Getty New York Jets punter Braden Mann working out during training camp.
The New York Jets made several shocking decisions as they cut down their roster to the final 53.
However, they have been catching some flak for a move they didn’t make, but probably should have ahead of 2022.
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Some Very Strong Words
Analysts Joe Caporoso and Connor Rogers played a “name game” on the latest episode of the Badlands podcast ahead of the holiday weekend.
The premise of the segment was to go through the entire 53-man roster and describe what pops into your head in five to six words or less for each player.
When Caporoso was asked about Jets punter Braden Mann, he didn’t hold back:
“Terrible, replace him.”
Short, sweet, and directly to the point.
The former Texas A&M product joined the Jets as the No. 191 overall pick in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL draft.
Surprisingly the youngster found immediate success as he led the league in punt yardage. However, that wasn’t necessarily due to talent as it was opportunity.
Mann had 82 punts that season which led the league (the Jets offense wasn’t very good), but the other numbers weren’t anywhere near as impressive, per Pro Football Focus:
- 43.88 punt gross average (29th in the NFL)
- 19 punts pinned inside the 20 (23rd in the NFL)
- 60-yard punt was a season-long (23rd in the NFL)
Last season was even worse as Mann finished in the bottom half of the league in every major punting category.
Some Options to Consider
With Mann performing so terribly why the heck haven’t the Jets replaced him yet?
Well actually they did replace him with a much better option, but it didn’t last. The former Aggies product was injured in the season opener versus the Carolina Panthers in 2021.
After getting hurt, he was forced to miss two months of action, in his stead, Gang Green signed Thomas Morstead.
The 36-year-old featured an impressive resume with a Pro Bowl nomination, an All-Pro nod, and of course won a Super Bowl championship during his time with the New Orleans Saints.
Morstead ended up playing in seven games for the Jets and later seven games for the Atlanta Falcons. The former SMU product averaged a 47.18 punt gross average which was the 11th best mark in the NFL.
Despite that impressive stat, the Jets let him go as soon as Mann was healthy. He would then play for the Falcons for the rest of 2021 before ultimately joining the Miami Dolphins this offseason.
If the Jets simply would’ve kept Morstead, we wouldn’t even be talking about this right now. However, time travel hasn’t been invented yet so they just have to deal with the current situation.
There are several intriguing options available in free agency that they might want to consider kicking the tires on:
- Brett Kern (formerly of the Tennessee Titans)
- Dustin Colquitt (most recently with the Cleveland Browns)
- Sterling Hofrichter (has bounced around)
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