New York Jets Offseason State of the Union

Minicamp has wrapped, and the New York Jets, like the rest of the NFL, are on a break until training camp begins at the end of July.

With a little time to breathe, now is as good a time as any if you're hoping to learn everything there is to know about the Jets headed into 2015.

The Jets have new faces everywhere, from the defensive backfield to the offensive backfield and everything in between. Things have also changed on the sideline with new coaches and new systems being implemented and in the front office with a new general manager calling the shots.

There are only two-and-a-half months left until the Jets have to come together as a unit, so here's a look at what they are working with.

Pass Offense

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The Jets pass attack hasn't been much of an "attack" at all. They've been anemic for years, mostly because of awful play at the quarterback position. 

The Jets took extra measures to ensure their signal-caller has as easy a job as possible in 2015 by adding wide receivers like Brandon Marshall, rookie Devin Smith and DeVier Posey, but unless either Geno Smith or Ryan Fitzpatrick (whoever it ends up being) plays at a capable level, the Jets offense may not get off the ground.

This year's group of pass-catchers is the most talented group the Jets have had on the roster since at least 2010. That may have a little something to do with the arrival of new offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, who goes with a spread offense like jelly spread over peanut butter.

Looking at the offense, though, the biggest question is the offensive line. James Carpenter will most likely be the starter at left guard, and Nick Mangold is still a rock-solid center, but the right guard spot remains a deep battle between Brian Winters, Oday Aboushi, Willie Colon and Jarvis Harrison. Breno Giacomini had a tough first year in the Jets offense at right tackle, but D'Brickashaw Ferguson rebounded nicely off a rough 2013. 

That's a long-winded way of saying that the Jets need to sort out the guard spot and that everyone else could use a step up. If not, it won't matter who is throwing the ball or who he is throwing it to. 

Run Offense

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One thing is certain: The Jets shouldn't have much of a problem running the ball between the tackles in 2015. With a backfield that includes Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell, Stevan Ridley and Zac Stacy, the offense is well-equipped to hammer the ball through traffic in short-yardage situations.

Of course, that also relies on the offensive line, which is still up in the air as mentioned previously. The Jets still need to figure out what's going on at guard. There's a deep competition for one of the two guard spots, and while Carpenter figures to be the front-runner to start at one spot, you can't necessarily carve it in stone just yet.

One more thing you can't take to the bank is who will be the top option on passing downs. Powell was the top scatback in 2014, earning a majority of his snaps in passing situations (187 passing snaps, 55 rushing snaps), according to Pro Football Focus.  

Ivory is going to be the bell cow on first and second downs, as he has been for the Jets whenever he's been healthy over the past two seasons. That being said, Chan Gailey has a reputation for utilizing his running backs in effective ways—which is part of the reason why he earned the job in New York—so don't rule anything out. 

Pass Defense

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Gone are the days of Antonio Allen and Marcus Williams playing significant roles in the Jets secondary. With the return of both Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie, the Jets are once again home to an elite duo of cornerbacks who can execute a man-coverage-centric scheme with ease.

Make no mistake; with Todd Bowles at the helm of the defense, that's one thing that will not change about the Jets from 2014 to 2015. There will still be a lot of blitzes and other exotic pass-rush packages, which means a lot of man coverage in the secondary where the cornerbacks must cover receivers one-on-one all over the field.

This time, however, the Jets are home to a much more talented defensive front seven than they were the last time Revis and Cromartie were teammates. Now, with Muhammad Wilkerson, Sheldon Richardson, Quinton Coples, Damon Harrison and Leonard Williams all lining up in the trenches, the Jets have a group of athletes in the front seven who can all get after the quarterback and/or plug gaps to free up rush lanes for their teammates.

The possibilities are endless as to how the Jets can execute their style of defense, which is exactly what Bowles needs.

Run Defense

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Muhammad Wilkerson (96, left) and Sheldon Richardson (91, right) form one-half of the most dominant defensive lines in football.

If and when Muhammad Wilkerson returns from his holdout, the Jets can officially claim to have one of the best defensive lines in football. Even without him, this group may not miss a beat in 2015. 

With Sheldon Richardson, Damon Harrison and Leonard Williams all in the fold, the Jets can still assemble a formidable 3-4 defensive front, which is all they need to keep Todd Bowles happy. Sure, he likes to switch things up just as much as any defensive-minded coach, but those three are all talented run-stuffers and pass-rushers. 

But run defense doesn't just come down to the defensive linemen—it's also about the linebackers. David Harris lived up to his nickname "Hitman" last year when he notched 123 combined tackles (71 solo, 52 assist), which ranked 11th in the NFL. Demario Davis wasn't too far behind with 116 tackles (79 solo, 37 assist), which tied for 13th.

With Richardson, Wilkerson and Harrison anchoring the middle of the line, Harris and Davis should continue their solid play as clean-up tacklers. 

Special Teams

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The Jets have been fond of consistency in their special teams unit over the past few years. They haven't made any changes at kicker or punter, with Nick Folk and Ryan Quigley set into those respective spots. A new regime, however, has brought about a new attitude in the approach to those specialists.

There will be competitions this year for each spot, with second-year punter Jacob Schum and second-year kicker Andrew Furney both competing for the starting jobs at their positions. 

This isn't Furney's first go-around with the Jets; he sank a 51-yard field goal to beat the Indianapolis Colts in the preseason. He was 16-of-20 in his final year at Washington State, but the big-legged kicker has not had much of an opportunity to show what he can do on the big stage of the NFL.

Schum has already been through the NFL waiver wire run-around once, with short stints with the Cleveland Browns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. This isn't his first stint with the Jets either; they brought him in to compete with Quigley last summer but released him before the end of August. Schum has 119 career punts for 38.7 yards per punt, with 24 landing inside the 20-yard line. 

Coaching

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The Jets may finally have some semblance of competent coaching on offense. In the past four years, they have gone from Brian Schottenheimer to Tony Sparano to Marty Mornhinweg—in other words, from bad to worse to average. Now, with Chan Gailey at the helm of the offense, the Jets have a coach with a proven track record of fielding solid offenses and of building his offenses around the strengths and weaknesses of his quarterbacks.

He'll need those tools in working with Geno Smith and Ryan Fitzpatrick, both of whom have their share of flaws but also enough strengths to work with—especially in Gailey's spread-style offense.

The defense will mostly be handled by Todd Bowles, who won the job with the Jets due to his resume as a defensive wiz. His scheme and philosophies are similar to former head coach Rex Ryan, in that he likes to run an aggressive style of defense in the front seven with a lot of man coverage on the back end. Defensive coordinator Kacy Rodgers will have his hand in the defense as well, but it will mostly be Bowles' baby.