[h=1]8 takeaways from Week 1 of Jets OTAs[/h]
The Jets had the first of three weeks of organized team activities on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in Florham Park. Stuff happened. Media access was only permitted on Wednesday, so any practice observations are based off that day only. Here's a rundown:
1. Geno Smith is the starting quarterback ... maybe? Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was rather definitive that there would be no competition between Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick this summer, because Smith's the guy. But our man Darryl Slater followed up to say not so fast. You should read it.
2. Matt Simms was ... well ...: With Fitzpatrick still nursing a leg injury from last season, rookies Bryce Petty and Jake Heaps worked with a scout-team-like unit during team periods, while Simms and Smith rotated with the first- and second-teamers. Simms didn't look so hot in a two-minute drill; he sailed his first pass toward the borough of Madison, and soon afterward he was picked off by linebacker Jamari Lattimore.
3. Stevan Ridley's recovery. Ridley, the running back signed away from the Patriots in free agency, is recovering from an ACL tear in his knee. He took part in position drills and appeared to be able to cut and change directions without much trouble, though he did not do any team drills. "He's not ready to go right now, but he is getting better by the day," head coach Todd Bowles said. "He's in a helmet and he's running around out there and will continue to rehab."
Jets OTAs 5/20/15The Jets practice in Florham Park on the second day of their organized team activities on Wednesday, May 20, 2015. (Dom Cosentino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)
4. Rookies. Of the Jets' draft picks and undrafted free agents, only first-round defensive end Leonard Williams and second-round receiver Devin Smith got reps with the first- and second-teamers on Wednesday, though Williams was being rotated in behind backups Leger Douzable and Ronald Talley, who were mostly running with the first-team with Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson absent. The rest of the rookies were on an adjacent field getting reps with the other first-year players, with Petty and Heaps as the quarterbacks. Don't read too much into any of that, by the way. It's May.
PLUS: Brandon Marshall and Antonio Cromartie talk trash about practice
5. Tight ends. Jeff Cumberland appeared to be getting more first-team reps than Jace Amaro, but Bowles explained that it wasn't what it looked like. Both Cumberland and Amaro are considered first-teamers, just with different roles. "We play with two," Bowles said. "When you have a down tight end on the ball, that's more Cumberland's thing, but when you have an H back or an F position, that's more Amaro's thing. It's not the matter of fact that he's the first team tight end, he's the first Y, Amaro is the first H." The difference is that a Y tight end lines up along the line of scrimmage, but an H-back might sometimes be used in the slot.
6. Changes. Under head coach Rex Ryan the last two years, all Jets employees at practices would do push-ups if a penalty was called. That doesn't happen anymore. And Bowles has also instituted a winner-take-all approach to practice, with the loser of the offense and defense having to run three wind-sprints across the field and back. On Wednesday, the defense won. On Thursday, wideout Brandon Marshall and cornerback Antonio Cromartie challenged each other before practice began. "We have a lot of things that we're putting in, testing a lot of things, putting guys in certain situations, game-day situations," Bowles said. "That's why you saw the offense run after practice."
7. Rehabbing. Ridley wasn't the only Jets player to spend significant portions of practice in the trainers' area. Cornerback Dee Milliner (Achilles), safety Marcus Gilchrist (shoulder), offensive guard Brian Winters (ACL), defensive end Stephen Bowen (unknown), offensive guard Willie Colon (rest), and wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (Achilles) were over there, too. Fitzpatrick made some throws in position drills and in 7-on-7s, but he sat out the team periods. For what it's worth, Bowles didn't seem too concerned with Kerley's ailment, probably because training camp is still more than two months away.
8. Up next. The Jets have three days of OTAs next week, too (Tuesday through Thursday), and four the week after that (Tuesday through Friday).
The Jets had the first of three weeks of organized team activities on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday in Florham Park. Stuff happened. Media access was only permitted on Wednesday, so any practice observations are based off that day only. Here's a rundown:
1. Geno Smith is the starting quarterback ... maybe? Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was rather definitive that there would be no competition between Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick this summer, because Smith's the guy. But our man Darryl Slater followed up to say not so fast. You should read it.
2. Matt Simms was ... well ...: With Fitzpatrick still nursing a leg injury from last season, rookies Bryce Petty and Jake Heaps worked with a scout-team-like unit during team periods, while Simms and Smith rotated with the first- and second-teamers. Simms didn't look so hot in a two-minute drill; he sailed his first pass toward the borough of Madison, and soon afterward he was picked off by linebacker Jamari Lattimore.
3. Stevan Ridley's recovery. Ridley, the running back signed away from the Patriots in free agency, is recovering from an ACL tear in his knee. He took part in position drills and appeared to be able to cut and change directions without much trouble, though he did not do any team drills. "He's not ready to go right now, but he is getting better by the day," head coach Todd Bowles said. "He's in a helmet and he's running around out there and will continue to rehab."
Jets OTAs 5/20/15The Jets practice in Florham Park on the second day of their organized team activities on Wednesday, May 20, 2015. (Dom Cosentino | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com)
4. Rookies. Of the Jets' draft picks and undrafted free agents, only first-round defensive end Leonard Williams and second-round receiver Devin Smith got reps with the first- and second-teamers on Wednesday, though Williams was being rotated in behind backups Leger Douzable and Ronald Talley, who were mostly running with the first-team with Muhammad Wilkerson and Sheldon Richardson absent. The rest of the rookies were on an adjacent field getting reps with the other first-year players, with Petty and Heaps as the quarterbacks. Don't read too much into any of that, by the way. It's May.
PLUS: Brandon Marshall and Antonio Cromartie talk trash about practice
5. Tight ends. Jeff Cumberland appeared to be getting more first-team reps than Jace Amaro, but Bowles explained that it wasn't what it looked like. Both Cumberland and Amaro are considered first-teamers, just with different roles. "We play with two," Bowles said. "When you have a down tight end on the ball, that's more Cumberland's thing, but when you have an H back or an F position, that's more Amaro's thing. It's not the matter of fact that he's the first team tight end, he's the first Y, Amaro is the first H." The difference is that a Y tight end lines up along the line of scrimmage, but an H-back might sometimes be used in the slot.
6. Changes. Under head coach Rex Ryan the last two years, all Jets employees at practices would do push-ups if a penalty was called. That doesn't happen anymore. And Bowles has also instituted a winner-take-all approach to practice, with the loser of the offense and defense having to run three wind-sprints across the field and back. On Wednesday, the defense won. On Thursday, wideout Brandon Marshall and cornerback Antonio Cromartie challenged each other before practice began. "We have a lot of things that we're putting in, testing a lot of things, putting guys in certain situations, game-day situations," Bowles said. "That's why you saw the offense run after practice."
7. Rehabbing. Ridley wasn't the only Jets player to spend significant portions of practice in the trainers' area. Cornerback Dee Milliner (Achilles), safety Marcus Gilchrist (shoulder), offensive guard Brian Winters (ACL), defensive end Stephen Bowen (unknown), offensive guard Willie Colon (rest), and wide receiver Jeremy Kerley (Achilles) were over there, too. Fitzpatrick made some throws in position drills and in 7-on-7s, but he sat out the team periods. For what it's worth, Bowles didn't seem too concerned with Kerley's ailment, probably because training camp is still more than two months away.
8. Up next. The Jets have three days of OTAs next week, too (Tuesday through Thursday), and four the week after that (Tuesday through Friday).
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