The New York Jets remain the lone winless team in the NFL after their loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. Aside from the 0-10 record, the season has been riddled with negative occurrences. Whether it’s incompetent play-calling, injuries, or having the last-ranked offense, it hasn’t been pretty.
However, funny enough, it hasn’t been solely negative. Some parts of the team, and some players, have been bright(er) spots for the Jets. Here are three of those positives that deserve some notice:
Denzel Mims
The second-round pick for the Jets has shown some real promise, already. Through his first four games, after missing the first six due to injury, he’s totaled 13 receptions for 217 yards. That’s an average of 16.7 yards per reception. Now, he doesn’t qualify for league-leading stats because he’s only played four games. However, if he did, he’d be the eighth-ranked wide receiver in terms of yards per reception.
Mims has shown solid route-running, ability after the catch and the capability to make tough catches.
I thoroughly enjoy watching Denzel Mims on the field for the #Jets
— Brendan Carpenter (@brendan_carp) November 22, 2020
The small sample size we’ve gotten from him so far is cause for some excitement. He definitely has some areas that need improvement, but overall, seeing him on the field has been a major positive the past few weeks.
Marcus Maye
Marcus Maye has definitely been one of the bright(er) spots on the Jets. Additionally, after the departure of Jamal Adams, he is now playing strong safety for the first time.
Through 10 games, Maye is on track for a career year. Here are his stats thus far:
- 54 total tackles
- 5 passes defended
- 1 interception
- 2 forced fumbles*
- 2 sacks*
- 3 tackles-for-loss*
- 2 QB hits*
*Career-high
Already reaching career-highs in four areas, he is definitely having a nice year for the Jets. Sure, it may be aided by his increased usage, but he still has to go out there and produce, and he is.
Kickers
This one may come as a shock to some people, but the Jets kickers have quietly been much better than in previous seasons so far. Sam Ficken and Sergio Castillo have shared the kicking duties this season, and both have been pretty accurate. Ficken has played in seven of the ten games, so let’s take a look at his stats first:
- 9-10 FG
- 90% FG*
- 8-10 XP
- 80% XP
*Career-high
His numbers aren’t mind-blowing by any sense, but, quietly, he has been a positive player. Now, he has missed three games, though. His replacement, Sergio Castillo, has been pretty solid as well. Here’s how he has fared so far:
- 6-7 FG
- 85.7% FG
- 4-4 XP
- 100% FG
Those are all career-highs, technically, because this is his first NFL season. The former CFL kicker was a nice fill-in for the Jets over those three weeks and may be getting another starting job chance in the future. However, at this moment, he, Ficken, Maye and Mims have been positive aspects of this negative season.