As the Jets get close to training camp, I am going to examine the roster and give you my top 25 players. Each weekday, we will reveal another person on the list, leading right into camp. I am not including rookies on this list because I do not feel it is possible to fully evaluate them before they play a game.
No. 1: Muhammad Wilkerson
Last year’s ranking: 4
Position: Defensive end
Age: 24
How acquired: Selected in the first round of the 2011 Draft
Years left on contract: 2
2014 salary cap figure: $2.2 million
Looking back at 2013: Wilkerson became the best player on the Jets last year with a relentlessness that led the defense. He finished his third season with 63 tackles, 10 ½ sacks, 2 forced fumbles and even an interception and was named second-team All-Pro.
The potential the Jets saw in 2011 when they took him in the first round of the draft became fully realized in 2013. Wilkerson was strong against the run, helping the Jets finish third in rushing defense, and was the team’s leading pass rusher.
Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 15th-best 3-4 defensive end in football. He had 40 “stops,” or plays resulting in no gain for the offense. Only Houston’s J.J. Watt and teammate Sheldon Richardson had more at the position. On top of his 10 ½ sacks, he had 32 quarterback hurries.
About the only knock on Wilkerson’s season was his trouble with penalties. He had nine, the second-most on the team. He jumped off sides five times, an inexcusable total.
Outlook for 2014: The biggest story about Wilkerson this year may not be on the field. The Jets picked up the option on Wilkerson’s contract for 2015, meaning he enters this year way underpaid. He will make just $1.2 million this year, a low total for the best player on the team.
Wilkerson has not made a fuss publicly about his contract and he has been the anti-Revis, reporting to every team activity in the spring and not even threatening to hold out. With the way general manager John Idzik does business, he does not usually do anything until he faces a deadline. So Wilkerson probably won’t be getting a long-term deal anytime soon. Will that affect his play this year? Will he be worried about an injury jeopardizing his payday? If you’ve spent any time around Wilkerson, you would say no way. But you never know how these things play out.
On the field, the Jets just need Wilkerson to keep doing what he’s doing. He has become the most reliable player on the team. If he can cut down on his penalties, he could earn a trip to his first Pro Bowl.