Once the dust had settled on the New York Jets’ 2024 offseason moves, any remaining holes were found in the back end of the depth chart. The starting spots had been solidified on both sides of the ball, but a few backup positions still needed strengthening.
A few of those thin position groups have received plenty of attention, namely wide receiver and defensive line. Throughout training camp and the preseason, all eyes have been on those two position groups to see whether anyone could step up and provide improved depth from within.
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While those two units have garnered most of the summer hoopla, the Jets were equally needy for depth at another position, but that spot has gone largely ignored in the media: interior offensive line.
New York solidified its depth at offensive tackle by drafting Olu Fashanu with the 11th overall pick, squashing any concerns at that position. However, the interior depth was thin behind the starting trio of John Simpson, Joe Tippmann, and Alijah Vera-Tucker. Wes Schweitzer was in place as a solid veteran backup who could play any of the three positions, but beyond Schweitzer, the Jets were left with a bunch of practice squad players and undrafted rookies.
With nobody even remotely close to reliable beyond their top four interior players, it seemed possible that the Jets would have to make an outside addition to solidify the group. Reuniting with former starting center Connor McGovern seemed like a possibility; McGovern is still a free agent.
But as we sit here on August 26, one day away from the 53-man cutdown deadline, it no longer seems like the Jets need to make an outside addition to feel good about their interior depth. One man is the reason for that: Xavier Newman.
He has not received as much fanfare as some of the Jets’ other standouts, but Newman was one of the team’s best players in the preseason. In fact, on a unit that only averaged 15 points per game, Newman may have been New York’s best offensive player.
Across the three games, Newman displayed great versatility, logging 29 snaps at center, 18 snaps at right guard, and 16 snaps at left guard. While rotating between the three positions, Newman consistently excelled in both phases of the game.
As a pass blocker, Newman finished the preseason with one pressure allowed on 33 pass-blocking snaps. In the run game, Newman earned an 81.0 run-blocking grade at Pro Football Focus, which ranked 9th-best among 152 interior offensive linemen (min. 50 offensive snaps).
The film backs up the numbers. Here’s a reel of Newman’s best work in the preseason. He displayed a strong anchor in pass protection, athleticism as a zone blocker, and agility in space.
A 2022 undrafted free agent out of Baylor, Newman is still only 25 years old. People rarely pinpoint roster-bubble players like Newman as breakout candidates entering a new season, but those guys are capable of developing, too, and they deserve every chance to prove it.
Sure, it’s only preseason, so you don’t want to place too much stock into anything that happens. However, Newman consistently performed well across all three games (although his third appearance was brief), suggesting that his apparent improvement was legitimate – not just a flash in the pan.
In 2023, Newman was a mid-season practice squad pickup who got tossed into the starting lineup due to a myriad of injuries, and he played exactly how you would expect a fourth-string option to play. That was then, though. This is now. After a full summer to work on his game – just his second full offseason as a professional – it is fully conceivable that Newman could have taken a leap and become a better player than he was the last time we saw him.
Newman’s improved play allows the Jets to feel comfortable retaining him as the second backup interior lineman alongside Schweitzer. We shall see if the Jets indeed make that decision on cutdown day, but based on everything we saw throughout training camp and the preseason, it’s hard to imagine any of the other competitors usurping him. And with Newman being an inexpensive young player who seems to be on the upswing, it is difficult to imagine the Jets adding a free agent over him, either.
Newman left the Jets’ preseason finale with a shoulder injury, but head coach Robert Saleh later said that Newman could have returned to the game. It is good news to hear that Newman is okay; additionally, the fact that Saleh said Newman could have returned tells us New York was playing it safe with him, which seems like something you would do with a player whose roster spot is secure.
Soon enough, we will know if Newman’s preseason excellence was enough to land him a spot on the 53-man roster. If not, he will either provide valuable depth from the practice squad or find himself a home somewhere else.
If I were the Jets, though, I would be thankful that an in-house solution emerged to fill one of the roster’s most overlooked holes, making it a no-brainer to keep Newman on the 53-man roster.
