Former Jets special teams coach Mike Westhoff will join SNY full-time this year as a postgame analyst. He discusses the team’s quarterbacks, what it’s like to work for Rex Ryan and more with The Post’s Justin Terranova.
Q: What were your takeaways after spending a week in Cortland with the Jets?
A: Nothing that really surprised me, unfortunately. In the offseason they strengthened their strengths, but I am not sure they corrected their weaknesses enough. I thought they were in desperate need of an additional cornerback. They were counting on Dee Milliner, but I saw him beat repeatedly at camp and now he’s hurt again.
Q: Can they overcome that with their ability up front?
A: The Jets interior defense is as good as there is in the NFL. Teams will spread them out, go no-huddle and move right down the field. I didn’t see pressure, which means Rex will be forced to do it via the blitz because the Jets are not a great four-man rush team.
Q: Has Geno Smith improved enough to be a legit starting quarterback in Year 2?
A: You began to see Geno’s improvement the last four games of last year. He really learned from his mistakes, he protected the ball, he was running at the right time. They were helping him with a pretty good running game, but you saw that progression you were waiting to see. At training camp, I’ve seen him bigger, stronger, more mature, but there have seen some plays where he reverted back to the guy that I saw last year with all those turnovers. That’s a bit discouraging, but he is headed in the right direction.
Q: You were critical of the Jets’ treatment of Tim Tebow. Can a similar situation evolve with Michael Vick?
A: Vick as a wildcat quarterback is a different deal. He has a much better arm than Tim Tebow, and he has a quintessential arm for a quarterback. He has a cannon. I was really impressed. Does that become part of the package? Maybe, and it would really be a good one.
Q: How was it working alongside Rex Ryan?
A: He was great to me. We’d talk about things, he gave me the chance to do some things, and I liked him personally. Over the years, I’ve seen some developments and improvements in certain areas. What I’ve seen from Rex is that he really believes in the positive parts of his football team. I think some of that came back to bite him sometimes, but it’s not bravado. He has a firm belief in what he does and his players, and he should have that.