Jets' defense will be a waiting game in early stage of season

Wait for it.

The Jets’ defense won’t be dominant right away just because Robert Saleh is calling the shots.

Saleh was a successful coordinator with San Francisco. But the first-year head coach said the Jets still very much in the learning stages of his 4-3 system.

He breaks up the process into three phases.

The 101 phase is learning the scheme. The 301 phase is getting the fundamentals and techniques down. The 501 phase is understanding what offenses are trying to do. Saleh said many are working through phases 101 and 301.

Saleh hopes the Jets can fast-track everything and make huge strides by their Sept. 12 opener in Carolina, but he said they will need time.

"There’s a lot of detail that we still got to get better at," Saleh said. "The anticipation, at least with our scheme, in years past, we’ve always gotten better as the year’s gone on."

Suffering two major losses on the defensive didn’t help this process.

Edge rusher Carl Lawson, who had been dominant in camp, sustained a season-ending Achilles injury in a joint practice with the Packers. Hard-hitting linebacker and defensive leader Jarrad Davis is expected to miss the first five games with an ankle injury.

Saleh dealt with numerous injuries last year in San Francisco including defensive linemen Nick Bosa, Solomon Thomas, Dee Ford and cornerback Richard Sherman. But they were still a ferocious, attacking top five defense.

It will be impressive if Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich can get the Jets anywhere near close to that level. But Saleh said time together played a big part in that

"Every team is different," Saleh said. "We had so many injuries a year ago, but there was so much continuity over four years of working with guys that all those backups were able to step in and they were already at that 501 phase. They were able to absorb as much of the offense as they could and still execute at a high level.

"It’s the same thing. Not that it’s going to take four years, but my point is that it does take time. Hopefully it doesn’t take too much time."

The Jets may have to use more blitz packages since Saleh’s defense relies heavily on the ends disrupting the quarterback. The Jets don’t have that dominant pass rusher that they expected Lawson to be.

They acquired defensive end Shaq Lawson from the Texans this week. Lawson is in the 101 phase so he will need time.

Lawson still could start in Week 1 on the edge. The former first-round pick has mostly underperformed, but he is an improvement from what the Jets have. John Franklin-Myers and Bryce Huff have been starting on the outside.

The Jets will need to get a push from the interior where they solid with Quinnen Williams, Sheldon Rankins and Foley Fatukasi leading that group.

The Jets also hope veteran linebacker C.J. Mosley returns to his Pro Bowl form after opting out last season due to COVID-19. He’s dropped weight because he’ll be in coverage more in this system. But with Davis out for a while, the Jets could start two rookies at the other linebacker spots: Jamien Sherwood and Hamsah Nasirildeen.

"We just got to make sure we stick to our game plan and that starts with us lining up and communicating," Mosley said. "No matter who’s on the field, if you’re not communicating, you’re not lined up and playing your technique, you’re not going to be a successful defense."

In the back end, the Jets are extremely young. They have veteran safeties Marcus Maye and LaMarcus Joyner. But the cornerback group includes third-year player Bless Austin, second-year pros Bryce Hall and Javelin Guidry and rookies Brandin Echols and Michael Carter II.

With or without a pass rush, teams will test the Jets’ corners and try to throw on them. Saleh said the defense overall just needs more time.

"There’s going to get to a point where they’re not thinking about scheme, they’re not thinking about technique," Saleh said. "They’re just thinking about what offenses are doing and they’ll speed up because of it."