As another lost New York Jets season unfolds, it’s time to evaluate this 53-man roster from top to bottom. Let’s continue this daily ranking with #48, Frankie Luvu.
The New York Jets, like every team, have their fair share of rookie training camp sensations. Some prospects soar, while most flatline. None of that hype matters until they play games under the bright lights of the regular season.
Ex-general manager Mike Maccagnan looked like he’d found a gem in undrafted free agent outside linebacker Frankie Luvu, 6-foot-3, 236-pound, high-motor field assassin.
The Samoan via Washington State played 14 games of situational ball for Todd Bowles in 2018 and registered three sacks and five tackles for loss. 2019 was supposed to be the year that Luvu took it next level.
Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams seems like the perfect motivational coach to get the best out of an aggressive overachiever like Luvu. But things have really gone south this season. In his place have thrived names like Tarell Basham, Harvey Langi, and James Burgess Jr.
Luvu has dealt with a roller-coster 2019. He made the active roster — and then saw his playing time decrease to the point that he got waived on October 14th. The next day, the Jets announced his signing to the practice squad.
Two weeks later, the team reactivated him. He had his one and only sack of the season against the Washington Redskins on November 17th — and has been listed as a healthy scratch ever since.
Luvu’s precipitous decline in snap counts connects to the fact that when given a chance, he has not produced. Four solo tackles and a sub-pro PFF grade of 48.6 ain’t gonna get it done with these new bosses. From all indications, it’s hard to believe he’ll be returning to Florham Park.
And it boggles the mind to fathom that the New York Jets linebacking plan going into the 2019 season involved C.J. Mosley, Avery Williamson, Jachai Polite, and Luvu.