FLORHAM PARK, N.J. \u2014 The New York Jets are into their second week of training camp. There will be no (or shouldn\u2019t be any) sweeping conclusions made based on what has transpired so far, but there is plenty to be learned.<\/p>\n
A few players \u2014 some expected, some surprises \u2014 have stood out through five practices, two of them in pads. Here\u2019s a look at eight who have caught my eye:<\/p>\n
OT Armand Membou<\/p>\n
An argument could be made Membou has been the best player on the field in training camp. He\u2019s at least been the best player on offense. Membou has been dominant at times, especially since Monday when the pads came on. There was one practice last week during which David Bailey got the better of him on a few reps, but that hasn\u2019t happened much since.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Membou didn\u2019t let any pass rushers near Geno Smith and opened up holes in the running game. During one-on-one drills, Will McDonald tried using his agility and speed to get around him, but Membou blocked him all the way around the pocket and then into the ground. Bailey attempted to bull rush him, and it didn\u2019t go anywhere. Membou looked like a high-caliber tackle as a rookie, and he appears ready to make a leap in Year 2.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just knew that he was going to come back in the offseason program and just be stone-faced and ready to go,\u201d Jets coach Aaron Glenn said. \u201cAnd he was exactly that. Man, he has this look on his face right now to where every rep matters, every rep counts. \u2026 He\u2019s operating at a high level right now.\u201d<\/p>\n
His battles with Bailey have been fun to watch.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a really good player, man,\u201d Bailey said. \u201cGood feet, good low center of gravity, and he\u2019s ridiculously strong. He\u2019s been getting me better.\u201d<\/p>\n
The two early MVPs of Jets training camp<\/p>\n
Zack Rosenblatt<\/p>\n
S Minkah Fitzpatrick<\/p>\n
Membou has been the Jets\u2019 best player on offense, and on defense, it\u2019s probably been Fitzpatrick. The Jets haven\u2019t had this caliber of safety since Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye were at their best in 2019. Maybe Fitzpatrick isn\u2019t the same player he was in his prime, but he\u2019s quickly made an impact on the back end, much needed for a group of defensive backs that put together one of the worst statistical seasons in team history last season.<\/p>\n
Fitzpatrick has had either an interception or close to one in just about every practice, including a pick off Smith on the first play of team drills Monday. He always seems to be in the right place, and Glenn is using him all over the formation. His teammates and coaches have raved about the impact he\u2019s made behind the scenes, too.<\/p>\n
OLB David Bailey<\/p>\n
Last week, Bailey had about as dominant a practice as you\u2019ll see out of a rookie pass rusher, getting two or three \u201csacks\u201d (there is no contact on the quarterback in practice) and a couple of tackles for loss. He hasn\u2019t reached quite that peak since, but he\u2019s still looked far and away like the Jets\u2019 best edge rusher through five practices.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s had more success going against left tackle Olu Fashanu than Membou on the offense\u2019s right side.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s been a pain, man,\u201d Membou said. \u201cHe\u2019s a great player. He\u2019s smooth, he\u2019s quick, and he\u2019s got a natural ability to rush the passer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bailey\u2019s get-off and burst is his best and most obvious trait, but his strength in bull rushes has been impressive. He\u2019s made an impact in the running game, too, a significant development considering that was a big question for him coming into the NFL. The Jets will rotate their edge rushers, but Bailey has been getting most of the reps with Joe Ossai injured. Kingsley Enagbare was stepped on during Monday\u2019s practice and sat out Tuesday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just having fun with my brothers out there,\u201d Bailey said.<\/p>\n
QB Geno Smith<\/p>\n
Maybe this is a product of watching Justin Fields practice last year \u2014 and Zach Wilson in years past \u2014 but it has been a welcome sight to watch a quarterback who, at the very least, can make all the throws and is willing to try them. He was perfect in Saturday\u2019s practice (11 for 11 in 11-on-11 drills), though Smith came back down to earth Monday, throwing an interception on his first pass attempt. (Monday\u2019s practice was affected by pouring rain.)<\/p>\n
Smith was far from perfect Tuesday \u2014 7 of 12 with an interception in 11-on-11 \u2014 but that doesn\u2019t accurately highlight the quality of some plays he made in team drills. The interception was a poor throw into traffic, deflected by Jamien Sherwood into the arms of cornerback Brandon Stephens. Then Smith nearly threw another pick a couple of plays later, but otherwise, he was mostly on the money.<\/p>\n
