Jets’ center competition reaches absurd levels with Week 1 looming

One of the most bizarre storylines surrounding the New York Jets this summer has been the team's unexpected competition for the starting center job between the incumbent Joe Tippmann and free-agent addition Josh Myers.

Tippmann is fresh off a breakout 2024 season in which he established himself as one of the best young centers in the NFL. The expectation entering 2025 was that Tippmann would return as a key piece of the Jets' offensive line, but new head coach Aaron Glenn might have other plans.

Myers, who has spent the last few seasons as one of the NFL's worst starting centers in Green Bay, signed with the Jets in free agency, and despite expectations that he would serve as little more than quality depth, it appears he has a legitimate chance to earn the starting job.

Glenn was asked for an update on the center battle when speaking to reporters following final roster cuts on Wednesday, and he once again refused to provide an answer. The first-year head coach simply said the competition is "still playing out."

The Jets handling of Joe Tippmann and the center position has been bizarre

There's no logical reason this should be a competition. Tippmann finished the 2024 season with a 73.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, which ranked eighth best among all qualified centers.

His 77.3 run-blocking grade ranked seventh out of 37 qualifiers, and he allowed just 23 total pressures all season. You could make a solid argument that Tippmann was the Jets' best offensive lineman in 2024.

Myers, on the other hand, has graded out as one of the NFL's worst starting centers essentially every year of his career. While he's an experienced player with 56 career starts, he hasn't exactly played at a high level, evidenced by the meager one-year, $3 million contract he received in free agency.

The former Packers lineman posted a lowly 54.6 PFF grade in 2024, ranking 38th out of 40 qualified centers, including a 50.9 run-blocking grade that placed him 36th of 37. He's never ranked higher than 26th among qualified centers in a season in his NFL career.

The Jets reportedly promised Myers an opportunity to compete for a starting job when they signed him this offseason. Most assumed the competition would be little more than a summer talking point, but we're now less than two weeks from the start of the season, and the Jets are still moving forward with this charade.

The issue has been exacerbated by starting left guard John Simpson missing time this summer due to a back injury. With Simpson sidelined, the Jets have moved Tippmann over to guard and allowed Myers to run with the first-team offense.

Tippmann should be viewed as a cornerstone of the roster and arguably the team's best offensive lineman. Myers is quality interior offensive line depth and nothing more.

At this point, the Jets aren’t fooling anyone. Joe Tippmann should be the clear-cut starter, and the longer they drag this “competition” out, the more absurd it looks with Week 1 right around the corner.

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