Fighters and Killers: That’s the Jets’ Defensive Line

Given how good they were last year with a middling offense, even marginal improvements could elevate this group to best-in-the-league status.

The Jets' defensive line, which features Jermaine Johnson, Quinnen Williams and Levi Fotu, could be the best in the league. / Chris Pedota, NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

We’ll get to Aaron Rodgers in a second, I promise. But as the New York Jets were breaking practice on a balmy, pre-storm Wednesday, a paper slogan taped on the top of a few tackling dummies—the ones that are sometimes used to imitate offensive linemen for pass-rushing drills—caught my eye.

“FIGHTER?” it asked. “Or KILLER?”

Some familiar with the signage had mentioned that this was the work of Aaron Whitecotton, the team’s fiery fourth-year defensive line coach as a kind of theme for the 2024 NFL season. It makes sense when you think about the plight of a unit that may be among the best in football but isn’t always viewed that way.

In 2023, the Jets defensive line had leaders in pass rush win rate among both defensive tackles and edge rushers, and run stop win rate, both among defensive tackles and edge rushers. This is a jargony way of saying that those who are at least trying to separate the statistics from the circumstances viewed the defensive line as better than advertised.

While I’m sure coaches and players wouldn’t say this, the Jets had only one truly convincing victory a year ago—a blowout of the Houston Texans early in December. The Jets got ahead early, forced the Texans into a survival passing game and C.J. Stroud was sacked four times. Despite almost never again playing in a situation last year where their opponents had to pass, the Jets finished tied for seventh in sacks with 48. Sacks are not the best indicator of defensive line performance, but you get the point.

Hence, a search for killers—a call for growth, even more ruthlessness, even more physicality to win on pass rushes regardless of circumstance—all taking place coincidentally amid a season where they should be leading some games (assuming Rodgers is healthy, of course). Fighters were great. Fighters got the team to seven wins despite mounting chaos and the loss of their most important player four plays into the season. Killers, though…

Will McDonald, the team’s 2023 first-round pick seems to embody this. On one play during the team’s red zone session he so effortlessly breezed by an offensive tackle that it looked as though only one of the players knew the drill had started. McDonald played in 15 games in ’23 but only 19% of the defense’s total snaps last year. A majority of his snaps were against the pass, though not a disproportionate amount to pigeonhole him as a specialist. Head coach Robert Saleh has been careful in podium appearances this offseason to talk up his edge-setting ability in the running game as well as his natural speed and elusiveness, which certainly makes him an intriguing breakout pass-rushing candidate in ’24.

McDonald said after practice that he’d been talking often with Tyron Smith and even went so far as to watch tape of Micah Parsons winning against Smith in Dallas so he could glean an advantage. He stayed around the facility all offseason and while he wouldn’t say that he added weight to his frame, he did say he got stronger.

“Guys in the weight room definitely helped me out with some things,” McDonald said. “We had a plan [this offseason] of me coming in here and working out. My main training spot was here, so when I was here, I was taking care of business.”

With Haason Reddick still not in camp and both Bryce Huff (Philadelphia) and John Franklin-Myers (Denver) elsewhere, McDonald has singularly embodied this idea that, I think, should be the undercurrent of the entire Jets’ preseason: Given how good they were last year with a middling offense, even marginal improvements could elevate this defensive line to best-in-the-league status. A group of killers, if you ask them.

Best thing I saw: Rodgers’s accuracy

Every ball Rodgers throws hits his receivers in stride. / John Jones-USA TODAY Sports

Here’s a good enough place to discuss Rodgers, who came to the podium Wednesday. Ultimately, we can say whatever we want about Rodgers’s personal choices—to abscond to Egypt in the middle of mandatory camp, to discuss his conspiratorial-leaning beliefs with regularity and still act as though it’s other extraneous issues that are impacting the franchise—all of which may or may not impact the way he is perceived inside and outside of the locker room.

However, it is so abundantly clear why the Jets continue to forge ahead with no reservations the minute you get to a practice and see him live. There are some jovial little things, such as Rodgers attempting to trip one of his assistant coaches to lighten the mood. Or, the seemingly consequential medium-sized things, such as Rodgers having a heated discussion with Garrett Wilson and fuming about Joe Tippman air-mailing a few snaps but then deftly sidestepping the situation at the podium with some finesse, while building up Tippman’s confidence and praising him as a future All-Pro in the process.

But the main thing? He is astoundingly accurate. Coming from years of (insert quarterback here) during camp, it’s still double-take worthy to watch Rodgers during the most menial parts of practice. Every ball hits a receiver in stride. Every one. Watching receivers with other quarterbacks in the same drills, one can easily notice them slowing down, turning their bodies to make a catch or looking up in the air as the ball sails over their heads.

I took careful watch of Rodgers on Wednesday, especially as this was a third consecutive day of padded practice. The Jets did not take their foot off the gas, and Rodgers was asked to do a lot of lateral movements during warmup drills at a pretty brisk physical pace. One of the drills asked Rodgers to do a hard pivot and make a running back toss before hard-bootlegging to the opposite side (he got tossed another football from his coaches), then overrunning his intended target before hitting them with a cross-body throw. Try that on your own sometime and imagine being 41 and in football cleats trying to make it happen with regularity.

That’s why the Tom Brady comparisons are not apt for me. Brady perfected such a mechanical quick game, whereas Rodgers still loves—and may necessitate—some form of east and west movement in order to generate power and make preferable throws.

Rookie who impressed: Malachai Corley, WR

So, I think as a wideout Corley has a long way to go. Saleh said Wednesday that “his whole life was bubble screens and shallow crosses.” You can tell when watching Corley and Garrett Wilson doing a receiving drill the sheer difference between Wilson’s uncanny ability to get himself free at the line of scrimmage—he moves with a kind of liquidity during a drill where the players had to shuffle through certain areas before running a route, whereas Corley steps with a bit of a thud—and everyone else’s.

But, Corley can knock people out as a blocker and I do wonder how immediately applicable that might be. I get the sense that the Jets are going to be way more diverse pre-snap this year in order to manufacture some quick touches for Wilson and to get the ball out of Rodgers’s hands. That means Corley bunched up and leading the way as a kind of human phalanx. He put a defender on the turf and out of bounds during a red zone play on Wednesday.

Before I forget: Draft Breece Hall in fantasy

Hall rushed for 994 yards and five touchdowns last season. / John Jones-USA TODAY Sports

Two notes from Rodgers that are worth filing away:

• Rodgers said it was “news to him” when Saleh said Rodgers would likely not play in the preseason. He said if he was asked to “strap it up” against the Giants during the team’s all-important third preseason game in which some of the starters get heavier workloads, then he would. Saleh is notoriously risk averse when it comes to meaningless football and for good reason. Rodgers could just be trying to posit himself as the good soldier while making Saleh out to be the reason we don’t see him until September.

• Rodgers said of Hall: “It says a lot when your bellcow running back is No. 1 in your progressions on goal-line routes.” Fantasy football players…draft accordingly.

Song of the day: “Who Am I? (What’s My Name)?” by Snoop Dogg

The song came out 30 years, eight months and 20 days ago. There are only eight players on the team’s roster who were alive upon its release.