The New York Jets have something brewing on special teams

The 2024 New York Jets lost 12 games for many reasons. One of the most overlooked was their performance on special teams.

In fact, special teams was the Jets’ worst phase out of the core three. According to FTN Fantasy’s DVOA metric, New York fielded the 20th-ranked defense, 21st-ranked offense, and 24th-ranked special teams.

A total overhaul followed. Gone are the Jets’ special team coordinator, starting kicker, starting punter, and six of their top 10 players in special teams snaps.

Unlike the offense and defense, special teams units do not always require multiple years to be turned around. Resurgences can happen overnight. It isn’t easy, though.

But the Jets appear poised to pull it off.

Training camp, the preseason, and recent roster moves have New York looking primed for a special year on special teams.

Kicker and punter solutions

In two very different ways, the Jets have found promising solutions to their holes at kicker and punter.

At kicker, the Jets opted for the veteran route with 40-year-old Nick Folk. New York gave 23-year-old Harrison Mevis a chance to beat Folk out, but the wily vet proved he’s still the best man for the job.

Folk isn’t an ordinary veteran stopgap who should only be expected to hold the fort down. He is still capable of elite production. The L.A. native led the NFL in field goal percentage in each of the past two seasons, missing just two of his 52 attempts over that span, including one of his 11 attempts from 50+ yards out.

At punter, New York took the youthful route, pitting rookie Kai Kroeger against second-year man Austin McNamara.

Before the preseason even began, the Jets waived Kroeger, and they did not sign a replacement to compete with McNamara. It seemed as if the Jets had seen enough from McNamara – and he proved it in the preseason.

Across 14 preseason punts, McNamara generated 45.8 net yards per punt, ranking third among punters with 5+ attempts. He also ranked second in average hang time (4.77 seconds).

This has the potential to be one of the best kicking duos in the NFL.

Promising emergences in kick coverage

As we mentioned earlier, the Jets’ current roster does not feature six of their top 10 players in special teams snaps from a year ago. There are many holes to fill across the unit.

Plenty of promising standouts have emerged.

Second-year cornerback Qwan’tez Stiggers earned a roster spot with his stellar play as a gunner in the preseason, recording three special teams tackles with zero misses. His 90.0 special teams grade from Pro Football Focus was one of the NFL’s best.

Rookie safety Malachi Moore also shined, recording a pair of tackles with no misses, garnering an 81.8 special teams grade.

First-year special teams coordinator Chris Banjo was a standout gunner himself over a decade-long NFL career, and his expertise is already rubbing off on New York’s young players.

Elite kick returner

In Kene Nwangwu, the Jets have the most dangerous active kick returner in the NFL.

Nwangwu leads the NFL with four kickoff return touchdowns since he entered the league in 2021. That includes a touchdown on his first return with the Jets last season, one of just three he had all year.

Boasting four career kick return touchdowns on just 71 attempts, Nwangwu is due to score once every 17.8 attempts. That could pay major dividends for New York in a 2025 season where kick returns are expected to see a large spike.

With the touchback moving out to the 35-yard line, teams will be incentivized to kick the ball short of the goal line to force returns. Armed with the league’s most productive kick returner, New York is more prepared than anyone for the change.

Special teams prioritization

New York clearly prioritized special teams contributions with its final roster decisions.

Qwan’tez Stiggers beat out Jarrick Bernard-Converse despite the latter arguably showing more upside on defense. Kene Nwangwu made the roster over Donovan Edwards despite Edwards having more potential as a running back.

It shows that Banjo has a significant say in the makeup of the roster, making it clear that Aaron Glenn and the entire organization value special teams.

Cam Jones pickup

Following the cutdown deadline, the Jets doubled down on their special teams prioritization.

One of New York’s three waiver claims was Cam Jones, a linebacker from the Kansas City Chiefs. The 25-year-old established himself as a proven special teams ace over the first two seasons of his career with the back-to-back AFC champions.

A 2023 UDFA out of Indiana, Jones made the Chiefs’ 53-man roster as a rookie and quickly found his niche on special teams. He ranked fifth on the team with 280 special teams snaps, making five tackles with no misses on his way to a 77.9 special teams grade, via PFF.

Jones took a leap toward elite status in 2024. Placing fourth on the Chiefs with 282 special teams snaps – including team-highs for the punt coverage, kick coverage, and kick return units – Jones earned a 90.0 special teams grade, ranking sixth out of 220 qualified players. Jones made a team-leading eight tackles with three missed tackles and no penalties.

The young special teams ace elevated his game in the postseason. Across three playoff games in 2024, Jones earned a 91.0 special teams grade, making three tackles with no misses or penalties.

Kansas City’s decision to waive Jones is a puzzling one (just like their other cut who ended up in New York), but the Jets are more than happy to take advantage.

New York was in need of a true ace to anchor their special teams unit. Irvin Charles held the role down over the last two seasons, but he remains on the PUP list as he recovers from an ACL tear suffered last December. The Jets signed Kris Boyd to fill Charles’ shoes, but Boyd is already on season-ending injured reserve with a shoulder injury.

Jones is an all-around special teams weapon who immediately improves an already-ascending unit.

The only concern

Things are looking bright for New York at nearly every special teams position.

The only question mark is their puzzling decision at punt returner.

New York had one of the worst punt return units in 2024. Based on DVOA, their punt return unit placed 30th in the NFL. Second-year man Xavier Gipson struggled mightily, leading the league with three muffed punts while averaging a paltry 8.1 yards per return.

Luckily, a promising solution came along in the form of UDFA rookie Jamaal Pritchett.

The South Alabama product impressed as a punt returner in camp practices and preseason games. Across nine preseason returns, he averaged 11.4 yards, earning many of those yards on his own by evading tacklers. While Pritchett had one muffed punt, he bounced back with a 41-yard return soon afterward.

Meanwhile, Gipson battled injuries over the last few weeks, preventing him from responding to Pritchett’s surge.

Despite Pritchett’s production and Gipson’s injuries, the Jets elected to keep Gipson on the 53-man roster over Pritchett. The rookie landed on New York’s practice squad.

It is a bizarre call. Gipson received many opportunities to prove himself as a returner over the last two seasons, and despite one fantastic play in his first game, he has amassed a poor body of work.

Across 66 career punt returns, Gipson was equally as likely to muff a punt as he was to return it for 20+ yards, achieving each outcome five times. Overall, he averaged just 8.9 yards per punt return, a number that drops all the way to 8.0 just by removing his one touchdown against the Bills.

Gipson’s lackluster track record makes it difficult to buy into the potential of New York’s punt return unit. Perhaps, though, Banjo could facilitate improvement with the Jets’ blocking schemes on punt returns, which would boost the unit regardless of who is back there.

Nonetheless, Gipson’s unreliable hands make him an extremely dangerous player to have as your punt returner.

Things are looking great overall

At four of the five special teams units, New York is in excellent shape.

Folk should at least provide significant improvement over the league-worst kicking New York suffered from in 2024. At best, Folk could give the Jets some of the most accurate kicking in the NFL.

McNamara and the Jets’ feisty young gunners have the potential to anchor a top-tier punting unit. Those same gunners are poised to make key stops in kick return coverage.

The Jets’ kick return unit is led by one of the most prolific return men in the game, whose impact will be emphasized with the expected increase in returns.

The punt return unit is a question mark.

Overall, though, the Jets’ front office and coaching staff sent a message throughout the offseason: they do not view special teams as an afterthought. Those efforts are apparent when analyzing the unit’s on-paper talent entering Week 1.

If all goes according to plan, the Jets’ special teams should skyrocket to the top of the DVOA charts in 2025.