5 NY Jets takeaways from the second episode of 'Hard Knocks'

The second episode of "Hard Knocks" with the NY Jets aired last night, and it was yet another outstanding episode.

This week offered an inside look into the Jets' joint practices with the Carolina Panthers as well as the team's second preseason game. There was no mention of new Jets running back Dalvin Cook, but that will most likely be a big part of next week's episode.

Let’s take a look at some takeaways from the second episode of "Hard Knocks."

Offensive line

Undoubtedly, the biggest takeaway from this week’s episode was the offensive line. It is no secret that the Jets' biggest issue so far this summer has been the offensive line.

This is not lost on the Jets, as after the joint practice with the Panthers, head coach Robert Saleh laid into the offensive line. He insisted that they can have Aaron Rodgers and all of the playmakers they do, but they will only go as far as the offensive line takes them.

There is also another scene from a Jets practice where Rodgers is not too happy with Wes Schweitzer’s snaps or the offensive line as a whole.

The Jets are now a decent way through camp, but they still do not have their best five offensive linemen together, and now with the news of Alijah Vera-Tucker’s ankle injury, the Jets need to do something to try to fix the offensive line soon. This episode just emphasized that.

Mekhi Becton

One of the more interesting scenes in the entire episode was toward the end of the preseason game when Mekhi Becton and Aaron Rodgers hugged, and Rodgers said he wanted to talk with him soon.

Rodgers is well aware of the offensive line's struggles and must know that a healthy Becton could change everything.

Quinnen Williams

This episode also focused a lot on Quinnen Williams. Williams became the highest-paid Jets player ever this season, and Saleh endorsed him for not only who he is on the field but also off the field.

Williams was dominating the joint practices with the Panthers and was extremely vocal about it. It sure looks like, even after getting paid, Williams is in for another big season.

Defensive line

Not only did Quinnen Williams play a big role in this episode, but the entire defensive line did. As much as Robert Saleh bashed the offensive line, he praised the defensive line, even calling them his "babies."

The Jets' defensive line is one of, if not the best, in the entire NFL, and they want to prove that. Rookie Will McDonald got a lot of air time this week, between getting nose piercings and recording his first sack on an NFL field. He also showed his athleticism by casually doing a kip-up mid-game.

Saleh talks about how, just like the offensive line, the defensive line will take the defense as far as they go. At this point, one of those groups seems a lot more up to the challenge than the other.

Aaron Rodgers

Last but not least, we have Aaron Rodgers. Unsurprisingly, Rodgers was pretty much the focal point of this episode again. But it is interesting to see his role on the team even while he is not playing.

There were the aforementioned Becton and Schweitzer situations, but there were other good Rodgers moments as well.

He is extremely invested, even going as far as to demand an explanation from the refs as to why the Jets offense was not awarded a free play on an encroachment call in the Panthers game.

He also made sure to call out rookie Zach Kuntz for running the wrong route on his touchdown in that game as well. You can just tell Rodgers cares a lot and wants to see his teammates get better.