Jets’ draft class of ’22 lean on each other going forward

LAS VEGAS — No matter how this strange Jets season ends, there will be a lot to look forward to in 2024, now a mere 10 months away.

And not only to that Hall of Fame-quarterback-triumphantly-returning thing.

Because for all the questions around the Jets, their 2022 draft class continues to provide answers, and barring injuries the key figures are likely to do so into next year and beyond.

That sort of expectation can be a burden for young athletes. But the beauty for the Jets is that the burden is shared multiple ways.

Oops, did I say “burden?” Jermaine Johnson is not a fan of that term.

“It’s no burden; it’s a blessing,” the defensive lineman told Newsday after practice on Friday as the team prepared for Sunday night’s game against the Raiders at Allegiant Stadium.

“Whenever you have a lot on you in terms of pressure — or whatever you call it — for standards, for high expectations for a young guy, I think that’s a blessing and a great opportunity more so than a burden, to be quite honest.

“And I think we all look at it the same way, and we’re all kind of attacking it with that mindset.”

The Jets had three first-round picks in 2022, and used them on cornerback Sauce Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson and Johnson.

From left to right, Sauce Gardner, Jermaine Johnson and Garrett Wilson pose for a portrait while holding Jets jerseys  during their introductory press conference on April 29, 2022, in Florham Park, N.J.  Credit: AP/Brittainy Newman

Gardner and Wilson were named AP Defensive and Offensive Rookies of the Year, respectively.

Running back Breece Hall, last year’s second-round pick, seemed to be on his way to being Offensive Rookie of the Year before being sidelined by a knee injury.

It was a remarkable haul for general manager Joe Douglas.

This season? Gardner is back in top form, Wilson and Hall continue to be bright spots for an otherwise weak offense and Johnson has 4 ½ sacks.

And don’t forget Lindenhurst’s own Jeremy Ruckert. He was a fourth-round pick last year and has five catches for 43 yards in a crowded field of tight ends.

One can only imagine — as Jets fans surely have done every week for the past two months — what this might have looked like with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback and an intact offensive line.

That 4-4 start could easily have been 6-2, at least.

But having a bunch of young, supremely talented players at key positions is all good news for the Jets as they try to stay relevant down the stretch this season and look ahead.

The additional good news for the players on a personal level is that they have one another to lean on.

That might seem less important now than in an era when players were less rich, less coddled and less surrounded by supportive entourages. But it still matters.

“It’s been cool,” Hall said. “We were all kind of top guys at our positions coming out, so we always talked about it. We also trained at the same complex for the [scouting] combine so we already knew each other. So it’s been cool, for sure.”

Gardner said, “Most definitely, having guys like that who are ballin’ on the field, it just helps all around. And it helps with decision-making off the field, like getting houses and stuff like that.

“All of us being able to go through the same process together just makes it easier, just being able to ask things, bounce ideas off each other. It just helps all around.”

Wilson said the bonding process was particularly central to the 2022 experience, when everything about the NFL is new and at times intimidating. But the process is ongoing.

“They’re going through the same thing I’m going through, especially last year,” Wilson said. “Being the young dudes on the team, rookies, not knowing exactly what we were getting into, it was great to have three dudes going through the same things and I could bounce off my thoughts and my frustrations, the highs and the lows.

“They’re going through all of it with me, and it’s definitely comforting. It takes a little pressure off your shoulders. Most dudes come in and you’re the first-round pick and that’s it. We have in our case three [first-round picks], and Breece is every bit of that.

“So yeah, it takes a little bit off your shoulders. You can play football and you’ve got guys going through the same thing you’re going through.”

Just don’t call it a “burden.”

“Yeah, it’s a brotherhood, obviously, with all of us in this locker room, but for sure our draft class, we had big plans coming in,” Johnson said. “Obviously, those plans were to make a huge impact for the team and the organization.

“That’s what we’re pursuing on and off the field. It’s a tribute to those guys from Day One they got here and they’ve done everything that was expected of them and more.”

Neil Best first worked at Newsday in 1982, returned in 1985 after a detour to Alaska and has been here since, specializing in high schools, college basketball, the NFL and most recently sports media and business.