NY Jets: 5 players the team can't afford to lose to injury in 2021

2. Mekhi Becton, LT, NY Jets

One of the most beloved players on the team while just entering his second year, Mekhi Becton is an absolute stud that the Jets haven't seen since the days of D'Brickashaw Ferguson.

Despite a flurry of injuries endured during the 2020 season (that Adam Gase seemingly had him play through), Becton has shown no signs of letting it change his game.

In training camp, Becton has been paired up against Carl Lawson in drills, leading to a quote from Becton himself as saying that the two are "iron sharpening iron."

Stepping aside from the fact that seeing Becton lose a season due to injury would be awful in general, it would hurt this new-look Jets offense a ton if the franchise tackle missed substantial time in the 2021 season.

The Jets have two first-round players this season that they hope help ignite a fire beneath a long-dead offense — right guard Alijah Vera-Tucker and quarterback Zach Wilson. Becton and Vera-Tucker seem to be the future of the Jets' offensive line, hoping to anchor the left side.

And it's no secret to anybody that a quarterback needs a solid offensive line to develop into the best version of themselves.

The Jets regime of the past allowed for former quarterback Sam Darnold to get slammed into the turf until his confidence leaked out, making him panic and forcing him into bad plays.

It's clear that is a narrative that Joe Douglas would like to put to rest. The offensive line has been a focal point of Douglas' since his tenure began in New York. If Becton were to be lost due to injury, the offense as a whole could struggle immensely.

This doesn't begin to mention that tackles tend to take huge steps in their second year in the league. The best of Becton is yet to be seen. If he can play an entire season, then the rest of the Jets offensive line will surely rise to the occasion.