With heavy losses this offseason — including Shaun Ellis, Kris Jenkins, Trevor Pryce and Brad Smith — the Jets had to help replenish their ranks through the NFL Draft. Their small rookie class is already starting to work its way onto the field, led by first-round pick and starting defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson.
Wilkerson was the first rookie to start Week 1 in the Jets’ base defense since 2008, and the first to start for Rex Ryan since 2006 when he was Baltimore’s defensive coordinator. Ryan said Wilkerson played “well,” and defensive coordinator Mike Pettine deemed the Linden (N.J.) native’s debut solid.
“Muhammad was solid, not spectacular,” Pettine said. “I don’t think there were too many minuses in there. It was a good start for him. . . . We didn’t want to get him too many reps, it being opening night on that stage. Didn’t want to throw the kid out there to play 60 snaps. He was in a rotation and the five guys that played (on the defensive line) all were pretty solid.”
The five were Wilkerson and backup Ropati Pitoitua, nose tackle Sione Pouha, defensive tackle Mike DeVito and backup Marcus Dixon. Third-round pick Kenrick Ellis was inactive against Dallas. But, against a run-oriented Jacksonville team this Sunday, that could change for the 6-foot-4, 346-pounder built more in the Jenkins’ mold than the lighter Pouha’s.
“They tell me I just have to try and get my technique right, not get knocked back, just keep on working. I’m a rookie. I’ve got to get my technique right, that’s it, and keep on working,” said Ellis, who was inactive last week largely to get Isaiah Trufant on the roster. That proved a wise move since Trufant returned a blocked punt 18 yards for a game-tying touchdown.
“It’s just hands, reading your blocks, knowing where the blocker is going, what the offensive line is trying to do to you, where he’s trying to move you, how to fight pressure. I’m a big guy, but just trying to make sure I don’t get moved out of the hole, just staying low and staying sturdy in there.”
The Jets staff hadn’t decided yesterday whether to use five or six linemen against the Jaguars and running back Maurice Jones-Drew. The answer likely would determine if Ellis will make his NFL debut.
“That certainly is a possibility . . . we’ll see,” said Ryan. “The young man did a nice job in practice.”
Added Pettine, “He had a real good week of practice this week. We have that decision to make. [Jacksonville] is a running football team.”
Running back Bilal Powell, grabbed in the fourth round, was also inactive, while Greg McElroy and Taylor Biggs were on injured reserve. But undrafted free-agent Nick Bellore played, as did fifth-round pick Jeremy Kerley, a wide receiver. The TCU product may make his biggest contribution in the Wildcat, whenever the Jets unveil it.
“It’s always a match-up thing,” said Kerley, who conceivably could fill the role of the departed Smith. “Hopefully we’ll practice it a little bit more. Any time we feel like we could out-leverage somebody using the Wildcat, that’s when it’ll come into play.”
Outside linebacker Jamaal Westerman said both rookie linemen have been sponges, soaking up information.
“They’re always working to get better, always asking questions,” he said. “They ask DeVito and [I] different questions about what do you see, how to approach this block, this backfield set. They’re trying to improve their games to get to the next level. . . . They’ve been doing a tremendous job.”
brian.lewis@nypost.com