The analysts at Pro Football Focus have given New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields something of a ‘good news, bad news’ situation as we move closer to the 2025 NFL season. On the one hand, New York’s offensive line is expected to be among the very best in the league, especially along the interior. On the other hand, the pass catchers around Fields may struggle to get open, catch the ball, or pick up yards after the catch.
In a recent ranking of each team’s receiving corps, defined as receivers, tight ends, and running backs, Trevor Sikkema of Pro Football Focus placed the Jets in the bottom five, landing at 28th overall. Sikkema had this to say about the Jets: Garrett Wilson and Davante Adams were the only Jets receivers to record 64.0-plus PFF receiving grades last season, and Adams is no longer in the fold. Running back Breece Hall was great as a receiver in 2023 (88.9 PFF receiving grade with 591 receiving yards) but took a major step back in 2024. There isn’t much else in the way of proven talent. The Jets don’t seem like they will be a very pass-happy team this season.
It’s a tough analysis, but not unfair. Aside from Garrett Wilson, who is already displaying a renewed chemistry with his former college teammate Justin Fields, there’s just not a lot of proven talent at wide receiver or tight end. Hall is primed for a bounce-back year, but we have to see it first before we can rank him highly as a pass catching running back.
That last line from Sikkema is intriguing, however, because it can be taken as a silver-lining for Jets fans, even if it’s not meant that way. New York’s lack of receiving talent may force them to be a run heavy team, but the roster appears ready to be an absolutely punishing force on the ground. Both Hall and second-year player Braelon Allen look ready to take the NFL by storm in 2025, and we all know that Fields is a threat to score with his legs from anywhere on the field.
Plus, head coach Aaron Glenn comes from Detroit, which featured arguably the best 1-2 running back duo in the NFL. He won’t be calling the offensive plays, of course, but don’t think that his time leading the defense in Detroit won’t lead to any influence on the other side of the ball.
I do think that the Jets’ pass catchers will prove to be better than a bottom five squad, but it may not matter much if the run game is as strong as it’s projected to be.
