Fantasy Football Daily - 2022 Franchise Focus: New York Jets

Episode Date: July 2, 2022

Joe Dolan (@FG_Dolan) invites Michael Nania (@Michael_Nania) of Jets X-Factor (@jetsxfactor) to discuss the upcoming season for the New York Jets. The Franchise Focus Podcast series is brought to you by Underdog Fantasy (@UnderdogFantasy). New users can sign up to Underdog using promo code FANTASYPTS for up to $100 in bonus cash on their first deposit. Visit fantasypoints.com/underdog for more info. The podcast series is also sponsored by Evan's Sports Cards & Collectibles (@evanscards). Follow @EvansCards on Twitter for weekly updates and card releases, Like on Facebook, and head to evanssportsnj.com for more info, including the always-updated eBay store. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/fantasy-points-podcast/support Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fantasypoints.com and the 2022 franchise focus series is sponsored by Underdog Fantasy, the best and easiest way to play fantasy sports, with no waivers, trades, or lineup setting for season-long drafts. New users can sign up to Underdog Fantasy Fantasy, PTS, for up to $100 in bonus cash on their first deposit. That's promo code FantasyPTS. Head to FantasyPoint.com slash Underdog for more information. Now let's get to the show. It's time for the Fantasy Points podcast brought to you by FantasyPoints.com. Top level fantasy football and NFL betting analysis from every perspective and angle,

from numbers to the film room with a single goal to help you score more fantasy points. Welcome back to the franchise focus podcast series here at FantasyPoint.com. As you can tell, the frog in my throat is slightly improving. My name is Joe Dolan. And today we're going to be talking New York Jets. And I've got to be honest, I was thrilled to find the website that I found owned by the guests that I have on today's podcast. His name is Michael Nannia. He is the co-owner of JetsXFactor.com.

He's the co-host of the Cool Your Jets podcast. And it's a great website that has film analysis, analytic analysis. And they also are credentialed at the website. website. Just a huge resource for Jets fans. I was so thrilled to find it. And I'm thrilled that Michael has agreed to come on the podcast to talk New York Jets here on the franchise focus series. Michael, welcome to the podcast. Thanks for joining me. Glad that we could get your site, get your site in the eyesight of Fantasy Points subscribers. It's great to have you on. Yeah, no problem. Thanks for having me. I appreciate the kind words about this site. And I'm looking

forward to talking some Jets. We will get into that, but I have to let you know that the franchise focus series of podcast is brought to you by Evans Sports Cards and Collectibles, the best place for cards, collectibles, autographs, and more. All our memorabilia giveaways at Fantasy Points are from Evans, Cards, and Collectibles. We always have the latest boxes and releases from Panini, Upper Deck, Tops, and more. And Evans is a family-owned small biz, not a super store. It's great for an in-person visit if you're in the Philadelphia Air.

and it's just as good to visit the eBay store. Follow Evans cards on Twitter for weekly updates and card releases. On Facebook and head to Evansportsnj.com for more info, including the always updated eBay store. And the releases this week include the 2021 Panini Contenders slash optic football set, the 2022 Panini select baseball set. And that's Evansportsnj.com online and at Evans cards on Twitter. And you can like them on Facebook as well. Tell them that the guys from fantasy points.com sent you.

All right, Michael, as you well know, like, the first question I'm going to ask you is pretty obvious. What can we expect from Zach Wilson? A very talented guy who had some exceptional flashes, got some injuries, maddeningly inconsistent. But where does the Jets franchise think of Zach Wilson at this point? Do they expect a major second-year leap? And from your own observation, is there a good reason to expect that that leap can come? I think there are fairly high expectations for him this year. I don't think the expectations are to the point where, you know,

they expect him to hit his eventual ceiling this year. But I think sort of a Josh Allen trajectory is what the organization is kind of hoping to see. And I think the fan base collectively is hoping for. And that's not to say that, you know, what Allen has done is normal, that it's expected. because he's a huge outlier. But I think just the structure of his development, you know, going from year one, he struggled a lot. And he put up very similar numbers to what Wilson did this year in his rookie season.

