for the rest of the season. He might need surgery to repair his shoulder, but that has yet to be determined at this point.

The 28-year-old is the second-longest tenured Jet on the roster behind Bilal Powell. But injuries have derailed his career, as he’s only been able to play in three full seasons in seven years.

Sunday could have been Winters’ final game in a Jets uniform. He has one year left on his four-year contract, but his $7 million base salary is non-guaranteed. He also has a $500,000 roster bonus, so the Jets can cut him and wouldn’t be hit with any dead money.

Winters has always been a tough-nosed football player since the day he arrived in New York. But his play on the field hasn’t been what the Jets expect from him. With that and his latest injury in mind, the Jets are going to be in the market for a new left guard come March.