On one play, he stood strong in the pocket as pressure came and threw a laser across his body into a tight window, complete to tight end Mason Taylor. Later, he connected with Garrett Wilson down the sideline on a perfect throw, hauled in by a toe-tapping Wilson for a 15-20 yard completion. He later connected with wide receiver Isaiah Williams on another deep ball, 20-25 yards down the field.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s something to be said about a quarterback who 1. can make all the throws, 2. isn\u2019t afraid to take risks and 3. doesn\u2019t let a mistake (such as an interception) affect him afterward.<\/p>\n
Rookie Cade Klubnik is also worth mentioning: He\u2019s completed 10 of 16 passes in two padded practices and appears to have a real command of the offense. He\u2019s doing a solid job of reading the defense and making quick decisions. Preseason will go a long way toward figuring out whether he\u2019s ready to be QB2.<\/p>\n
CB Azareye\u2019h Thomas<\/p>\n
It felt like Nahshon Wright had the edge in the spring, but through five practices, it feels like Thomas is more likely to emerge as the starter opposite Brandon Stephens. He held up well against Wilson in Tuesday\u2019s practice, nearly intercepting Smith at one point. Glenn has been tough on him \u2014 when he was asked how Thomas was playing last week, Glenn said he\u2019d wait to answer that until he saw him in pads.<\/p>\n
On Tuesday, Glenn said Thomas was \u201cdoing well\u201d but that he still needed to shake off some rust.<\/p>\n
Thomas started five games last season, then suffered a season-ending injury, missing out on valuable experience. He said last year he \u201chesitated\u201d a lot, so he focused this offseason on \u201ctrusting my eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere were a lot of plays I left out there\u201d in 2025, he said.<\/p>\n
DT Darrell Jackson<\/p>\n
T\u2019Vondre Sweat (hamstring) remains out, which has given Jackson a real opportunity to push for playing time. The fourth-round rookie is making the most of it so far. His size (6 feet 5, 315) is unique for a nose tackle, and he\u2019s made his mark even against Jets interior linemen such as Dylan Parham, Josh Myers and Joe Tippmann. With his ability to eat up blocks, he could play his way into a rotational role as a rookie.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s long, he\u2019s got big hands, he\u2019s able to disengage and make a play,\u201d Glenn said. \u201cHe can play gap-and-a-half, which I like between the defensive tackles. So, the more reps that he gets, I think the more comfortable he will get.\u201d<\/p>\n
TE Jelani Woods<\/p>\n
The fifth-year tight end has been a pleasant surprise in the tight ends group, and rookie Kenyon Sadiq\u2019s injury has allowed him more valuable reps with Smith and Klubnik. Sadiq suffered a setback in his return from offseason hernia surgery and is expected to miss some time.<\/p>\n
As for Woods: He missed two full seasons with the Colts (2023 and 2024) because of injuries but is fully healthy and showing some of the potential that made him a second-round pick when offensive coordinator Frank Reich was the head coach in Indianapolis. He has some legitimate ability as a blocker and has made some impressive plays catching the ball, too. On Monday, he was targeted a handful of times and caught most of them.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a number of things that you can envision him doing for us,\u201d Glenn said. \u201cYou can split him out and let him go one-on-one with a safety, a linebacker, and I\u2019m expecting him to win that matchup.\u201d<\/p>\n
K Jason Sanders<\/p>\n
The Jets have had their fair share of kicking competitions during training camps, but none has been as closely contested as this one. Sanders and Cade York have been nearly perfect when given the opportunity to alternate field goal attempts; Sanders has just been slightly better. Specifically, on two separate occasions, he has nailed 60-yard attempts, and York missed his.<\/p>\n
Sanders connected on 8 of 8 attempts Tuesday, and York went 7 of 8. The veteran Sanders has much more experience and a stronger NFL track record than York, so he should be considered the favorite.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"FLORHAM PARK, N.J. \u2014 The New York Jets are into their second week of training camp. There will…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":315707,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[9,11,430,10],"class_list":["post-315706","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-headlines","tag-new-york-jets","tag-new-york-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315706","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=315706"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/315706\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/315707"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=315706"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=315706"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=315706"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}