But then he goes out in year two. And he's a, you know, respectable quarterback, leads the bills to a winning playoff season, improves in a lot of areas, but, you know, still clearly had a lot of improvement to do, even with the progress he made. But then it's in year three where he broke out and became the superstar that he is now. So I think it's sort of that trajectory that the Jets are looking for. You know, year one, he did a decent job protecting the football outside of that New England game to start the year. He had no picks over his final five games. But overall, he did, you know, struggle with

accuracy early in the season. The explosiveness wasn't quite as great as they probably hoped. But there were injuries in the second half of the season. And he did come back post-injury after missing four games in the middle of the year, and finished the season really nicely. He didn't put up the best numbers, but in terms of the eye test and what you saw on film and just the processing speed and the confidence and the way he was able to command the offense

in spite of the many injuries that they were dealing with, was really impressive. He clearly did show some progress that he can build off of. And the hope is that this year, with a better supporting cast, a second year in the system, that he can translate that into, some more tangible production than what we saw in that first year.

So I do think the hope is to see a sizable leap, but not yet to the ceiling that I think that the Jets obviously believed he had when they drafted him with the second pick. So I think the hope is to see him somewhere in that middle of the Pac-Munk quarterbacks, probably 20 to 16 range, I think, would be an ideal place to see him jump to. And that's realistic, too. And like, I think it's interesting that you mentioned the supporting cast, which obviously we were going to get to. But I think similarly, he and Josh Allen are different players.

They're different sizes. Their styles are different. But they both kind of had that wild stallion to them, right? Like that talented guy, that athletic guy that just needed to be tamed a little bit. And, you know, the bills unlocked Allen by getting him Stefan Diggs. Now, the Jets haven't necessarily done that by going and getting that established veteran, although I guess you could say they did try. But now you've got really talented youngsters in that receiving corps.

This is a talented group of players the Jets have. And of course, we're talking about the Wilson-Wilson connection now, in addition to what Elijah Moore brought them with Garrett Wilson, the first round pick. And when you watched him on film and when you look at what the Jets did and what the Jets do offensively, what did you see from him? And what do you think the Jets saw from Garrett Wilson and how he works kind of alongside Elijah Moore?

Yeah, it's interesting. And Michael Flore actually was kind of actually breaking down Gary Wilson's film a little bit in a documentary that the Jets put out recently about their offseason. And sort of the way he laid it out is he talked about wanting to build a wide receiver group, sort of like a basketball lineup, you know, having different skill sets that complement each other rather than having, you know, a bunch of overlapping skill sets. And the Jets have Corey Davis who brings size and a big target over the middle. Elijah Moore is obviously on the smaller side for a receiver, but he's a great route runner, great with the ball in his hands, and had a really hot finish to last season before his season came to an end with an injury. Then Garrett Wilson, the way Lafour labeled it, brings a lot of these different things that

they have in other guys, like Moore, like Davis, and also Braxton Berrios, who they re-signed, who's more of a slot gadget kind of guy. He really, Garrett Wilson really does bring a lot of different things to the table, and he kind brings that versatility to where he's not going to be pigeonholed outside he won't be pigeonholed in the slot he can kind of play these different roles and allow other players on the team to be played in roles where they're best suited to get the most out of their skill set so i think the versatility is a big thing um but i think more than anything in terms of his skill set it's the potential of his route running i think that stands out the most to me um i think he can refine it a little bit because there are

some, I think there are some instances of maybe a little bit over exaggerating with some of the moves and things. He could be more efficient with the movements. But when it's, when it was really working for him, just his explosiveness out of cuts, the way he can set guys up, stack them, and then get out of his break is really sharp. Just picture perfect stuff at his best. So with some refinement and some time, I think he really can be a very sharp route runner and have a good, a good connection with Zach Wilson in the intermediate range, then also in the deep game as well. So it will be interesting to see what his volume is going to be like in this first season with so many different guys to compete against four opportunities.

But just from a, you know, pure on-field and, you know, schematic standpoint, I think he really does unlock a lot of things with his ability to play different roles. So I'm going to put you on the spot a little bit here. You did tell me off air that you do play fantasy. Right now. in early fantasy drafts, best ball drafts, Elijah Moore is going roughly 40 picks before Garrett Wilson. Do you think that's fair or should they be a little tighter? I do think that's fair because when you look at, I mentioned Elijah Moore's finished briefly,

but his finish to last year was, it was really impressive, the numbers he was putting up over a five, six weeks span before he went out. And what was really impressive about that is, you know, he had that really cold start of the season. I think he had a couple. He had a negative yardage game. He had a zero yardage game. But that wasn't really his doing. When we were watching his film, both myself and a few of the other Jets film guys

that I talked to, we all saw the same thing that he was getting open. He was beating guys and that, you know, his individual play was there. And it felt like it was just due to come at some point, the numbers, to match up what he was doing. And eventually they did come over those final six games. before he went out, five touchdowns and six games. I think he was averaging about 70 yards a game, something like that. So that was just, you know, Wilson finally getting him the ball after him starting poorly. But more his play last season individually was great.

