Training camp has not been kind to the Jets’ draft class.
Safety Calvin Pryor, the team’s first-round pick, has been sidelined with a concussion and will not play in Thursday’s preseason opener against the Colts. Wide receiver Shaq Evans, taken in the fourth round, won’t play due to a shoulder injury that could cost him the entire season.
Then, there’s Jace Amaro.
The tight end from Texas Tech was taken in the second round by the Jets, and instantly had high expectations placed upon him. After catching 106 passes last year in college, the thought was he could be a receiving option the Jets have lacked.
So far, he has struggled. Amaro has dropped a ton of passes in practice and is clearly struggling to learn the offense. He has drawn the ire of quarterback Geno Smith and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg in practice, with both of them yelling at him about his route running.
“What I see [with] Jace is he’s getting better and when Jace knows what he’s doing, when he’s dialed in, then we’re really pleased with it,” Jets coach Rex Ryan said. “It’s when he’s not so sure, that’s when he’s making mistakes. Again, I feel good about Jace. There’s no doubt I feel good about him. We’ll see how he performs, but I expect him to play well Thursday.”
Amaro lined up mostly split off from the offensive line at Texas Tech and has had to adjust to being an in-line tight end, though the Jets are splitting him out wide at times, too. His blocking skills are shaky, but the Jets won’t care if he can become a complementary receiving threat to Eric Decker.
“His expectations are high and so are ours for Jace,” Mornhinweg said last week. “His challenge is, [and] he’s going to be a fine player, how quick he can get that thing done. So that’s his challenge. Steve Hagen is the tight end coach and [is] working hard with Jace [on] just very basic things – terminology and first two steps and how we’re getting in and out of things and all the different routes.”
The Jets want to remind season-ticket holders that their rewards cards can be used to gain entry to MetLife Stadium tonight. Fans can also print out their tickets or forward them to someone else, who can print them out.