Where Does Antonio Allen Fit into New York Jets Defensive Plans?

The New York Jets have begun building in a new direction in the secondary, and it's hard to envision exactly what that new direction holds for a few key players.

One by one, the Jets have picked up the future starters at cornerback: Darrelle Revis, Antonio Cromartie and Buster Skrine. That position, the biggest source of the Jets' frustration in the 2014 offseason, is no longer a concern in the slightest.

The basis of much of the worry is at safety, where the Jets have created a logjam at one spot and a massive void at the other.

They signed veteran strong safety Marcus Gilchrist to a four-year, $22 million contract. Not to mention, they have another high-profile, high-investment strong safety in 2014 first-round draft choice Calvin Pryor. Those two, according to Dom Cosentino of NJ.com, will be the starting safeties.

"

Bowles praised Marcus Gilchrist's versatility and cover skills. Said Gilchrist will play FS, Calvin Pryor will play SS.

— dom cosentino (@domcosentino) March 24, 2015"

And somewhere along the way, young safety Antonio Allen, once considered an up-and-coming safety for the Jets, got lost in the shuffle. That process began in 2013, when Allen took a back seat to declining veteran Ed Reed after he was picked up off the street midseason. That process continued in 2014, when Allen was asked to move to cornerback thanks to the team's epic failure to address the position that offseason.

And now, in 2015, he's a forgotten man behind Pryor and Gilchrist in the Jets depth chart at strong safety.

His initial move to cornerback was made out of desperation at the position, but it was not necessarily ill-advised. At 6'2" and 202 pounds, the Jets had hoped that his large frame would be effective on the outside. That was never the case.

Stat	Allen	Rank
Comp %	63.3	62/108
Average	13.1	72/108
Cover snaps per target	5	101/116
Yards per cover snap	1.67	100/116
Cover snaps per reception	7.8	99/116

According to Pro Football Focus, Allen allowed completions on 66.1 percent of the throws into his coverage at 13.4 yards per completion, yielding eight touchdowns and no picks with a 133.7 passer rating against him. For the record, all those numbers are higher than the league average (the NFL averaged 62.6 percent completions, 11.5 yards per completion and an 87.1 passer rating). 

Allen began his transition back to safety after the unsuccessful bid at cornerback. Jets head coach Rex Ryan even went as far as to say at one point, "We've got to get him back to playing more safety." 

It's no mystery as to why; his performance at cornerback was not exactly memorable—and if it was, it was for the wrong reasons. 

So clearly, the answer is not man coverage for Allen. That's especially true in Todd Bowles' defensive scheme, which asks its cornerbacks to run stride-for-stride with their man. 

So, what can the Jets do with Allen instead? 

His best role may be as a "big nickel" safety, basically acting as a linebacker who can cover tight ends and running backs out of the backfield and help out in run support if need be. He could even be a part of Todd Bowles' exotic blitz packages, giving the appearance of coverage or run support but instead shooting a gap to create pressure on the quarterback.

That being said, last year's performance put a spotlight on Allen's limitations in coverage, and there is now a bull's-eye on his back in indelible ink. The fact is, as the 242nd overall pick of the 2013 NFL draft, it's not a shocker that he has a limited skill set. In fact, it's probably more surprising that he lasted this long; players selected that late in the draft don't typically have a long shelf life in the league.

The Jets could find some sparing uses for the former seventh-round pick, but he could just as easily be fighting for a roster spot in 2015. 

Unless otherwise noted, all salary-cap and contract information provided by OverTheCap.com, all quotes obtained via team news release and all advanced stats obtained via ProFootballFocus.com.