So I do think it's fair for more to be ahead of Garrett Wilson just because of how well he played last season, kind of proving that he does have it it takes to be a high-level producer and already having that chemistry with Zach Wilson. So I do think that it's fair to value more, more highly than Garrett Wilson right now. So you're probably not going to be surprised by this, but Elijah Moore is not the first jet coming off the board in fantasy drafts. That actually is the other rookie on offense. That's Breece Hall, who's generally going around the fourth round. Obviously, Michael Carter had a nice rookie season for what he is. I think he's a good receiver. But Breast Hall is, the first running back drafted.

The Jets, they make a move that they did. They did trade up for him, correct? Yeah, two spots. Yes. So they traded up to get him. They obviously clearly wanted this play. Were you surprised that they would move up for a running back in the second round? And whether or not you were surprised, how do you think he fits into this offense and what his role will be?

Yeah, this move definitely took me by surprise. I think at this point of the draft, I was kind of expecting them to attack linebacker, tackle, safety, a few of the defensive holes they still had left. So it definitely caught me off guard. It's not something that I was expecting, but it does fit in with some of the things they're trying to do, you know, surround Zach Wilson with playmakers, run the ball more effectively than they did last season and just find ways to make Zach Wilson's life easier.

So I think it does complement some of the philosophies that they've had in building this team and supporting their quarterback. But, you know, when you do trade up for a running back, and it wasn't the most lucrative trade, they gave up a fifth round pick to go up a couple spots. But still, it is a trade up. It is a high second round running back pick. So the expectations are high. I don't think you make that move, both the trade and the selection, if you're not confident

that that guy is going to be a star running back. And, you know, there is going to be sort of that committee aspect. Michael Carter had a very nice rookie season last year. was on pace for over 1,000 scrimmage yards if you were healthy. So, yeah, he's definitely going to get his touches as well. But to, again, to make that investment in a running back, you've got to be very confident at what he's going to be. So I think to start out, it should be a fairly even split between these two guys,

similar to what we've seen with other teams who runs kind of offense with San Francisco, where Michael Flora comes from. So I think there will definitely be a share of opportunities to start out. But the star potential certainly lies with Breece Hall, a guy who's athleticism and his production compares to some of the best running back prospects we've seen in recent memories, in recent memory. So yeah, how they split it up is going to be very interesting to see. But the explosive potential at Breece Hall,

just his breakaway speed, his ability to hit those home runs, those 60-70 yarders. is something that Michael Carter doesn't quite bring. So I think that's what is going to give Breece Hall the edge in terms of both fantasy potential and in the long run, probably taking the bulk of the opportunities that are available. You know, now it's funny. Like obviously, I was like, yeah, they did trade up for him. Yeah, because now I remember because it was pretty obvious.

Actually, once they made the trade, I thought, oh, boy, this is for Breece Hall because they moved in front of Houston. And Houston was linked to him so much in the process. So now I remember the trade. trade pretty well. Now, if they're going to run the ball more effectively, they're going to have to do so behind an offensive line that they honestly probably was maybe better than Jet fans thought it would be last year. But, you know, you have three first round picks the Jets do. They don't draft an offensive line. And not to say they didn't get good players in the first round with

Soss Gardner and Johnson and Garrett Wilson. But the offensive line, I think it's a referendum kind of year for Mackay Bechton. What do you see from this line? And where are the Jets hoping to improve this year up front? Yeah, there are very high expectations for this unit. Right now it's projected to have the fifth highest cap space allocation of any offensive line in the league this year. And two of the guys are first round picks with Bechtin and Elijah Verit Tucker.

So they've invested a lot into this unit. Sign Lake and Tomlinson. but Joe Douglas, the general manager, kind of preached about it when he first came in a couple years ago that this is what he wanted to emphasize. He's a former O-Lyman himself. He comes from the Eagles who won a Super Bowl on the strength of a very good O-Line. So it was always a goal. And now it's all really come together this year. All the pieces are in place from left to right.

