Top 3 storylines that will dominate training camp

Heading into training camp of the New York Jets, here are the top three storylines that will dominate headlines.

With the New York Jets reporting to camp on Friday, it’s time to focus in on the topics that will be talked about right up until the start of the season.

With little expected of the Jets, this upcoming season, the feeling around camp is different than in years past. With more of an eye on the future than the present, the Jets will look to tune out the noise and get themselves ready for their first game of the season against Buffalo on September 10th.

Without further ado, here are the top three storylines surrounding the Jets as training camp gets underway.

Next: 3. The job security of Todd Bowles

3.  The job security of Todd Bowles

We all know what the biggest cloud surrounding the Jets will be and that’s the quarterback position. But beyond the dominating quarterback talk lies the job security of the Jets head coach after a miserable 2016 campaign.

Unlike the quarterback situation, however, there is nothing head coach Todd Bowles can do to help or hurt his job until the season begins and the Jets are playing games that count in the standings. How Bowles handles a locker room full of young and inexperienced players will then be on display.

There will be some rumblings and questions asked about Bowles being on the hot seat, and we’ll see how the third year head coach handles the pressure. He will also have daily questions about the quarterbacks, and who has the leg up in what he has declared to be an open competition.

Next: 2. The tanking atmosphere

2. The tanking atmosphere

There’s no doubt that the Jets are entering this season with a focus on evaluating younger talent and seeing who is worth keeping around for the future. On paper, the Jets look like a team that of three or four wins tops that have a chance of at least being in the conversation of getting the first overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft by the time it’s all said and done.

More from Jets News

• NY Jets should target TE Hunter Henry in free agency
• NY Jets: Why the team should target cornerback Shaquill Griffin
• NY Jets reportedly non-tendering linebacker Harvey Langi
• NY Jets: Why the team should not cut Jamison Crowder
• NY Jets should try to sign Kenny Golladay in free agency

On the positive side there will be several young players to watch, but unlike previous years, expectations are very low in regards to winning.

While the Jets haven’t made the playoffs in six years (and have had just one winning season during that stretch) there has been some sense of optimism entering each season.

There will a constant losing atmosphere around camp this year, and the negative attitude will certainly serve as a giant elephant in the room. The Jets will reach for positives by talking up their young roster, especially the two quarterbacks.

If either Christian Hackenberg or Bryce Petty show even some signs of developing into the future, the Jets will have gotten more than what anybody could have expected out of this season.

Next: 1. The quarterback competition

1. The quarterback competition

The quarterback competition will without a doubt dominate camp headlines day in and day out. All eyes will be on Josh McCown, Hackenberg, and Petty as they battle it out for the right to start Week 1 against the Buffalo Bills.

While it would be logical to assume McCown will win the job, I believe the Jets want to evaluate their young quarterbacks as much as they can and will, therefore, give Petty and Hackenberg every opportunity to leapfrog McCown. The bottom line is the Jets are in rebuilding mode and are using this season as a way to evaluate young talent for the future.

Must Read: Top 5 training camp hopefuls that can make final roster

McCown will not be on the roster past this year so playing him does very little good for the Jets. However, you have to put a competent product out on the field so if Hackenberg and Petty show no grasp of the offense and look completely lost, the Jets will have no choice but to roll with the 38-year-old journeyman.