In his second year with the New York Jets, Alex Lewis is now the veteran of the offensive line

Alex Lewis, traded to the New York Jets last August, is now the veteran leader of a rebuilt offensive line.

Alex Lewis, in his second season with the New York Jets, is now the grizzled veteran of the offensive line. Such is the total overhaul of the Jets line this offseason that Lewis, a guard acquired in a trade with the Baltimore Ravens before the start of last season, is now the seasoned leader of the bunch.

“We were very limited on this offseason. Everybody was spread across the country, so we relied heavily on Zoom meetings,” Lewis told reporters via a conference call on Thursday. “Now that we're back in the facility together we're doing everything we can, you know to build that chemistry. Whether we're on the field getting after it competing against one another, or we got group chats going on with each other to joke around and build that chemistry up.”

Lewis had emerged as the starter last season in Week 5 after an injury to Kelechi Osemele. He started 12 straight games before an ankle injury put him on injured reserve. That was a career-high number of starts.

He tested the free-agent waters but in mid-March signed a three-year, $18.6 million contract extension with the Jets.

The Jets have been limited in training camp so far. Workouts have been smaller and there has been social distancing in the facility. Padded practices will be limited. That doesn’t seem to bother quarterbacks or receivers. Offensive linemen, however, need pads to test and improve their physicality.

“Those non-pad days are great to work your fundamentals and technique and playing offensive alignment,” Lewis said. “That's a great time to focus on your first two steps, your hand placement, and playing low. That's a huge advantage for us when we have no pads.

Lewis raved about top draft pick Mekhi Becton, calling him the “great wall of green.” He also raved about center Conner McGovern, who came over from the Denver Broncos after having his best season in 2019.

“Connor’s a great guy who played well in Denver, and is very smart from what I picked up already,” Lewis said. “Eager to learn the playbook to really master it. I look forward to communicating with him on the field and getting after people.”

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