New York Jets OTAs: Latest Player Reports and Analysis

The New York Jets are one of very few teams that have already opened their organized team activities, and the news is already flying out of Florham Park. 

With competitions brewing at right guard and running back, a competition already closed at quarterback and another competition brewing between the wide receivers and cornerbacks, the Jets are going to have one of the feistiest training camps we've seen from them in recent years.

There's still a full month's worth of workouts before the spring portion of practice comes to a conclusion, and then there's still a full month's worth of training camp before the regular season begins. In that time, the Jets will whittle their roster down to 53 players and will hopefully find starters at some positions where there are still questions.

But that's all pretty far down the line, and a lot will change between now and then; what's brewing with the Jets right now?

Geno Smith Named the Week 1 Starter

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

The Jets' quarterback competition was so quick, it's almost as if it never even happened. 

Without more than a couple of practices under their belt, the Jets named third-year pro Geno Smith the starting quarterback for Week 1.

"Right now, Geno's the starter," said offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, via the team's official Twitter account. "That's the way it sits and that's the way we expect it to be."

To an extent, the way he phrased it leaves it open to interpretation. Is Smith guaranteed the starting job? Is he the starter "right now," with the caveat that things can change if Smith isn't playing up to snuff or is surpassed in practice? 

Either way, it's an awfully big vote of confidence in a quarterback who hasn't inspired much confidence with his play over the first two seasons of his career. Yes, he's finished red-hot in the final four games of each of the past two seasons (83.6 passer rating in the final four games of 2013, 105.3 rating in the final four games of 2014), but the other 24 games have been problematic and erratic.

Smith has the skill set to be successful in Gailey's offense, but the Jets should have at least given the other quarterbacks a chance—if for no other reason than to keep Smith honest. 

Sheldon Richardson, Muhammad Wilkerson No-Show OTAs

Bill Kostroun/Associated Press

The Jets and Muhammad Wilkerson are embroiled in a contract dispute, but Wilkerson isn't the only former first-round pick who is staying away from practice right now. Sheldon Richardson, one of two first-round picks in 2013, was also absent from OTAs for a second straight day, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini.  

Of course, this is a voluntary stage in the workout program, and therefore Richardson won't be penalized for not being present. That being said, Richardson's presence on the Jets defensive line has been pivotal to their success over the past two years, as the 2013 Defensive Rookie of the Year has notched 11.5 sacks in his first two seasons in the NFL and had eight last year alone.

With both Richardson and Wilkerson away from the practice field, fourth-year lineman Ronald Talley has been getting some reps with the first team, according to Eric Allen of NYJets.com. The Jets have one of the deepest defensive lines in the league, and should be able to field a competent front even without one of their big men, but it would be hard to do so without both of them. 

Brandon Marshall, Antonio Cromartie Engage in Trash Talk over OTAs

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Rex Ryan may be gone, but there's no shortage of brash confidence in his absence. 

Brandon Marshall and Antonio Cromartie engaged in a little friendly competitive back-and-forth over Twitter and Instagram in the hours leading up to the team's first practice of OTAs.

Marshall began by firing off the first salvo, saying it was "time to eat" with apologies to Cromartie and Darrelle Revis. Marshall then singled out both Cromartie and Revis individually before Cromartie fired back with a picture depicting how Marshall might react to being owned in practice. 

It turns out Cromartie was right, as Marshall came back a couple of hours after practice ended to tip his cap to his teammate. 

With the amount of talent at the wide receiver and cornerback positions, these battles could be some of the most fun to watch this summer—that is, if the Jets quarterbacks are effective in getting their receivers the ball. 

Stevan Ridley Participating in Position Drills at OTAs

Julio Cortez/Associated Press

Hey, Stevan Ridley, your knee isn't supposed to bend that way. Also, you're not supposed to be ready to practice just seven months after your knee bends that way. 

That's all worth saying because apparently no one else told Ridley, as he's been working in team drills with his fellow running backs at OTAs, according to ESPN's Rich Cimini. 

Ridley, 26, tore the ACL and MCL in his right knee on Oct. 13 against the Buffalo Bills, but has always been ahead of schedule in rehab. His availability at this early stage of the offseason workout program is a positive sign, but the only thing that will truly matter is how he plays when the games begin. Will he be the same Ridley, with a hard-nosed running style, or will he be slowed down at all after blowing out his knee?

Either way, Ridley figures to factor into the rotation in a complementary role to Chris Ivory, who should once again lead the Jets in carries.

Right Guard Position Is Wide-Open

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The Jets have created stability at a number of positions this offseason, but one position where there are still a lot of question marks is at guard. We can be relatively certain that James Carpenter—signed to a four-year, $19.1 million contract—will be the starter at left guard.

But what about right guard? Oday Aboushi finished out the 2014 season as the starter after Brian Winters went down with an injury. The Jets have also re-signed veteran Willie Colon and drafted Jarvis Harrison. That's at least four players who could be competing for a job.

"That's another interesting camp competition," head coach Todd Bowles said, via Randy Lange of NewYorkJets.com. "I know he played a lot of games last year, but we got a lot of guys coming back, [Dakota] Dozier's coming back, we've still got Willie sitting right there, we drafted Harrison. ... So it's going to be like running back. It's going to be tough competition and whoever comes out, comes out."

Right now, it's all yet to be determined, but the Jets have given themselves a good chance at finding someone to man the right guard spot simply by giving themselves so many options.