And just staying healthy is going to be the biggest thing with Mackay Beckton, who had a very promising rookie year and can create. a lot of holes in the run game. Pass protection potential is great as well. So staying healthy is going to be the biggest thing. But from left to right with Becht in at left tackle, Tomlinson takes over at left guard, AVT, Elijah Verit Tucker. He's going to kick over to right guard. Connor McGovern at center, good run blocker, good fit for the zone scheme.

And then George Fan at right tackle. Well, we'll see actually with the sides in terms of tackle. Beckton and Phant are going to be competing for that left tackle spot. because when Bechton went out last year, George Fan took over for him and had a very good season in pass protection was one of the most efficient pass blocking tackles in the league. So that will be interesting to see. But they got five quality starters. And it's going to come down to staying healthy to the progression of AVT, the progression of Bechton. So there are question marks.

But the ceiling is high. The investment is high. And obviously with those things, the expectations are high. Well, I didn't know specifically that the Jets are like top five in cap space allocated to the offensive line. But as soon as you said that, I was like, up, Joe Douglas, worked for Howie Roseman, worked for the Eagles. That makes perfect sense. Right, exactly. And it is cool from a Jets perspective, you know, compared to previous GMs where you didn't really get much of a sense of what the identity was and what their core philosophies were to see Joe Douglas come in.

know his background with the Eagles and even going back to the Ravens with Ozzie Newsome. And you know, you sort of connect those dots and try to picture what his team building is going to be like. And then he backs it up with what he tells you in the press conferences. And now that we're three years into this, you can kind of see all this stuff coming together. And he's backing up some of the things that he's talked about wanting to do. And you can clearly see how they want to win games, what kind of team they want to be. So it is a change of pace compared to previous regimes. But yeah, the offensive line is clearly at the core of how the Jets want to be able to move the ball offensively.

Also a focus on depth, by the way. You know, they take Max Mitchell, the developmental tackle out of Louisiana is a really talented kid. And they also brought in Nate Herbig from Philadelphia, who, you know, when he got released, I was like, he's probably going to get a starting job somewhere. because he has that experience and now he's just a really good backup guard for the Jets. So I think that's something like from a fantasy perspective, if I'm going to draft Brees Hall or I'm going to invest in any of these past catchers, I feel good about the Jets' offensive line situation. And look, you follow the Jets closer than I do. When's the last time you felt good about the Jets' offensive line situation?

Oh, it's been a long time. And even the past couple years, you could feel it coming together just because of the increased investment with, you know, Douglas comes in. his first pick is Becht in 2020, trades up for AVT last year. So you could feel it coming together. But still in each of the last two years, all the pieces weren't quite together yet. But this year, it's all come together with the signing of Tomlinson. All five pieces were acquired by Douglas and were big investments with two first rounders and three fairly higher end free agents.

So it's been a long time. Not since they had their dominant veteran line. in the Rex Ryan era with Nick Mangled, DeBrickshaw Ferguson, Brandon Moore, Damien Woody, all those guys back in the late 2000s, early 2010s, is the last time that you could look at this unit and be like, yeah, that's a strength. They are going to win games because of that group. Not since then, but this is, yeah, Douglas has put his money where his mouth is and really made sure to do everything he can to make this group effective.

So we'll see if they can fulfill that ceiling. Michael, one question that I've asked all my guests so far on the franchise focus podcast series that I'm going to pose to you is one lower end guy on offense who might not be projected as like a major contributor in the way Garrett Wilson or Elijah Moore is projected who could maybe surprise some people make an impact from a fantasy perspective. Somebody you might be looking to pick up off your waiver wire. If there's a player like that on this offense, who do you think it is? I think the first guy who comes to mind for me is Tyler Conn.

