New York Jets: Muhammad Wilkerson Guarantees More Than 5 Wins
New York Jets defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson guarnateed that the team would surpass their five victories from last season.
The 2016 season was not kind to the New York Jets. After winning 10 games in 2015, there were some high expectations for Gang Green in 2016. They fell woefully short of those expectations.
The Jets would go 5-11 in 2016. The quarterback position was a disaster. Ryan Fitzpatrick regressed in a big way after a career season in 2016. That was far from the only thing that was wrong with the team.
What was expected to be a strong defense never materialized. The Jets secondary was torched on almost a weekly basis. It led to an overhaul at the position this offseason, as the Jets drafted safeties Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye with their first two picks of the 2017 NFL Draft. With their last two selections, the Jets selected cornerbacks, Jeremy Clark and Derrick Jones.
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Another disappointing area on the defense was the defensive line. While the Jets had one of the most stout run defenses in the league, the defensive line underachieved. The Jets have arguably the best defensive line in the NFL with Leonard Williams, Sheldon Richardson, and Muhammad Wilkerson.
Outside of Williams, the defensive line underachieved. Wilkerson was probably the biggest underachiever on the team last season.
The Jets signed Wilkerson to a massive contract extension last offseason. With the extension deadline looming, Mike Maccagnan hammered out the final details on a long-term deal with Wilkerson. The two sides agreed to a five-year, $86 million deal with $53 million guaranteed.
The Jets had high hopes for Wilkerson after handing signing him. He was coming off a career-high 12 sacks in 2015. He looked like one of the best defensive linemen in the NFL, but then 2016 happened.
Wilkerson recorded only 4.5 sacks, the second-lowest season total in his career. He battled some nagging injuries, which some people said played a part in his drop in production.
The Jets are hoping that Wilkerson can approach his production in 2017 that he provided in 2015. The Jets are beginning a rebuild, but there is some hope for things improving. Wilkerson is one of the players that think things will improve, as he guaranteed the Jets would improve on their five wins from last season.
"“The team will definitely be positive and do more things better than we did last year, I can guarantee that,” Wilkerson told reporters before the United Way of New York City Gridiron Gala, which attracted current and former players. “We’ll have more wins than we did last year and that’s a fact.”"
That is a bold statement to make. While topping five wins isn’t a huge feat, this does not look like a team that will win six games this season; the organization probably doesn’t even want to improve on last season’s win total.
Next year’s quarterback class is expected to be loaded. There is a chance that the Jets could land their franchise quarterback next season. But, to have a chance at selecting someone such as USC’s Sam Darnold or UCLA’s Josh Rosen, the Jets probably have to finish near the bottom of the NFL standings.
Winning six games would not give them that opportunity. The Carolina Panthers and Cincinnati Bengals each won six games last season and picked eighth and ninth respectively. That will more than likely take the organization out of the running for Darnold or Rosen.
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While fans would love to hear Wilkerson’s confidence, privately, they probably hope he is wrong. Getting a chance to select someone of Darnold or Rosen’s caliber could solve the Jets problem at quarterback.