Things weren’t going well for New York Jets left tackle Olu Fashanu at the start of his second season.
He was beaten several times by some of the top defensive lines in football and struggled with penalties. Some fans were quick to label the second-year starter a bust due to those struggles.
Since then, though, Fashanu has been one of the Jets’ best players, helping to form one of the better offensive lines in football.
The switch has flipped for Fashanu after his rough start to the year, and his offensive coordinator is taking notice.
Olu Fashanu is living up to his potential
Over his last eight games, Fashanu has earned a pass-blocking grade of 82.4 from Pro Football Focus, ranking sixth-best among left tackles since Week 7. He has also committed zero penalties over this span.
On Wednesday, offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand broke down the keys to Fashanu’s improvement, including in the run game, which has not been considered a strength for the Penn State product.
“He’s always been a good pass protector, but I think he’s fine-tuned his technique a little bit where he’s eliminating some of the early-season issues that he was having, maybe with turning a little bit too early,” Engstrand said. “He’s playing more physical in the run game, which is always something that he’s been trying to improve upon.”
Fashanu’s play has been overshadowed at times due to rookie right tackle Armand Membou posting elite grades and tape from the very beginning of the season. The Jets also being 3-11 doesn’t help his case very much.
But New York’s offensive line has been a rare positive in an otherwise lost season.
So long as Fashanu continues to improve, the Jets’ offense will as well. Eventually, when the team finds solutions to their quarterback problem, Fashanu could be the difference in multiple victories.
That’s the direction he’s trending in after an impressive couple of months.
