Wednesday Film Review: George Fant
Jets stand in left tackle has given Robert Saleh a decision to make
š½ Good morning Jets fans. COVID is a wrecking ball tearing through the NFL at the moment, with a record number of positive tests and player after player being placed on the reserve list, itāll be interesting to see who suits up this weekend. At the moment the Jets seem to be avoiding any real issues, but weāll see what happens over the next 3 days.
š For todayās film review I wanted to head back to the offensive line to focus on George Fant. Yesterday I tweeted a stat around George that really got my attention.
Now I donāt care who you are, those are some impressive numbers. When you consider he was being spoken about as a cut candidate at the start of the year, this is quite the turnaround for the former Seattle man.
Heās played so well, I think itās reasonable to consider keeping him at left tackle once Mekhi Becton returns, whether that's in 2021 or in 2022. Becton was pencilled in as the franchise left tackle, and while it's hard to not be enamoured with the size and athleticism, I wouldnāt say heās done enough to have that position locked down. He canāt help that someone rolled up on his leg, but even when healthy last year he allowed 7 sacks. Compare that to the 1 sack that Fant had allowed this year and consider that we need a RT for next season and it's easy to see the Jets considering moving their first round pick from 2020 to the right side of the line.
Coach Saleh was asked about Becton and whether he would return to LT once he returned from injury, and he said the Jets would cross that bridge when they came to it, which to me is coach talk for, weāll make that decision when we have to but weāll consider it.
One thing that you do notice about Fant when you watch him closely is his explosion off the snap, heās lightning quick to get into position and it could be that his foot speed helps him more as a left tackle than a right tackle, mainly because as a left tackle youāre more likely to come up against the opposing teams quickest edge rusher.
Letās get into the film
š I really like this rep. Fant lends a hand to AVT, leaning into the rusher to help with the bull rush and then quickly coming off his man to pick up the outside rusher, neither get any movement against George. Itās one of those veteran reps that you see, smart and decisive. There were so many of these reps on tape from Sunday.
š This is another that I really liked from Sunday as it shows some savvy and intelligence, baiting the pass rusher into a full power rush and then easing up taking a step back and ripping the lineman down, using the defensive players momentum and balance against him. It highlighted a player who knew how to use an opponents leverage against him. Itās a shrewd move that likely gets missed when watching the broadcast coverage.
š This is a great job by the entire line, with four rushers against 5 lineman you should win this rep, but Fant, AVT and Moses all win their individual battles and CMG and LDT take care of the other. Iāve put this one in for two reasons, one I wanted to show a rep where everyone does their job, Zach is kept clean and delivers a good pass, the other is to showcase the speed that Fant had off the snap to kick out and get to his side defender.
š Another rep that I really like for a couple of reasons, one he just stonewalls the defender and keeps him a country mile away from Zach in football distance. But I liked the footwork on this one to slide but then accelerate forward to meet the defender before he had chance to build up the momentum, he engages the defender before heās expecting it and that seems to stun him.
š Hereās the main play that people put on Fant, myself included.
So this is an interesting one. When you first take a look at this it seems as though Fant has just blocked the wrong defender, but then you look at every other lineman and they all slide right apart from AVT. I really wanted to take a look at this play s a former NFL lineman made a comment to say that Fant was down blocking as he should be and the free rusher was a QB read. I thought it was Damien Woody, but Iāve gone hunting and I canāt seem to locate the tweet, so Iāll let you decide on this one. Fant does seem to take a slide out before down blocking, but thatās not overly uncommon either.
š Hereās a good play for Fant but not a good play for AVT. The Jets have struggled all year to pick up any kind of twists or stunts, but Fant does well here to pass off the inside rusher to pick up the outside rusher. The defender is coming in hot, but AVT isnāt ready for it and it knocks him back.
There we have it. I donāt think Fant had as good a game this week as he had against Philadelphia where he didnāt give a sniff, but he was still very good. If thatās the bar heās setting, then itās a good bar. Fant is contracted to the Jets for just over $10 million next year, but if he continues to play the way he has then an extension likely needs to be discussed, and at that point the powers that be will need to think long and hard about if they see Fant as a permanent left tackle, of if they believe Becton is the answer.
I donāt think rushing Becton back for 2021 makes much sense, so maybe thatās a question that can wait until the off-season.
š News & Notes š
The Jets avoided placing any players on the Covid list yesterday, considering over 30 players were placed on the list, that's a real positive.
I didn't mention last week but Quinnen Williams has been nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the year for his outstanding contributions on and off the field. Quinnen does a lot for the community, especially in Alabama. Head over and check out the Quinnen Williams Foundation and support if you can.
ESPNās Todd McShay posted his first mock draft yesterday and he had the Jets taking Derek Stingley Jr and Kyle Hamilton. Iāll be amazed if Joe Douglas takes two defensive backs in the first round.