Getty New York Jets offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker celebrating with his teammates after a touchdown.
The New York Jets have quieted all the doubters about their first-round trade for offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker back in 2021.
Gang Green caught a ton of flak for trading up for what draft experts deemed nothing more than an offensive guard. However, what those nerds didn’t know is the Jets valued his versatility and it has come up huge this season amid injury issues.
Connor McGovern Delivers Strong Message to Jets OL Alijah Vera-Tucker
Over the last three weeks AVT has been forced to play three different positions in the trenches:
- Right guard
- Left tackle
- Right tackle
Throughout his young NFL career to date, he has started at four of the five possible offensive line positions outside of center.
Vera-Tucker has bailed out the Jets with their rash of injury issues. When they signed Laken Tomlinson, AVT moved from left guard to right guard.
When literally everyone went down on the blindside, AVT shifted over there despite not playing the position since college. Then this week for the first time in his life he played right tackle because the team needed him to.
Fellow teammate Connor McGovern spoke to the media on Monday, October 10, and gave the greatest compliment you can give in the sport calling AVT a future Hall of Famer:
“In my opinion, AVT is going to be a future ring of famer, if not a hall of famer, the dude is a freak. He is the epitome of a great offensive lineman and I wish I could describe how hard it is what he has done the past couple of weeks but unless you have played the position it is hard to understand. A lot of times we just get grouped as an offensive line but to go from guard to tackle is incredibly difficult. Then to flip sides and all the plays are backward in your head now? It’s absolutely incredible to see him do that and be so selfless to do that while he’s having a Pro Bowl year at guard. There are a few guys in history that can do that and he’s one of them.”
#Jets center Connor McGovern (@McGovenator60) called teammate Alijah Vera-Tucker (@ALIJAHVT) a future Hall of Famer 👀, ‘there are a few guys in history’ that can jump to any OL position ‘and he’s one of them’: 🎥 @nyjets #TakeFlight @ProFootballHOF @uscfb @ReignofTroy #FightOn
The Jets Future on the Offensive Line
On Sunday the Jets got a pleasant surprise with veteran Duane Brown returning not only to the practice field but the starting lineup.
With Brown back, AVT no longer had to play left tackle, but because the team needed it he flipped to the right side.
After his latest performance, Peter Schrager of Good Morning Football said AVT “might be the Jets’ best player.”
Now heading into the Week 6 matchup versus the Green Bay Packers, AVT might once again be called upon to start on the right side.
Head coach Robert Saleh didn’t reveal his starting five when he spoke to the media on Monday but indicated that it was a very strong possibility.
Saleh then waxed some poetic on his talented offensive lineman calling him a “selfless warrior” that has played “lights out” wherever they have asked him to play.
#Jets HC Robert Saleh called OL Alijah Vera-Tucker (@ALIJAHVT) a ‘selfless warrior’ for jumping all over the offensive line to help the team + said he represents the locker room 😤: 🎥 @nyjets #TakeFlight @uscfb @ReignofTroy
Perhaps even larger than all of that, Saleh said he “represents the locker room” and that has been a special sauce in the middle of this Jets turnaround.
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Jets Veteran Delivers Strong Message to Alijah Vera-Tucker