In 2023, the New York Jets offensive line was among one of the worst in the NFL.
They allowed the fifth-most sacks, ranked 30th in passing yards and 22nd in rushing yards. This was mostly due to a line decimated by injuries and New York didn’t have a quality quarterback under center after Aaron Rodgers suffered a season-ending Achilles injury four plays into the season.
Starters Alijah Vera-Tucker, Duane Brown and Connor McGovern missed many games, forcing shake up their starting line-up almost every week. Nine offensive linemen played at least two positions, eight different players saw action at right guard and 13 different starting offensive lines played in 2023. Former first-round pick Mekhi Becton (now with the Eagles) did show some grit this season and played a career-high 16 games, but put up awful numbers and allowed 12 sacks.
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The Jets quarterback was in a nightmare last year. Zach Wilson was sacked 46 times with a QBR of 30.6. Trevor Siemian was sacked eight times in five games with a QBR of 14.4. Tim Boyle was sacked nine times in three games with a QBR of 10.9. Rodgers’ lone sack ended his 2023 season.
The Jets needed to upgrade, and Douglas made every effort to do so in 2024.
Jets new-look offensive line ranks highly
The Jets made a trade with the Baltimore Ravens which would send a 2024 fourth-round and sixth-round pick to Ravens in exchange for former Jet Morgan Moses and a 2024 fourth-round pick. Moses missed three games in 2023 due to a torn pec for which he has since had surgery to fix. He allowed five sacks with six penalties and finished 2023 with a PFF grade of 77.6.
The next move Joe Douglas made was to sign another Ravens player, John Simpson. He played 17 games this past year as Lamar Jackson’s starting left guard, he played 1,119 snaps and had a PFF grade of 56.6.
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Douglas wasn’t done yet. With many big-name free agents available, the Jets may have secured the most important. All-Pro left tackle from the Dallas Cowboys, Tyron Smith. Smith agreed to a 1-year deal worth up to $ 20M with the Jets in March and is already hard at work in OTAs. Smith will be the most important factor on this offensive line by protecting Rodgers blindside.
With the addition of those three new offensive linemen, Joe Tippman at center and the return of Vera-Tucker, Rodgers is going to have a solid starting five. The Jets also made a splash in the 2024 NFL Draft by selecting offensive tackle Olu Fashanu out of Penn State with the No. 11 overall pick. Securing their left tackle for the future and giving the Jets something they didn’t have last year; depth at the offensive line position.
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The Jets’ offensive line ranked 12th, according to Pro Football Network’s Dallas Robinson. A year ago, the Jets ranked in the 20s. The new duo of Moses and Smith is certainly one to keep an eye on. Pro Football Focus’ Zoltán Buday ranked both in the top 20: Smith ranks at No. 7 after he ranked 22nd this past year.
Moses came in at 18 on this list, while playing the best football of his career in 2023 he is set to make a huge impact on the Jets offensive line in 2024. Moses played 778 snaps for the Ravens last season. He moved up 2 spots on this list and was ranked 20th last season.
The duo of Moses and Smith will be one of the best in the league. Rodgers will need to stay upright for the Jets to have a chance at ending their playoff drought.
