Teams love to use the term all-in when it comes to a franchise and it would appear that the Jets have moved all their chips into the middle in order to take advantage of whatever Aaron Rodgers has left in the tank.  They upgraded an offensive line that was among the worst and gave Rodgers multiple weapons to pick apart opposing defenses, assuming his Achilles will hold up as he enters his 40s. It’s hard to believe in a team that majors in letting down it’s fanbase, but this could finally be the year everything goes green.

The Jets season was over almost as soon as it began and while hope was dealt a quick death, fans still had to suffer through 17 games of Zach Wilson while everyone else banged their head against the wall.  While no sane person really thought Rodgers would return mere months after tearing his Achilles, the propaganda machine is back in full swing this offseason as the Jets look dominant on both sides of the ball and have the perfect gunslinger to lead them into the promise land.

The good news is that the Jets don’t need Rodgers to be the MVP in order to be successful, they simply need competent QB play, which after last season will feel like MVP level.  If he is somewhere in between his old self and a game manager, the Jets are going to be a powerhouse as the defense is going to be giving the offense great field position all season.  In addition to a fully healthy Breece Hall (RB6) who is the real deal, we finally get to see how great Garrett Wilson really is. After two beers you could have talked any Jets fan last season into a play where Wilson throws himself the ball.  Okay, one beer.  The addition of Mike Williams from the Chargers is a perfect complement to Wilson and the third WR spot will probably be filled by Rodger’s old teammate Allen Lazard, but don’t sleep on Xavier Gipson who filled fans with false hope when he returned a punt to the house in OT to beat the Bills in Week 1.  Make no mistake, this team is going to run on the wheels of Hall and the explosive play of Wilson and everyone else will have to wait their turn.  Everything hinges on the health of Rodgers and the good news is that there is no way he plays less than he did last season.

Writer’s Season Win Prediction: 12-5

Rule one when drafting a WR in the early rounds is to make sure he has some stability at the QB position.  Wilson was flying off the boards in the second round last season with the understanding he had a Hall of Famer throwing to him.  Wilson is going to be drafted high again and for good reason.  He’s got every tool in the box for a WR and has been banging on the barn doors for two seasons, begging to be unleashed.  A fully weaponized Wilson has very few peers in the NFL.  He’s played in every game over his two seasons and his 30.1% target share last season should leave fantasy GMs drooling as everyone knows Rodgers loves to hyper-target his guys.  When it comes to drafting the WR, the question you need to ask yourself is do you want to draft for ceiling or floor? I love Wilson and I low-key love Rodgers, but I loathe the turf at Met-Life Arena, and I hate the idea of my fantasy season hinging on the Achilles of a 40-year-old QB, regardless of my confidence in his new-age approach to medicine.  I’d rather play it safe and go with a WR with a little less upside, but more week-to-week stability, but that’s just me.

When it comes to the running game, it’s Breece Hall as a one-man band who can hit all the notes.  Again, a similar rule applies when drafting an RB, how good is his offensive line?  While the Jets failed miserably in that regard last season, they finally beefed up their front and it should at least be serviceable.  Despite exploding for multiple huge runs in Week 1, Hall didn’t really start cooking until later in the season in spite of everything else crumbling around him.  Hall’s fantasy potential isn’t tied to the QB and his dual-threat ability is truly devastating.  He caught 23 balls in the last three games of the season while averaging five yards a carry and somehow should be even better this season.  I have a firm no drafting players who play on turf rule, but if you want to ignore that, Hall is almost in the Kevin Costner vein of “Breece Hall no matter what”.

It’s a common saying that the best defense is a good offense, but for the Jets, the inverse is also true.  The Jets defense finished top-five in yards allowed, passing yards allowed, passing TDs, first downs and total passing attempts.  The secondary is a blanket that forces teams to run the ball and while that can eat clock, it also leads to plenty of stalled drives.  The defense is going to be stout once again this season and that should lead to Rodgers having great field position and take even more of a burden off his shoulders.  Every terrible thing that has happened to the Jets over the last couple of decades has led them to this one moment and if it all clicks, the final product is going to be a sight to behold.

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