New York Jets: Darron Lee’s biggest coverage issue in 2018

With an excellent back end, there’s one piece of the coverage puzzle that the New York Jets need to solve: Darron Lee’s ability to cover running backs.

The back end of the New York Jets defense seems to be formidable in 2018. Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye are going into their second seasons and had good rookie campaigns. Parry Nickerson (potential nickel corner), by all accounts, is lighting it up in training camp, and the addition of Trumaine Johnson allows them to move Morris Claiborne to the No. 2 receiver. All in all, it seems to be the right group.

However, there’s one issue with the Jets overall coverage. Both Darron Lee and Avery Williamson struggled in terms of covering running backs in 2017.

According to Michael Nania of Gang Green Nation and Turn on the Jets, they were good against tight ends, but struggled against running backs.

I asked him what they need to do to improve this, and he said it’s merely about timing.

For Williamson, it may just be that he is what he is at this point, or that we won’t see huge improvement, given that he is in his fifth season. However, for Lee, it’s a different story. His overall pass coverage has gotten better, but if it’s coverage against running backs that’s dragging his numbers down, it could be the switch from 4-3 outside linebacker to 3-4 inside linebacker that’s the root cause.

It’s not that he’s not capable of the switch. It’s just taking him time to understand the nuances of the position. It’s not an issue of being incapable, just that’s he’s still adjusting.

Some people think that the Jets are a borderline playoff contender in 2018. If they’re merely a borderline playoff contender, an improvement from Lee would definitely put them over the top from a borderline playoff contender to one that could challenge for a Wild Card. A lot is riding on this season. If Lee drastically improves, the sky’s the limit for this defense.