The New Year did not start particularly well for Allen Lazard. But Robert Saleh is confident better days are ahead in 2024 for the New York Jets wide receiver.
Lazard’s difficult first season with the Jets ended with him inactive for New York’s 17-3 win against the New England Patriots in Week 18. It was a bitter end to the season for the 28-year-old, who signed a big-money contract in the offseason and was expected to be the No. 2 receiver behind Garrett Wilson.
But Lazard struggled with drops and penalties, and he never made a positive impact on the woeful Jets offense. It didn’t help that his friend and former Green Bay Packers teammate Aaron Rodgers lasted only four plays into the season before rupturing his Achilles. Lazard had no chemistry with quarterbacks Zach Wilson, Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian after the Rodgers injury.
“I’ll say this about Allen, he shows up to work every day, he’s putting his best foot forward, but at the same time he knows there’s things he’s got to fix, and we have to help him fix as coaches,” Saleh said postgame Sunday.
Robert Saleh is bullish on Jets’ Allen Lazard in 2024
However, after providing that assessment of Lazard, Saleh also shared a bold statement about the six-year pro.
“I’ll sit here and put a guarantee on it that he’ll have a helluva lot better 2024 than he has 2023,” Saleh said. “He’s made of the right stuff. He’s built the right way and he’s going to attack it and find a way to get better.”
Lazard signed a four-year, $44 million contract ($22 million guaranteed) with the Jets after he had an NFL career-high 60 catches with the Packers in 2022. He finished 2023 with 23 catches on 49 targets for 311 yards and one touchdown.
Incredibly, without much of a second option to take the heat off him, Wilson still had 95 receptions this season, second most in franchise history behind Brandon Marshall (109) in 2015. Unfortunately, Wilson exited the Patriots game in the third quarter with an apparent head injury.
Listening to Saleh, it sounds like the Jets expect an improved Allen Lazard to return next season and provide some cover for Garrett Wilson in the passing game.
More must-reads: