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One thing that I forget to get into after the game on Monday, but obviously is important, is the health of Jets center Joe Tippmann.
Tippmann returned to the lineup against the Los Angeles Chargers, after missing the Giants game with a quad injury.
His return was obviously huge for the Jets because they had lost two centers against the Football Giants, with Connor McGovern and Wes Schweitzer both going down.
While Tippmann had been playing right guard for the Jets, he’s a center by trade, so getting him back in the game after the McGovern and Schweitzer injuries was good timing for the Jets.
So the most important thing for him coming out of the Chargers game was how he came out health-wise.
From what I hear, he came out fine with no setbacks . . .
While on the medical front, Billy Turner, who played right tackle last week, has a broken bone in his hand. The announcement was made by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
So it probably doesn’t make a lot of sense to start him, even with some kind of wrap.
Remember, the 295-pound right tackle, struggled with bull rushers against the Chargers. After losing weight, he just doesn’t have the “mass in the ass,” to use a scouting term, and that seemed to hurt his ability to anchor against guys like Joey Bosa and Khalil Mack.
So how can you possibly start him, when his weight can cause anchoring issues, with a hand problem, which could hurt this ability even more. Obviously hand usage is huge for an offensive tackle.
The Jets have options here:
They could start Dennis Kelly at right tackle, who has a history with their offensive line coach Keith Carter from Tennessee, and keep Max Mitchell at right guard. They could move Mitchell back to right tackle, and start Xavier Newman, Chris Glaser or Rodger Safford at right guard.
But it’s hard to imagine them, starting Turner, with a bad hand, against Maxx Crosby and company . . .
The Raiders really don’t have anybody who can cover Garrett Wilson, so they will probably double him, so instead of forcing the ball to him, which has been the case at times this season, the Jets should take advantage of this, and go to other receivers with favorable matchups at times.
This might seem obvious, but it just seems like there is a lot of forcing to Wilson, since he’s the #1, and that isn’t a good idea.
Don’t get the wrong idea, they should throw him the ball plenty, but stop forcing it when it’s not there . . .
Interesting tidbit. I was interviewing Jets safety Tony Adams on Wednesday about Raiders QB Aiden O’Connell. The angle there was he played against him in the Big 10. Adams played at Illinois and O’Connell at Purdue.
Adams was very complimentary of O’Connell, but did point out he had a Pick Six against him in college . . .
It would be shocking if O’Connell had a big game against the Jets. The Jets’ defensive line is dominating, the Raiders offensive line isn’t great, and in his first start, on October 1, he held the ball too long, as rookies are given to do, and was sacked seven times. In the Raiders win against the Giants last, O’Connell had a pedestrian game with no touchdown passes. They didn’t need much from him.
With the Jets’ pass rush and their corners, it would be shocking if the rookie would pose much of a threat against the Jets.
That doesn’t mean the Jets will win, because this could turn into a game like the Jets-Giants game, with how much the Jets passing offense is struggling.
November 9, 2023
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