New York Jets 53-Man Roster Projection
With the Jets wrapping up their preseason schedule tonight in Philadelphia and roster cut-downs looming 2 days after, I figured now is as good a time as ever to dive in and try to figure out what the Jets’ roster will look like come Sunday morning.
Obviously I’m going off of everything I’ve read, watched, or written about throughout the preseason so none of this is definite or coming from secret team sources, nor do I claim to have a better idea than any of the other Jets beat guys who’ve already written a projection like this. That being said, most of those guys seem like squids who don’t know the difference between a chin strap and a jock strap, so I think I’m more than qualified to give it a go.
Without further ado, I give you my projected New York Jets 53-man roster, complete with a few practice squad and IR/Suspended List candidates.
Names written in bold denotes someone on the roster “bubble”, meaning these are the guys I see myself being wrong about most.
Offense
Quarterback: Sam Darnold, Josh McCown
Things here got a whole lot simpler yesterday, when Teddy Bridgewater was shipped off to New Orleans with a 6th round pick in return for the Saints 3rd rounder in next year’s draft. Darnold is officially starting Week 1 vs. Detroit. Get ready.
Running Back: Isaiah Crowell, Bilal Powell, Trenton Cannon (Eli McGuire to IR)
Another position group that’s pretty self explanatory. We brought Isaiah Crowell in on a 3-year deal in the offseason to headline our RB group. You could argue that Bilal Powell has outperformed him so far in the preseason, but we know what we’re gonna get from Powell and although he’s about as solid as you could want from a 2nd-string RB, Crowell just brings a little more ability and big play potential to the table. I expect him to get a larger chunk of the carries in the regular season.
After those two, Trenton Cannon is looking more and more like the pick to hold down the 3rd-string job until Eli McGuire returns from his foot injury. Cannon has struggled in the return game throughout the summer, a job many expected him to grab by the balls and claim as his own, which had a few beat reporters questioning his 53-man chances for a while.
However, since the announcement that Eli McGuire won’t be ready to play by Week 1 vs. Detroit, Trenton Cannon has reemerged as the obvious choice to round out the RB group. GMs simply don’t give up on their own draft picks this quickly, especially a guy like Cannon who was one of the biggest surprises early on at camp. When McGuire is healthy, it’s very possible Cannon moves from the active roster to the practice squad, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
Veterans like Thomas Rawls and Charcandrick West will ultimately be cut, as neither has shown anything close to enough to warrant the Jets moving on from either of their young prospects in McGuire and Cannon.
Wide Receiver: Robby Anderson, Jermaine Kearse, Quincy Enunwa, Terrelle Pryor, Charone Peake, Andre Roberts, Tre McBride (Ardarius Stewart to Suspended)
This is the first position group where things get pretty complex. The first 4 guys are obvious (unless you’re that idiot Luis Tirado Jr. who blocked me on Twitter when I called him out for making up lies in an attempt to argue that Terrelle Pryor will get cut).
After that, you’re looking at 5 guys competing for what’s realistically 2 roster spots. Andre Roberts gets one of them pretty easily as he’s expected to be returning both kickoffs and punts for us to start the season. He’s an experienced veteran with some successful seasons as a pass catcher behind him, but I don’t expect him to be too involved offensively this season.
That leaves us with guys like Tre McBride, Ardarius Stewart, Chad Hansen, and Charone Peake. Looking at preseason production alone, things don’t really get much clearer. McBride has been a pleasant surprise, while guys like Stewart and Hansen haven’t don’t enough to separate themselves from the disappointing starts to their careers. I know I already said teams try to avoid giving up on draft picks too quickly, but when you look at what some of the other options have done, I think it makes the decision a little easier for Bowles and the front office.
The most important factor in choosing Charone Peake over the rest of the field is the fact that he’s established himself as a valuable talent on all of our special teams units. When you’re putting together the back end of a roster, especially guys at positions that require athleticism, you want guys who can bring value on special teams. Charone Peake fits the bill better than anyone else.
When I first wrote this, I had Tre McBride just missing the cut and being stashed away on the practice squad. With the Bridgewater deal opening up a spot on the 53-man roster, I feel pretty good about McBride becoming the 7th WR. As I mentioned before, Andre Roberts is safe due to his role on special teams, but he’s not gonna do much offensively and given the recent injury history of guys like Enunwa and Pryor and even Jermaine Kearse, who’s been dealing with an abdominal injury lately, I think the Jets would like to have another option to spread the field out offensively. No one on this list earned it more than McBride this summer.
Tight End: Neal Sterling, Chris Herndon, Eric Tomlinson, Jordan Leggett
I’m going with 4 TEs because I don’t expect the Jets to carry a fullback into the regular season. Neal Sterling has proven he deserves the opportunity to start the season atop the depth chart, and I think he can surprise a lot of people. Herndon is a rookie project with the most potential, and I expect his role in the offense to grow exponentially throughout the season. Eric Tomlinson is another proven veteran who will fill the role of “blocking TE” and perhaps serve as a pseudo-fullback in certain schemes.
