NFL

4 things to know about the Jets after training camp

After 22 days, 16 practices, lots of penalty push-ups and a few bold proclamations, the Jets left Cortland Thursday, ending the most difficult part of training camp.

The Jets have a few more camp practices next week at their Florham Park headquarters, but we thought it would be a good time to take stock of what we’ve observed from the Jets during their time in Cortland.

Here are a few of my takeaways from training camp:

1. The cornerback situation is bad, like real bad. It has been clear since March the Jets would have issues at the position after letting Antonio Cromartie go and failing to replace him with a big-name corner. But seeing this group on the field every day has made me think it might be even worse than anyone thought.

Even before Dimitri Patterson, Dee Milliner and Dexter McDougle went down to injuries, this group was suspect. McDougle is done for the season, but Patterson and Milliner are expected back before the regular season starts. Even so, Patterson is on his seventh team in 10 years and you can see why. He has his moments, but he’s not a starting cornerback. Plus, the knock on him when the Jets signed him was he could not stay healthy. He currently is dealing with three injuries in one leg.

Before suffering his high ankle sprain, Milliner showed some signs of improvement. I still don’t think he’s a No. 1 cornerback, though. He got beat in practice enough times to make you think he was going to have another inconsistent season

The depth at the position is laughable. It’s so bad they had to move safety Antonio Allen to cornerback when the recent injuries occurred. Allen was a college linebacker who has shown he can cover tight ends in his first two years. Now, they’re asking him to cover receivers.

Publicly, the Jets are saying they’re not worried about the corners. Trust me, they are.

2. Quarterback Geno Smith looks a lot more comfortable in Year 2. It’s hard to judge Smith’s decision-making from practice, but he looks stronger and is way more confident. Teammates are raving about Smith’s demeanor and his grasp of Marty Mornhinweg’s system.Does that translate into fewer interceptions? We’ll see, but it has to be seen as a positive right now. The presence of Michael Vick has not fazed Smith at all.

Eric DeckerAnthony J. Causi

3. The wide receivers are better than last year — I’m just not sure how much better. Eric Decker is a professional who has been a much-needed addition to that position group. You know Jeremy Kerley will be solid in the slot, but I remain unsure about what the other guys will do.

It’s the same old story from Stephen Hill. He looks great in practice one day, has three drops the next and disappeared in the first preseason game against the Colts. Ideally, the Jets would love Hill to be the guy opposite Decker because of his height/speed combination. But can they trust him?You know what you’re going to get out of David Nelson. He’s a steady player who is going to catch the ball, but is he really a No. 2 receiver? The rest of the group has not shown much in camp.

4. It’s way too soon to panic on this one, but the rookie draft class has been unimpressive. First-round safety Calvin Pryor has missed time with a concussion, so he is tough to evaluate. Wide receiver Shaq Evans and McDougle both suffered major injuries and are expected to miss the season. Tight end Jace Amaro has dropped passes as if it were a job requirement.None of the rookies have had any impact. Wide receiver Quincy Enunwa has had a few nice days recently and teammates have praised outside linebacker IK Enemkpali. Outside of those two, it’s hard to find many nice things to say about this group.