Hunter benched; Rex names Howard starting RT

Wayne Hunter said he would be the Jets starting right tackle “until they tell me otherwise.”

Well, the team spoke loud and clear on Thursday.

Rex Ryan announced that Hunter no longer is the Jets starting right tackle and his job has been given to his backup:  Austin Howard.

“The more I went back and looked at where we’re at as a football team and getting feedback from coaches and knowing the history of Wayne and the success that Wayne had, basically as a sixth man, I’ve decided that’s the way we’re going to go,” said Ryan.

Hunter will return to his role as a sixth offensive lineman (i.e., blocking tight end in jumbo packages)  – a “valuable role” where he "excelled,” according to the coach.

“I know the success that he had and the success he had when I got here for the first two years in this role, I think can really be helpful for this team,” Ryan said of Hunter. "So that’s what I’ve decided to do.”

Though there were highlights to Hunter’s brief tenure as a starter – i.e., he received a game ball for his play against Dolphins OLB Cameron Wake in Week 6 – there also have been glaring instances where he’s been overmatched. And the latest example came Saturday night, when he had a hand in 2.5 sacks on Mark Sanchez and another that was nullified by a Giants penalty.

(Though it seemed the Jets should have given Hunter some (any!) help against Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul, the coaching staff repeatedly told reporters they weren’t “game-planning" for the Giants – or the Bengals for that matter.)

Ryan’s still taking a wait-and-see approach with Howard, as far as the long-term starting gig is concerned. But the coach is looking forward to seeing how the 25-year-old fares on the offensive line with guys like Brandon Moore and Nick Mangold.

“He earned that right,” Ryan said of giving Howard a shot. “He played extremely well against Cincinnati. Did OK against the Giants, but did really well against Cincinnati. And this is what I want to do. I’m going to put him in that situation and we’ll see how he does this week.”

Despite glaring signs that Hunter was ill-equipped to handle the starting right tackle job, it took the Jets over a year to make a move fans have consistently been calling for.

Why?

“We were excited when we picked up Austin Howard,” Ryan explained. “When he came in, I think he turned some heads. He really did. But to sit back and say we’re going to put all our eggs in one basket – we had to see it first.”

The coach said he broke the news to Hunter on Thursday morning and Hunter handled it well, expressing a desire to do whatever he can to help the team win.

“He’s a team-first guy,” said Ryan. “Without question.” 

The Jets coach also clarified his stance on being "in the market" for a starting right tackle. 

"Right now, I'm thinking we're OK," he said. "But a starting right tackle? I don't know if that's the case. I don't know exactly what's out there. We don't know what's going to be cut from other teams or anything else. But when the question came in, I answered it honestly -- that I don't believe you're going to find somebody right now that can be a starting right tackle ahead of what we have. Now, we'll see how Austin plays."

The team confirmed it has no intention of trading Hunter (or his $2.45M guaranteed contract).