CORTLAND — Last year Jets wide receivers coach Sanjay Lal handed his players a printout.
On it was a quote from a media member saying the Jets receiving corps was the worst in the NFL.
“I actually printed that out to say we know what we are and that’s ludicrous,” Lal said Saturday.
This year, no one is saying the Jets receivers are the worst in the league, but no one is going to compare them to the 1999 Rams either.
Most of the talk about this year’s wideouts is: They have Eric Decker and then what?
The Jets receivers hear it and hope to prove the critics wrong.
“Sure it motivates you anytime someone is talking smack about you and you have some pride,” Lal said. “It will motivate you. We try very hard not to base our self-worth on what others think. We just come to work every day and get better.”
Last season, the Jets wide receivers were the weakness of the offense. The seven receivers who played caught just 148 passes combined. By comparison, the duo of Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery combined to catch 189 passes for the Bears.
The Jets added Decker in free agency and hope either Stephen Hill or David Nelson grabs the No. 2 job with Jeremy Kerley staying healthy for an entire season in the slot. If that happens, combined with rookie Jace Amaro catching passes at tight end, the Jets actually might have a passing attack.
“We definitely want it to be a strength of the team,” said Kerley, who led the team with 43 receptions last season. “That’s how we look at ourselves. We want to be the best receiving corps in the NFL. That’s how we approach practice. That’s how we approach meetings. That’s how we approach everything. That’s our mentality.”
During the first three days of training camp, the receivers have had some good moments. Decker, whom the Jets signed to a five-year, $36.25 million contract in March, has impressed his teammates with his route running and has shown he catches everything thrown his way. Hill and Clyde Gates are both healthy, and Gates made the play of the day Saturday, burning Dee Milliner in a 7-on-7 drill for a 50-yard touchdown.
Decker came from a team in Denver that was stacked at receiver with Demaryius Thomas, Wes Welker and himself. Now, it’s him, Kerley and a bunch of unproven players.
“It’s fun because I think you see the hunger in everyone’s eyes,” Decker said. “They want to be great. That’s what’s fun about it is the challenge of competing and getting better every day. We have 12 guys in our receivers group right now and everyone is fighting for a spot.
“We’re pushing one another. I would say, in general, maybe besides the offensive line, it’s a pretty young team. You can just tell these guys are working their tails off. No one is comfortable in what they’re doing. Everyone is making sure they do their part to make this offense go.”
The Jets have not had a strong starting receiving corps since 2010 when Santonio Holmes, Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery led the way. Ryan said this group may be better top to bottom.
“We had Braylon, we had ’Tone, there were a couple of guys that maybe looked awesome,” Ryan said. “But I don’t know [if] we were as deep. Right now, I would say [this is the deepest]. Gates looks like he is all the way back. Stephen has had his moments. It’s just all of them.
“There is no easy out out there…It’s like we have got some legitimate receivers out there, and like I said to you before, we’ll have guys make our football team that wouldn’t be the last guy on our roster last year.”