6 Jets Who Will Be on the Roster Bubble in 2015
We may not know what the future holds for the New York Jets as they transition to a new regime—but massive overhauls on the roster are all but a certainty.
"Cleaning house" in both the coaching staff and front office includes a lot more than just changing out coaches and executives. Every player on the roster's future is now up in the air, as draft status and salary become irrelevant as these new executives will not have any qualms about demoting or cutting a player someone else drafted or traded for.
Here are some Jets who could find themselves suddenly on the roster bubble this season.
Antonio Allen
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Just a few months ago, Antonio Allen was one of the most vital members of the Jets secondary, versatile enough to play just about any position.
As it turns out, Allen's versatility would come to stagnate his development. Injuries to Dee Milliner and Dexter McDougle forced Allen to move to cornerback in the middle of training camp. While he held his own initially at his new position, he was never the same player when moved back to safety later in the season.
According to Pro Football Focus (subscription required), he was responsible for eight touchdowns in 2014, yielding a quarterback rating of 133.7. By season's end, he was all but removed from the regular defensive lineup, yielding almost all of his snaps to Jaiquawn Jarrett and Calvin Pryor.
Perhaps Allen's 2014 was an anomaly because of the constant position switching, but a new coaching staff is not going to have nearly as much patience with Allen. If he does not turn his game around in a hurry, he could be the first safety to go.
Phillip Adams
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When Phillip Adams first cracked the starting lineup midseason, he looked like a player who belonged—and not just because of the number on his jersey. He notched an impressive interception against Philip Rivers and the San Diego Chargers, suggesting that the Jets may have stumbled upon undiscovered talent.
However, as the season wore on, it became more and more apparent why Adams was originally buried on the depth chart.
Since his head-turning interception, Adams did not record a single pass defense all season, according to Pro Football Focus. Yielding a 66.7 completion percentage, Adams eventually lost his starting job to undrafted free agent Marcus Williams.
Adams can still serve as a depth corner who can play for short stretches, but a new coaching staff may prefer to use his roster spot on its own handpicked player who does not have as much bad tape on him.
Saalim Hakim
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Saalim Hakim returned the opening kickoff of the season 44 yards. It was all downhill from there.
Since his impressive return, Hakim proved to be more and more replaceable as the season went on. He did not develop as a receiver, but more importantly, he was a non-factor as a return man. He averaged just 21.43 yards as a returner, per The Football Database.
The Jets may not have brought in Percy Harvin midseason for the sole reason of replacing Hakim, but his ineffectiveness only gave them one more reason to pull the trigger on the trade.
Without any upside as a receiver, Hakim is simply not special enough as a returner to be anything more than a bubble player at this point.
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Trevor Reilly
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Trevor Reilly overcame tough odds to land on an NFL roster as a 26-year-old (27 on January 17), but his luck may be running out.
Used exclusively on special teams, a new coaching staff is not going to have much of a prerogative to keep a 27-year-old on the roster over another handpicked player with more room to develop.
Core special teams players are an integral part of every roster, but they are usually composed of experienced veterans. Because of his age (Reilly's football career was delayed because of a two-year mission in Sweden), Reilly is a rookie in a veteran's body.
Unless Reilly is impressive enough to stave off competition in training camp, it seems unlikely that a new coaching staff will keep him around.
Brian Winters
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Third-round draft picks are usually given more than two seasons before their job is in serious question, but draft accolades are thrown out the window when an owner decides to clean house and bring in a new general manager.
A tackle at Kent State, Brian Winters' transition to guard in the NFL has not gone as planned. The 65th-best guard in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus, Winters has been nothing but a liability in both the run game and pass protection.
It went from bad to worse for Winters in 2014. Not only did he continue to struggle, but he tore his ACL and was placed on injured reserve in mid-October. Winters' development was stunted, while his replacement, fifth-round pick Oday Aboushi, outplayed him in his absence.
Winters has a long way to go before he can reclaim his starting job. Not only will he have to return from a dreaded ACL tear, but he will have legitimate competition from Aboushi and second-year pro Dakota Dozier—and anyone else the new regime decides to bring in.
There is a glimmer of hope for Winters—veteran starter Willie Colon is set to hit free agency, opening up a roster spot. However, if Winters cannot recover and develop into a capable starter in a matter of months, the new administration won't have nearly as much patience with him as the one responsible for drafting him did.
T.J. Graham
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The Jets have seen a lot of faces line up at wide receiver over the past two seasons—21 to be exact—including former Buffalo Bill T.J. Graham.
Blessed with tremendous speed, Graham flashed some ability with a long touchdown grab against the Pittsburgh Steelers—but was a virtual non-factor outside of that one play. After Percy Harvin was acquired, Graham was all but erased from the offensive game plan.
At age 25, he still has enough upside to at least challenge for a roster spot next season either as a receiver or return man. Still, based on the sheer volume of turnover the Jets have experienced over the past two years at the receiver position (and the state of their 32nd-ranked passing offense), more changes are on the horizon for the Jets' receiving corps—and Graham could certainly be one of those changes.
Advanced statistics provided by ProFootballFocus.com (subscription required).
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