Jets' Training Camp Countdown: Plugging New Pieces into Defense

How efficiently will the replacement parts fit into a defense that operated at a near-optimal level last year?

JAMIE GERMANO / ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT AND CHRONICLE

The Jets Country Training Camp Countdown, a series of nine questions, runs from July 10 through 18, counting down the days until rookies and veterans report to the New York Jets' facility on July 19.

The bulk of the NFL's fourth-ranked defense has remained intact, but there are a handful of new pieces. 

In particular, the New York Jets experienced turnover at defensive tackle and safety this offseason and will feature a different starting lineup as a result.

There will be a new starter at free safety as Lamarcus Joyner was not re-signed.

Meanwhile, a pair of veteran additions, brought in to replace free-agent losses Sheldon Rankins and Nathan Shepherd, will likely share starter duties at the defensive tackle spot next to Quinnen Williams.

"We’ve been so fortunate to replace them with very similar talents and very similar human beings, like Al Woods and Quinton Jefferson," said defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich. "You couldn’t ask for higher character individuals,"

With nickel defensive alignments having become increasingly popular, attention has shifted away from the third linebacker spot that was manned last year by the unsigned Kwon Alexander. Playing in all 17 games for the 2022 Jets, Alexander participated in nearly 50 percent of defensive snaps, which will go to someone else this year.

The Jets will look slightly different personnel-wise at each level of the defense in 2023, which raises an important question heading into the NFL Preseason.

How efficiently will those new pieces fit into a defense that operated at a near-optimal level last year?

"The style defense in which we play, it’s not about smoke and mirrors. It’s more about doing the same thing over and over and over again," said Ulbrich. "Putting things on repeat and getting guys to just play with unconscious competence, so to have continuity is critical for the system that we run."

Defensive Tackle

Jefferson and Woods, both coming from the Seattle Seahawks, bring a significant amount of experience to the defensive front. The former has made 50 of a possible 50 appearances over the past three seasons while the latter has played in 155 career games.

With Jets' head coach Robert Saleh being a Pete Carroll disciple, the two former Seahawks should have a relatively smooth transition into their new surroundings. 

The 30-year-old Jefferson, who was a fifth-round draft pick in 2016, has logged 20.5 sacks and 64 quarterback hits over 89 career contests. He has accounted for at least 3.0 sacks each of the past five years.

The 36-year-old Woods, who has experience in a true nose tackle role, can eat up blockers up front. He accounted for 39 combined stops and 2.0 sacks over 14 starts in 2022.

Outside Linebacker 

Alexander, who remains a free agent, saw 559 snaps on defense last season after being signed as a result of his familiarity with Saleh's system. His replacement will likely be a linebacker who was on the roster last year. 

Jamien Sherwood, a 2021 fifth-rounder, is the leading candidate to fill the vacant spot when the Jets' formation calls for three backers.

"[Sherwood] Wood’s doing a really nice job," said Saleh during OTAs. "He’s got it hard. He’s got to work between SAM and MIKE, so he’s got to do two positions at once. It’s year three for him. He’s very smart, he’s very comfortable in the system and he’s executing at a high level."

The 6-foot-2 Sherwood, who played safety at Auburn, appeared in all 17 of Gang Green's games last year, but nearly all of the action came on special teams. 

Third-year linebacker Hamsah Nasirildeen has only 67 career defensive snaps to his name. Meanwhile, sixth-round rookie Zaire Barnes is in the mix, too.

Free Safety

The situation at free safety was working out nicely until Chuck Clark suffered a season-ending knee injury during the final week of OTAs.

"Already, just their [Clark and starting SS Jordan Whitehead] relationship out here has been, it’s been exceptional," said Ulbrich on May 31. "You can see Chuck, there’s a reason he’s played such consistent football for such a long time."

With all that offseason work now erased by Clark's unfortunate injury, a new starter must emerge and subsequently build a rapport with Whitehead during training camp.

The favorite to do so is veteran Adrian Amos, who was signed on the same day that the news about Clark was reported. The eight-year NFL starter spent the last four seasons with the Green Bay Packers, but he didn't attract heavy interest on the free agent market this spring. 

Amos has not missed a start in any of the last five seasons, but it is somewhat concerning that he was still unsigned well into June.

Tony Adams, who made the 53-man roster as an undrafted rookie in 2022, saw limited time at free safety last year and started in the regular season finale. Meanwhile, Trey Dean, who was signed after going undrafted this past April, is a dark horse to force his way into the conversation this summer.

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