5 things to watch during Jets' organized team activities – NJ.com

The Jets on Tuesday begin organized team activities — a 10-day portion of their offseason workout program that is spread across a period of three weeks.

This week, the Jets have OTAs from Tuesday through Thursday. Next week, it’s Tuesday through Thursday again. The following week, OTAs conclude with four-day stretch from June 2-5 (Tuesday through Friday).

These are all voluntary workouts. Nothing is mandatory in the Jets’ offseason program until their June 9-11 minicamp. So defensive end Muhammad Wilkerson, who wants a new long-term contract, can’t be fined for skipping OTAs, just as he couldn’t be fined for skipping the Jets’ voluntary veteran minicamp last month.

So what can happen during OTAs? Live, full-speed contact is not permitted, according to the collective bargaining agreement. But 7-on-7, 9-on-7, and 11-on-11 drills are allowed.

With that in mind, here are five things we’ll be watching during OTAs, when reporters’ access to watch practice is limited to the Wednesday of each week:

1. How does Geno Smith look? Regardless of what Smith, the Jets’ incumbent starting quarterback, does during OTAs, we should be careful to not draw too many conclusions. After all, this isn’t full-speed, live-contact stuff we’re talking about here. But with Ryan Fitzpatrick still limited as he recovers from a broken leg, Smith will get almost all of the first-team work during 11-on-11 periods. He has more weapons to work with this year (namely, wide receiver Brandon Marshall). Can Smith start to take the much-needed next step in his development from shaky young quarterback to productive, steady starter?

2. Will Leonard Williams perform well against veterans? Williams was impressive earlier this month in the Jets’ rookie minicamp — as he should have been. The Jets drafted the Southern California defensive end sixth overall. He might end up being the best player in this year’s draft. So, naturally, he was going to take advantage of the less-talented offensive linemen he faced during the rookie minicamp. How will he look during OTAs, as he matches up against NFL veterans for the first time?

3. The Brandon Marshall-Darrelle Revis matchup should be fun. They had a neat little jump-ball situation (which Marshall won) during the Jets’ three-day voluntary veteran minicamp late last month. How Marshall performs against Revis, and vice versa, really doesn’t have much bearing on what happens with the Jets’ offense (or retooled secondary) this season. But it does spice things up to see these two marquee players go against each other. So we’ll watch it and enjoy.

4. The offensive guard rotation. This isn’t a sexy topic, but it’s an important one for an offense that hopes to upgrade in 2015 — and for an offensive line that has some question marks. We know James Carpenter, a free agency pickup, will be one of the Jets’ offensive guards. Who will occupy the other spot? Veteran Willie Colon? Or a younger player like Brian Winters, Oday Aboushi or Dakota Dozier? And where will rookie Jarvis Harrison fit in? Winters is still recovering from a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his knee. The Jets unsurprisingly split right guard reps between Colon and Aboushi during last month’s minicamp. Carpenter worked at left guard. How will the positions (and sides of the line) be divided up during OTAs, with a new player, Harrison, now in the mix?

5. Rookie adjustments. Just as we all need to guard against reading too much into what Smith does during the spring, before Fitzpatrick truly enters the quarterback competition in training camp, a “grain of salt” approach is also important for observing rookies at this time of year. Besides Williams and Harrison, outside linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin, wide receiver Devin Smith, and quarterback Bryce Petty are getting more thrown on their plate during OTAs. Yes, they all might have looked strong at times during the rookie minicamp, particularly Devin Smith with catching deep balls. That doesn’t mean a whole lot now, with the competition level increased. But neither do their expected struggles as they practice alongside NFL veterans for the first time. None of the Jets’ rookies are going to be pressed into starting immediately. Remember that. And give them time to develop, regardless of what happens as they work through the ups and downs of their first OTAs.

Darryl Slater may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @DarrylSlater. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.

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