There is a new All-Pro toy in wide receiver Brandon Marshall, and an imaginative offensive coordinator in Chan Gailey. And, yet, if Saturday’s preseason victory over the Giants is any indication, the Jets’ ground attack will be their bread and butter, a straight ahead, north-south style of running intended to wear opponents down.
“We plan to be physical. That’s the only way we’re going to be successful, if we’re physical and we set the tone and we kind of lead the way,” offensive guard Willie Colon said. “That’s our mindset.”
The contest against the Giants was an example of how the Jets would like to play — fast and physical. Chris Ivory averaged 6.3 yards (38 yards on six touches) against the Giants’ first-team defense, opening up the passing attack for quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick and Co. Ivory, having a very strong summer, was just as effective the previous week against the Falcons, pounding out 36 yards on five carries.
“When we’re able to run the ball like that, I think any team when you’re able to run the ball, it makes everybody’s job easier,” said Fitzpatrick, who used the ground attack in his favor, keeping the Giants off-balance with play-action. “Up front, I know that our guys enjoy that, kind of imposing their will on the other team.
“We’ve got some really good running backs here. They’ve shown a lot this preseason and throughout their careers. So it will be a big focus for us this year.”
The Jets have versatility in the backfield. Ivory presents a mix of power and surprising speed, Bilal Powell is the change-of-pace back who catches the ball well out of the backfield, and newcomer Zac Stacy could be used in short-yardage situations. Former Patriot Stevan Ridley (hamstring), on the physically-unable-to-perform (PUP) list, could factor in at some point.
The 27-year-old Ivory is the unquestioned starter, a bull of a back who averaged 4.1 yards a year ago and scored six touchdowns. He delivers punishment instead of taking it, the kind of attitude the Jets offensive line wants to play with all season long.
“That’s the way Chris runs, since he’s been a Jet,” Colon said. “He runs physical, he blocks physical. He’s one of those guys who flat out gets after it when he’s out there. We try to complement him when we’re all together.”
The Jets have the potential to feature a bruising offensive line, one that may be somewhat long in the tooth — the members have been in the league an average of 8.6 years — but has experience on its side. It hopes to receive a boost from the additions of 26-year-old free-agent signee James Carpenter — formerly of the Seahawks — at left guard, who joins mainstays and perennial Pro Bowl candidates Nick Mangold at center and D’Brickashaw Ferguson at left tackle.
“It’s a group that I’m very confident with,” Fitzpatrick said.
“We plan to run the ball, we plan to set the tempo,” Colon said. “If we out-physical teams — we want it to be kind of our thing, our swag. If we’re able to do that, we should be successful.”
Mangold cautioned about reading too much into a preseason game, saying “there is still plenty to clean up.” But it was the kind of performance that eased some concerns about the offense, and perhaps offered a sneak peek into what the group can do, beginning Sept. 13 against the Browns.
“It was forward progress,” Jets coach Todd Bowles said. “From the first day of camp to where we’ve come to now, you want to see progress, and they’ve showed progression. Those guys took the bull by the horns and they led us out there.”
“They made some good plays. They made a bunch of good blocks, and they really played like a team. That’s what you want to see.”