And I know he was, you know, a good fantasy producer for a tight among titans last year. But I think he does probably get overshadowed by C.J. Usama a little bit because Usama signed the bigger contract. He was in the Super Bowl spotlight last year. And maybe isn't as flashy of a player in terms of his highlights and stuff. But when you look at Conklin and his film, he really, he can run very solid routes. And I think he's going to be a very useful short to intermediate. option safety blanket for Zach Wilson. So I could really see him leaning on Conklin for some good target and reception volume

throughout the season, especially in games where, you know, say you have a wide receiver injury, Elijah Moore is not playing, Corey Davis isn't playing, or there's a running back injury, there's another safety blanket off the board. I think in those games where the jets are really going to be methodical offensively, you could see Conklin be a very featured option because just his route running is really solid. and Zach Wilson is a guy who at his best last year was actually, you know, he's known for his explosiveness. But when he was at his best last year, it was when he was working within the structure of the offense and getting the ball out quickly and making good throws and rhythm. And I think Conklin can compliment that really well.

So Conklin is a guy who I think does have a potential to sort of outperform expectations a little bit. I'm going to tell everybody listening to this podcast now, when I was setting out and looking for people to come on the podcast, you know, I started with people that I have followed, you know, people work for the athletic or the NYPost, stuff like that. And I'm just looking for good writers and good work. And I am embarrassed. I'm going to flat out tell you guys, I am embarrassed that I didn't follow Michael on Twitter, that I didn't follow Jets X Factor.

Michael, I got to tell you, this has been one of the most comprehensive franchise focus interviews I've done. I've been trying to keep them to 15 to 20 minutes. I just like talking to you, quite frankly. So I'm sorry it went a little longer than I said, but guys, if you are a fantasy player, if you're a Jets fan and you are not following Jets X Factor, that's at Jets X Factor on Twitter, or Michael Nannia at Michael underscore Nannia, that's N-A, you're doing yourself a disservice because this is now my go-to Jets resource.

You guys know I didn't talk like that on some of the other podcast. But, oh, and by the way, if you like listening to him more than you like listening to me, it's the Cool Your Jets podcast at CYJPod on Twitter. Michael, thank you so much for joining us. Next time I need anything, Jets, I'm coming to you, man. I appreciate it. I'm kind of embarrassed right now because of how much you're pumping us up. But I really appreciate it.

And also, like, going over the time limit, that's probably on me. I mean, I was going pretty in-depth with some of these answers, maybe more so than I needed to. So that's not your fault. And I'm totally okay with going over. over those initial 15 to 20 minutes. But yeah, I really appreciate it. And just let me know any time.

This was a blast to come on and talk. I love it. Dude, I'm from the Northeast, okay? And I know jet fans. And it's so funny to me how different Jets and Giants fans are. Like, I'm sure Jet fans are like, oh, we're better fans. But they're different fans. They're like, there's a little more Philly in Jets fans than Giants fans, in my opinion.

And I'm from Philly. Like there's a little more of that Philly kind of, hey, you can, I'll talk shit on my team. But if you do it, I'm going to punch you in the mouth. But like, there's a little bit of that, right? And, um, yeah, my buddy, large jet fan used to call into my serious show. I'm going to make sure he's following you on Twitter for, I'm sure he already does, but I'm going to make sure he is. Michael, thank you so much, man. Like, by the way, do you think that's accurate about Jet fans?

Oh, I definitely agree. I mean, I feel like a kind of. the way I view it is no disrespect to Giants fans. Obviously, they've a lot of passionate fans, but I feel like the average Jets fan is more dedicated to the Jets than the average Giants fan. And then you couple in the lack of Jets success. I think that's how you get a more passionate and kind of rabid fan base for the Jets versus the Giants. Obviously, I might be a little bit biased, but that's sort of how I picture the difference. And I don't want to, I don't want to trash Giant fans, because I know a lot of really passionate giant fans.

Yeah, yeah, for sure. Like, look, as somebody who's rooted for four Philadelphia sports teams in my life, the bitterness and stubbornness of rooting there does create a little bit of a stockholmey type of love. Like, that's the only way I really know how to put it. Yes. Yeah, for sure. He is Michael Nannia. You can follow him on Twitter at Michael underscore Nannia.

That's N-A-N-I-A. and make sure you follow JetsXFactor.com. I'm Joe Dolan. We'll get Michael back on the pod soon. But hey, right now, just listen to his pod because, heck, he doesn't have a sore throat. I do. But anyway, guys, we'll be joining you on the franchise focus, talking the rest of the NFL throughout the next coming weeks. I just hope you really enjoyed this podcast as much as I did.

We'll catch you later. Thanks for tuning in to this edition of the Fantasy Points podcast. Remember to subscribe, rate, and review on your favorite platform. Join the roster at FantasyPoints.com.