FLORHAM PARK — Most of the time, the start of training camp is a time for players, coaches, and even media to slowly grow accustomed to being back in the NFL world.
That wasn’t the case for the New York Jets on Wednesday.
While the Jets did not practice, players reported to 1 Jets Drive for their first taste of training camp in Year Three of the Robert Saleh era. Of course, not everyone reported, and there were still plenty of key observations made coming from Florham Park.
Let’s take a look at the most important moments from Jets media day.
Mims is moving on
It certainly wasn’t a surprise, but the ongoing circus of the Jets’ receiving core seems to be coming to a close with their last disgruntled receiver moving on.
Denzel Mims had requested a trade as early as last year due to a lack of playing time, and now it appears Gang Green will honor his request. New York is expected to waive or trade the former second-round receiver shortly according to a report from Brian Costello of the New York Post.
In three seasons with New York, Mims started just 15 games and was unable to reach 1,000 yards total while competing for playing time in a passing-challenged offense. The waiver announcement will allow Mims to find a team that will allow him to gain playing time while also leaving New York with more room to keep a deep core of wide receivers on the roster.
If the Jets can find a trade partner, the expectation is that a conditional draft pick will be the main asking price at this point.
AVT Injury and Position Update
One of the major Achilles heels for the Jets last season was the rash of injuries the offense suffered to key players. Breece Hall suffered a torn ACL midway through the season while Alijah Vera-Tucker suffered a torn triceps that cost both of the young stars seasons in the same game.
While Hall is continuing to rehab, Vera-Tucker confirmed Wednesday that he has no limitations to his previous injury and will be competing once training camp kicks off practices on Thursday. He also acknowledged that while he played different positions along the offensive line last season due to injury, this offseason has been a re-focus back to right guard.
Vera-Tucker is expected to help anchor a much-improved offensive line that is getting healthier than they have been in years, while also adding key depth pieces.
DJ Reed Reacts to Asante Samuel’s Twitter Beef
For a team with Aaron Rodgers on their roster, and being under the spotlight for “Hard Knocks” this season, the Jets have found themselves in the middle of several different social media feuds.
The latest of these feuds came last week when former New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel publicly tweeted out against Jets All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner being voted as the second-best cornerback in the NFL in a poll conducted by NFL players, coaches, and front office executives. Samuel’s comments drew the ire of incoming Hall-of-Fame Jets’ cornerback Darrelle Revis along with Gardner’s teammate DJ Reed.
“First off, I have a lot of respect for Asante Samuel. I believe he should be in the Hall-of-Fame,” Reed explained. “Personally, I don’t think it was right to go at guys who are doing it at a high level like Revis and Sauce. That’s just my opinion of course.”
Revis is being inducted into the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame in two weeks while Gardner and Reed are looking to add to what was a dominant season for the Jets’ secondary.
Draft Picks Contract Update
New York entered Wednesday with their top two draft selections unsigned heading into training camp.
That is no longer an issue.
Both Will McDonald IV and Joe Tippmann signed their rookie contracts with the Jets Wednesday morning and reported to the team’s facility on time. McDonald, the 15th overall selection, and Tippmannm, their second-round selection, are expected to both compete for starting roles on the 53-man roster immediately.
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