5 New York Jets Players Poised for a Breakout Campaign in 2015
The New York Jets had a long 2014 season with a 4-12 finish, so they wasted no time in correcting some of the issues that plagued them by aggressively addressing their needs in the 2015 offseason.
With big-name additions like cornerbacks Darrelle Revis and Antonio Cromartie, wide receiver Brandon Marshall, defensive lineman Leonard Williams and guard James Carpenter, plenty of new players on the roster should make an impact.
But what about the players who were already on the roster? Surely, the Jets will not have a successful season if the players they've added are the only ones who add anything to the team. If the Todd Bowles era is going to get off to a good start, it will be up to some of the holdovers from the Rex Ryan regime to play well.
Whether it's a benefit of the new coaching staff, the departure of a veteran or simply filling a need, plenty of players should be in line for a breakout season.
Here's a look at a handful of players who could take a step or two forward in 2015.
Jace Amaro
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A brief look at Jace Amaro's 2014 season stats (38 receptions, 345 yards, two touchdowns) will give the appearance that the Texas Tech rookie was moderately successful in his first year in the NFL. A deeper look, however, will reveal that even as marginal as his success appeared, it was even less impressive than it seemed (10 receptions, 68 yards, one touchdown in one game).
Veteran tight end Jeff Cumberland is entering a contract year, and although neither Cumberland nor Amaro was handpicked by the current regime, Amaro has more long-term upside. At 6'6" and 260 pounds, he at least has the frame of an in-line tight end, even if he has virtually no experience as a true blocker.
Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey has not been a huge proponent of the tight end position in the past, instead preferring to maximize the width of the field by getting four or five wide receivers into play at a time. That being said, it would be reasonable to expect Amaro to produce similar numbers to former Buffalo Bills tight end Scott Chandler (43 receptions, 571 yards, six touchdowns in 2012).
Amaro is much more skilled as a pass-catcher than a blocker, which means he could have more opportunities to make a real-life impact on the field and in the box score.
Calvin Pryor
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Safety Calvin Pryor hopes to gets a chance to do what he's good at and what the Jets drafted him to do with the 18th overall pick in 2014. A number of aspects of Pryor's game must be fine-tuned in order for him to realize his full potential, but one that stands out is almost completely out of his control: where he lines up.
In 2014, Pryor spent much of the season floating around the defense, lining up at both the free safety and strong safety positions. He was a free safety early on before switching to strong safety for the latter part of the season. He's a strong safety by trade, which means that we never got a chance to see what he can do at his natural position at the NFL level until the Jets were already eliminated from playoff contention.
At 5'11" and 208 pounds, Pryor is not known for sideline-to-sideline range but instead for in-the-box toughness and a heavy-hitting style of play that can change the momentum of a game with one single hit. You could probably call him "The Louisville Slugger," and with Marcus Gilchrist manning the free safety spot, Pryor will have plenty of opportunities to slug it out with slot receivers, tight ends and running backs alike.
Pryor could make strides in an aggressive defense that will give him a chance to flourish at his natural position, to rush the passer as a blitzing safety and to lay the wood like a strong safety should.
Lorenzo Mauldin
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It's time for the Jets to begin the process of moving on from veteran outside linebacker Calvin Pace. In drafting Louisville outside linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin in the third round, they already showed initiative in getting that process started.
At 6'4" and 259 pounds, Mauldin has the perfect frame for the outside linebacker position in the Jets' 3-4 defense. His 33" arms will help keep blockers at bay, and his burst will help him get into the backfield in a hurry. He's not a dynamic pass-rusher, but he was productive at Louisville, notching 20.5 sacks in three years. His greatest asset lies in his stout run defense, where he has the strength to set the edge and prevent running backs from getting to the perimeter.
Depending on how the Jets feel about Pace, Mauldin could overtake him for the starting outside linebacker spot as early as the 2015 season. Even if Mauldin only factors into the rotation as a role player, he still has the potential to make an impact as a rookie. The only question is how many different ways Todd Bowles can dream up to make use of his new toy on defense.
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Oday Aboushi
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The Jets have several questions on the offensive line, but the biggest questions are at right guard. We know D'Brickashaw Ferguson will play left tackle, free-agent pickup James Carpenter will play left guard, Nick Mangold will man the center spot and Breno Giacomini will retain his hold on the right tackle position.
But even though nine-year veteran Willie Colon, third-year pro Brian Winters and rookie Jarvis Harrison will all be competing for the job, Oday Aboushi looks like the one who should win the job. If last year's performance is any indication, the Jets will not regret the decision if they name him the starter.
In 2014, Aboushi started the final 10 games of the season at left guard after Winters went down with an injury, and he played well considering he was making a switch from playing tackle at Virginia. According to Pro Football Focus, he yielded only 23 pressures on Jets quarterbacks (16 hurries, five hits, two sacks) and was even better as a run-blocker.
Aboushi isn't the only piece that needs to fall into place for the offensive line to succeed, but to borrow from an old idiom, a line is only as strong as its weakest blocker.
Quinton Coples
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If there's one thing Todd Bowles knows how to do, it's create a multilayered pass rush that can confuse quarterbacks before the snap and generate pressure after it. He does this by moving players all over the field, having them rush from different directions and at different angles through different gaps.
If one player stands to benefit the most from this mentality, it's outside linebacker Quinton Coples. In fact, "outside linebacker" may become a misnomer by the time Bowles is through with Coples, as we could see him rushing either from the outside as a lineman or a linebacker or up the middle as a defensive tackle in more obvious passing scenarios.
Coples played 67.8 percent of the snaps in 2014, and while he was a serviceable pass-rusher (21 hurries, 11 hits, seven sacks), he was even better in run defense (21 stopped runs, three missed tackles).
Perhaps this is the year Coples finally gets on the field for the large majority of snaps, and with a coaching staff that's proved it can find ways to make use of just about anyone, a highly talented player like Coples should be in for a treat.
Unless otherwise noted, all advanced statistics obtained via Pro Football Focus.
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