New York Jets OT George Fant shows intriguing progress in second start at LT (Film)

New York Jets tackle George Fant showed improvement in key areas of weakness throughout his second start at left tackle. While George Fant should be sliding back to the right side this Sunday since Mekhi Becton is likely to make his return, Fant showed a lot of progress throughout his second start at left tackle in relief of Becton last week. Fant struggled in his first start on the left side against the Cardinals in Week 5, but against the Dolphins, Fant bounced back in a huge way, being credited with only two pressures allowed over 49 snaps in protection. His Pro Football Focus pass-blocking grade of 81.0 was fifth-best among left tackles in Week 6. Beyond the excellent production, what really made Fant's performance a noteworthy one is the fact that he put it together largely through success in facets of the game where he has previously struggled this season. It was an extremely promising sign of growth for him on the path to establishing himself as the Jets' long-term right tackle. Let's take a look back at Fant's clean performance in pass protection against the Dolphins. Film Fant's strengths and weaknesses as a player tend to line up closely with his profile as an athlete. A former college basketball player at Western Kentucky who reportedly ran the forty in a blazing 4.84 seconds at 296 pounds (Fant now weighs in at 322), Fant is extremely athletic. Heck, during his time in Seattle, the Seahawks sent Fant out to run a route 25 times and threw him two passes. From 2018-19, Fant lined up at tight end (as a sixth lineman) on 48.7% of his total offensive snaps. He even got nine slot snaps in 2018! With his excellent quickness and foot speed, Fant does well against bendy, speedy rushers who look to win around the edge with their athleticism. Generally, we're talking about stand-up outside linebackers here. On the contrary, Fant's struggles throughout his career have usually come against strong, physical rushers who look to win with power or to the inside. Typically, these are defensive ends who line up with their hands in their dirt. Fant's primary matchup against Miami was Shaq Lawson, who logged 28 snaps in which he rushed from the right side of the defensive line (across from the left side of the offensive line). Lawson is a 6-foot-3, 267-pounder who has a game built around power and most often lines up as a 5-technique defensive end with his hands in the dirt - the exact type of rusher that Fant has trouble with. Lawson (and other Miami rushers) tried feverishly to exploit Fant's weaknesses using power rushes throughout the afternoon, but could not find any success. On this 3rd & 8 play, Lawson battles Fant from a wide 5-tech alignment in a four-point stance. Fant takes an aggressive approach knowing that Lawson is going to pin his ears back and attack in an obvious passing situation. Lawson looks to set up outside and then hit Fant in the chest with a long-arm move using his inside arm. Fant punches first, landing his two-hand punch with force into the inside shoulder of Lawson. Despite taking the contact, Lawson still throws his arm out, leaving himself completely vulnerable. Fant slaps the arm down and pancakes Lawson. Beautiful rep. Not a good job there by Alex Lewis in a matchup with a linebacker standing over the B-gap. Tough to expect Connor McGovern to pick that one up. Fant again uses an aggressive approach to stymie Lawson on this play. At the snap, Fant takes a wide set with smooth, quick feet in his kick-slide. He ensures that his help is not needed against the 4i-technique before turning his attention to Lawson. Once he turns his head to Lawson, Fant wastes no time making contact. Fant squares up his hips and shoulders before firing his hands straight into Lawson's chest, knocking him far off the ball. More tenacity against Lawson. Fant gets a good jump off the ball and gets into his set with great positioning to engage Lawson early in the rep. Lawson throws his hands quickly, looking to swat Fant's hands down and apparently hoping to follow by bringing his right arm over to get inside through the B-gap. Fant counters excellently. He subtly shifts his arms outward and upward to avoid Lawson's hands, and then immediately brings his arms down into Lawson's upper body, gaining control of Lawson and using his momentum against him to send him up the field. Lawson is able to get his hands into Fant's chest on this play, but Fant shows a strong anchor as he absorbs it effectively enough for Flacco to have a clean pocket and enough time to scan the field. Fant also held up well against power from other Miami rushers. Linebacker Jerome Baker comes in with two hands on this play, looking for a bull rush, but Fant uses his length to strike Baker on the shoulders before Baker can make solid contact. Fant transitions from the punch into swatting Baker's hands down, pancaking him. Miami's coverage deserves the most credit for that sack, but the main culprit for the Jets up front was McGovern, who was pushed deep into the pocket. The other four linemen did solid work there. Fant takes on Baker once again. Baker comes in patiently, waiting for Fant to commit, but Fant never bites. Baker finally throws his two hands and Fant drops his anchor to absorb it, allowing zero penetration. Fant immediately counters Baker's punch with his own, establishing contact on Baker's shoulders and grabbing on to his shoulder pads (legally). Baker goes nowhere. Fant takes on the 3-technique on this play, Christian Wilkins. Off the snap, Fant stays low and brings his hands up into Wilkins' chest from underneath. Wilkins moves Fant to the inside, but with a lower center of gravity than Wilkins and with a strong grip on him, Fant is able to recover and maintain control. Fant sets himself perpendicular to the line of scrimmage and drives Wilkins outside, where Chris Herndon is ready to provide help. Herndon and Fant work together to completely remove Wilkins from the play. Fant takes on 291-pound defensive end Zach Sieler on this play, who lines up in a 5-technique position right over Fant's outside shoulder (contrary to Lawson's usual wide alignment). Fant takes a wide kick and immediately stations himself after one step to the outside, squaring up Sieler and preparing to make first contact. Fant loads up and fires his hands into Seiler. His two hands collide directly with Seiler's. Fant quickly reworks his hands inside to establish control and dominate the rep. If Fant continues to develop this part of his game, he will be on his way to becoming a very solid long-term piece for the Jets at right tackle.