New York Jets 2019: Ranking the 53-man roster — #24 Alex Lewis

The New York Jets season is over so it’s time to evaluate the 53-man roster. Let’s continue this daily ranking with #24, guard Alex Lewis.

New York Jets guard Alex Lewis grew up in Phoenix and then started every game across the offensive line in his first two years at Colorado. Then he transferred to Nebraska, after 28 days in Boulder Jail for a second-degree assault following a late-night melee.

His father Bill Lewis was a Nebraska All-American center who played 63 games 1986-1993 with the Oakland Raiders, Arizona Cardinals, and the New England Patriots. So Alex sat out a year in Lincoln, and then never missed a start in his next two seasons.

But the Ravens’ fourth-round selection of the 2016 Draft (130th overall) never panned out. He started 10 games as a rookie before going down with an ankle sprain. The next summer, he went down in the 2017 preseason opener and needed season-ending shoulder surgery. In 2018, he got carted off the field with a neck injury. Overall, he missed 28 games over his first three seasons.

The Baltimore front office was already displeased with Lewis’ post-surgery rehab away from the team and were about to release him. Jets general manager Joe Douglas’ Director of Player Personnel Chad Alexander knew Lewis’ potential from his 20 years in the Ravens organization. Douglas was sure the guard would be snatched up by another team and traded a conditional 2020 seventh-rounder.

The New York Jets acquired Lewis as a strong depth piece. But he got forced into starting action Week 4 after the Kelechi Osemele medical fiasco.

Lewis was certainly part of the Jets O-line mess, reflected by his mediocre PFF rating of 55.0. But the big nasty’s six sacks and two penalties over 764 snaps might be worth bringing back for 2020 — as a relatively inexpensive depth piece.

#53 Trumaine Johnson   #52 Ryan Kalil  #51 Kelechi Osemele   #50 Quinnen Williams   #49 Chuma Edoga    #48 Frankie Luvu    #47 Sam Ficken    #46 Nate Hairston   #45 Brandon Shell     #44  Jordan Willis    #43 Vyncint Smith   #42 Kyron Brown   #41 Bilal Powell   #40 Maurice Canady   #39 Darryl Roberts   #38 Harvey Langi   #37 Tom Compton   #36 Trevon Wesco   #35 Daniel Brown   #34 Matthias Farley   #33 Demaryius Thomas  #32 Chris Herndon   #31 Trevor Siemian   #30 Quincy Enunwa    #29 Trenton Cannon   #28 Ty Montgomery    #27 Blake Cashman    #26 Braxton Berrios   #25 CJ Mosley