Jets standout OL explains the unique challenge of blocking for Justin Fields

John Simpson has quietly emerged as one of the most dependable pieces on the rebuilt New York Jets offensive line. After signing a modest two-year, $12 million contract last offseason, the former fourth-round pick delivered easily the best season of his career in 2024.

Simpson was arguably the Jets’ best offensive lineman, finishing with a Pro Football Focus grade of 77.3, which ranked 11th out of 77 qualified guards. Now, Simpson is preparing for a very different kind of challenge in 2025 — protecting Justin Fields.

Simpson isn’t new to blocking for mobile quarterbacks. In 2023, he started every game for the Baltimore Ravens and helped anchor an offensive line that protected MVP Lamar Jackson. Now, he'll be faced with a similar challenge blocking for Fields.

Simpson explained this challenge when speaking to reporters last week.

"You got to block longer, and there ain't nothing wrong with that. You got to be blocking as long as it takes for him to get the ball out of his hand. And that's our job, so you got to kind of do that. They're both athletes. That's about it."

John Simpson

John Simpson and the NY Jets know the challenge (and benefit) of blocking for Justin Fields

Blocking for a quarterback like Fields comes with a very specific set of challenges. Few quarterbacks in the NFL extend plays quite like him. In fact, no qualified QB has held onto the ball longer over the last few seasons.

Fields led all quarterbacks in average time to throw in both 2022 (3.45 seconds) and 2023 (3.39 seconds), and he ranked third in 2024 (3.09). The only passers with longer time-to-throw numbers last season were Lamar Jackson and Jalen Hurts, two quarterbacks with elite mobility and talented offensive lines.

Fields certainly shares the athletic traits, but his tendency to hold the ball can place a lot of stress on his protection. Simpson will be at the forefront of that challenge.

The Jets' left guard allowed just 20 pressures across nearly 1,100 snaps last season, and he was one of the few bright spots on an oftentimes dysfunctional and disappointing offense.

With Fields now under center instead of the immobile, aging Aaron Rodgers, Simpson and the Jets’ offensive line must adjust to a completely different style of quarterback play, one that is far more unpredictable, but potentially also far more explosive.

That unpredictability can be a double-edged sword. Fields has the ability to escape trouble and turn a broken play into a 30-yard gain, but he’s also been one of the league’s most sack-prone quarterbacks.

Per PFF, 21.9% of Fields’ pressures in 2024 were deemed his fault, fourth-worst in the NFL. That was a consistent issue in Chicago, too, where he ranked third in 2022 with 23.9%. Fields’ play style will challenge the Jets’ offensive line to stay disciplined and block longer than they're used to.

Still, Simpson’s experience blocking for Jackson should give him a useful frame of reference. If anyone on the Jets' offensive line is equipped to handle the demands of blocking for an athletic quarterback like Fields, it's the man who did it in Baltimore just two years ago.

Simpson has proven he can handle the demands of blocking for a mobile quarterback, and with Justin Fields now under center, that experience is about to be put to the test.

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