Getty Image / Jared C Tilton
New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh called out the team’s offensive line on the most recent episode of Hard Knocks.
The O-line is one of the biggest concerns for the Jets heading into the 2023 NFL season.
This offseason, the New York Jets fixed one of their biggest flaws from last year.
They went out and got Aaron Rodgers to fix their awful quarterback play.
Rodgers joins a team that already had some impressive players on offense and one of the NFL’s best defenses.
Unfortunately, there is one unit that could still potentially hold the Jets back this offseason and their coaching staff is well aware of it.
On the most recent episode of Hard Knocks, head coach Robert Saleh called out the team’s offensive line, telling them that none of the moves they’ve made are going to matter if the O-line doesn’t step up.
“Offense, it was our first f****** opportunity to change the stink that’s been in this organization for a very long time on the offensive side of the ball,” Saleh said (via Pro Football Talk). “You can have a Hall of Fame quarterback. You can have two $10 million-plus receivers. You can have a reigning offensive rookie of the year. You can have all kinds of skill in the running back room. None of it f****** matters until the big boys up front change who the f*** we are. We as coaches, we as an organization can’t want it more than you.”
The offensive line is the most apparent issue for the New York Jets heading into this season. It is expected to be among the worst in the league, especially at the tackles.
That weakness along the line has even led former Packers QB Kurt Benkert to speculate that David Bakhtiari could be the next one of Aaron Rodgers’ former teammates to reunite with him as a Jet.
With all of the money the Jets freed up with Rodgers’ new deal, the Jets could address their needs on the O-line some time before the NFL’s trade deadline.
If they don’t, Rodgers could end up facing a whole lot of pressure in the pocket this season.