The New York Jets’ interior offensive line depth is a legitimate concern.
New York’s backup guards and centers have a troubling lack of experience. If one of their three interior starters were to go down, it would be difficult to have any sort of faith in one of their current backups even coming close to filling those shoes.
The bright side, though, is that it’s not that hard to find competent interior backups.
If the Jets still have a need on cutdown day, they should have some solid options, but they don’t have to wait that long. There is already an enticing option on the free agent market: Kevin Zeitler.
Why a Zeitler signing would be valuable for the Jets
Former Browns center Ethan Pocic recently emerged as an option to be signed by the Jets as a solid interior backup, as it was announced that doctors had cleared him to return for training camp after suffering a torn Achilles. However, Pocic was signed by the Baltimore Ravens, eliminating him as an option.
The Jets aren’t out of options, though. Zeitler is a great fit for what they need.
Despite being 36 years old, Zeitler has continued to grade out among the NFL’s top interior offensive linemen.
Starting 16 games for the Titans in 2025, Zeitler finished 13th among 81 qualified right guards in Pro Football Focus’ overall grade (74.5), 20th in run-blocking grade (70.8), and ninth in pass-blocking grade (75.4).
Over 14 years in the NFL, Zeitler has started 213 games and earned Pro Bowl honors with the Baltimore Ravens in 2023. He has also been highly durable, starting 15+ games each year since 2014.
Signing Zeitler, who has only played right guard since 2020, would open up several options for the Jets to reshuffle their offensive line.
The most likely route would include moving Joe Tippmann back to center, sliding in Zeitler as the starting right guard, and moving Josh Myers to the bench as a backup center. That would leave the Jets with much more reliable depth.
Many Jets fans prefer to keep Tippmann at guard after a strong season that earned him a three-year extension, and that is understandable. However, in the short term, it could make more sense for the team to slide him back to center this year if they add a quality starting guard like Zeitler. It would give the Jets their best five in the starting lineup while upgrading the second-string unit.
It should not be forgotten how solid Tippmann was when playing center in 2024. He graded out as PFF’s ninth-best overall center with a 73.4 grade, including the eighth-best pass-blocking grade (77.3).
If it weren’t for Alijah Vera-Tucker’s season-ending injury before Week 1, Tippmann wouldn’t have become the team’s starting right guard last year.
The name of the game is versatility, and Tippmann offers that. The Jets should take advantage.
In today’s NFL, offensive lines are only as good as their weakest link. Currently, the team’s weakest link is Myers, who finished the year as Pro Football Focus’ 33rd-ranked center out of 34 qualifiers (52.9 overall grade).
A veteran addition like Zeitler would go a long way toward solidifying the Jets’ starting offensive line while giving them much-needed depth on the interior.