The lack of a FB on the 53-man roster opens up a potential spot for Jordan Leggett, the former 2017 5th-round draft pick who’s finally healthy and begun to flash the talent that lead us to drafting him out of Clemson. I think it’s still too soon for the Jets to give up on him just yet, but above all the NFL is a business, so anything can happen.
Left Tackle: Kelvin Beachum, Brent Qvale
Brent Qvale sucks but we don’t have any other options. Moving on…
Left Guard: James Carpenter
Center: Spencer Long, Jonotthan Harrison
Harrison adds a ton of versatility off the bench as he can play at center as well as both guard spots.
Right Guard: Brian Winters, Dakota Dozier
Right Tackle: Brandon Shell, Ben Braden
I’ll be honest, I don’t know a ton about Ben Braden other than he was signed last year as an UDFA out of the University of Michigan, and the other backup options suck. Someone like Travis Swanson or Dakoda Shepley could sneak onto the roster in his place, but I think you’re just splitting hairs choosing between the 3 of them. In an ideal world, none of them see the field this year anyway.
Defense
Defensive End: Leonard Williams, Folorunso Fatukasi
The rookie Foley Fatukasi has been overshadowed by fellow rookie DE Nathan Shepherd this summer. He has a ton of potential and should be given plenty of opportunities to contribute early on in the regular season.
Defensive Tackle: Steve McLendon, Mike Pennel
Defensive End: Nathan Shepherd, Henry Anderson
The D-Line shouldn’t have any surprise. I split it up into 3 position groups as if each spot on the line has a specific backup, but the cool thing about our defense is Todd Bowles has stocked up on guys who can bounce around multiple spots depending on the situation and who has the hot hand. Henry Anderson is the guy best suited to get some looks specifically on 3rd down.
Outside Linebacker: Jordan Jenkins, Brandon Copeland
Inside Linebacker: Avery Williamson, Kevin Minter
Inside Linebacker: Darron Lee, Neville Hewitt (Kevin Pierre-Louis to IR/Suspended)
Outside Linebacker: Josh Martin, Frankie Luvu
Starters are set unless we go out and get a more proven guy at OLB. Brandon Copeland and Frankie Luvu have both established themselves as the clear choices to backup Jenkins and Martin. The same thing goes for Kevin Minter and Neville Hewitt, another guy frequently regarded as one of the preseason’s biggest surprises.
Dylan Donahue and Lorenzo Mauldin are treading water on the bubble, so although I could totally see a situation where one of them sneaks on the roster as well, right now they’re on the outside looking in.
Cornerback: Trumaine Johnson, Morris Claiborne, Buster Skrine, Daryl Roberts, Derrick Jones, Parry Nickerson (Rashard Robinson to Suspended)
This one was by far the hardest defensive group to figure out. Tru Johnson, Mo Claiborne, Buster Skrine, and Daryl Roberts are all locks and all fully capable of lining up with opponent’s starting WRs.
Parry Nickerson is a 2018 6th round pick out of Tulane who notably ran the fastest 40-yard dash at this year’s NFL combine. He started camp scorching hot, dealt with a hamstring injury for a while, and now seems back on track to hold down the back end of the CB depth chart. He has a ton of potential and should be fun to watch grow this season as he adjusts to the speed at the game’s highest level.
Derrick Jones has stood out late in games as a guy who deserves to make the final roster. By picking Jones, the Jets will be moving on from guys like former 2016 4th-round pick Juston Burris, which is obviously disappointing, but he’s so far off anyone’s radar at this point there’s really no other way to spin it.
Rashard Robinson must serve a 4-game suspension to start the season. I don’t think he makes the roster anyway, but his suspension could at least buy the Jets some time before they have to make a decision.
Free Safety: Marcus Maye, Doug Middleton, J.J. Wilcox (Rontez Miles to IR)
Strong Safety: Jamal Adams, Terrence Brooks,
Some more no brainers here. Adams and Maye are young studs, while Middleton and Brooks have both asserted themselves from early on this summer as the best options to anchor the 2nd team defense.
J.J. Wilcox might be the 53rd man to make the team. He’s performed well this summer, but with a lot of tough choices to make by Saturday I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s left off the roster either. I think he should be able to contribute on special teams though, so I’m leaving him on the list for now.
Special Teams
Kicker: Taylor Bertolet
I don’t feel good about the situation at kicker in any way, shape, or form. That being said, I think we run with the rookie out of Texas A&M in Bertolet over the recently signed Jason Myers. We could also snag a more established kicker in between Saturday and the season opener vs. Detroit after other teams make their final cuts.
Punter: Lachlan Edwards
Long Snapper: Thomas Hennessy
Say what you want about NFL long snappers. They undeniably play a major role on some of the most important plays, every single game. Thomas Hennessy seems to have the job on lock, and with a last name like Hennessy, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see some #42 Hennessy jerseys at MetLife Stadium in the near future.
