4 best-kept secrets on the NY Jets roster entering the 2022 season

The NY Jets haven't been a very successful team over the last decade or so. As a result, the organization has tended to fly under the radar on the national stage, at least as far as positive recognition is concerned.

Whether it was the infamous John Idzik days or the ill-fated Mike Maccagnan era, the Jets have failed to field competitive rosters for the vast majority of the last decade and, for the most part, have remained irrelevant.

With irrelevancy comes covertness, however. The Jets may have lacked success, but that doesn't mean they haven't had a handful of good players on their roster. Many of those players just haven't gotten the respect that they've deserved.

That appears to be the case again with the Jets heading into the 2022 season. The roster seems to be much improved on paper, but the team hasn't received much media attention with many writing them off because of prior history.

There's a stigma surrounding the Jets' organization and that isn't going to change until they start winning some games. But at least for today, let's shine some light on the more underappreciated members of the Jets' roster.

Here are four of the best-kept secrets on the Jets entering the 2022 season.

4. George Fant, OT, NY Jets

George Fant was little more than a fringe starting offensive tackle at this time a year ago. The former Seattle Seahawks offensive lineman was coming off a below-average season as the Jets' starting right tackle and wasn't even a lock to start Week 1.

He did beat out Morgan Moses for the Week 1 right tackle job, only to switch over to left tackle in the middle of the first game after what turned out to be a season-ending knee injury to Mekhi Becton.

Fast-forward a year later and Fant appeared to be locked in as the Jets' left tackle, only for another injury to Becton to necessitate a move back to right tackle for Fant following the signing of Duane Brown.

It remains to be seen how Fant will fare now that he's back at right tackle, but it's impossible to ignore how good he was last year. Fant was legitimately one of the best pass-blocking left tackles in the NFL.

The 30-year-old allowed just 18 total pressures in 15 games, the third-best among all offensive tackles in the NFL behind just Tristan Wirfs and Andrew Whitworth.

Despite this, Fant is mostly an unknown around the league and he's found it hard to shed the fringe starter label he earned early in his career. Another season of excellent play and a well-earned extension would certainly do wonders for his reputation.

For now, however, he remains one of the Jets' best-kept secrets.

3. Tyler Conklin, TE, NY Jets

The Jets have struggled to find any semblance of consistency at the tight end position over the last decade, but for the first time in what feels like forever, the team is finally set to enter the 2022 season with a promising set of players at the position.

The additions of veterans Tyler Conklin and C.J. Uzomah as well as the presence of rookie Jeremy Ruckert give the Jets the deepest tight end room they've had in ages. Of the three, though, Conklin seems primed to emerge as one of the Jets' top targets.

The former Minnesota Vikings draft pick was the star of the summer and quickly established a rapport with Zach Wilson. Conklin was arguably the top standout from training camp and he's looking to carry that momentum over into the regular season.

Despite Conklin's summer dominance and despite the fact that he finished last season with a very respectable 61 catches for 593 yards and three touchdowns, he's still not getting the respect he deserves.

Just look at fantasy rankings for example. Conklin barely even cracks the top-32 in most rankings and some even have him ranked behind Uzomah. Expect that to change in a hurry this season.

Conklin is likely the No. 2 target in the Jets' offense behind Elijah Moore right now. The secret should be out before long.

2. Bryce Huff, DE, NY Jets

The Jets have such a deep defensive end group that some players are bound to be overlooked. But behind the likes of Carl Lawson, John Franklin-Myers, and Jermaine Johnson sits a lesser-known former undrafted free agent who might be more efficient as a pass rusher than any of them.

We're talking about Bryce Huff.

Huff was signed as an undrafted free agent following the 2020 NFL Draft and he quickly made it clear that he should never have gone undrafted. Over the last two seasons, Huff has transformed into a very efficient pass rusher.

It's fair to wonder just how successful he may have been last season had he not been limited to nine games due to injury. Prior to his injury, Huff ranked among the league leaders in pass-rush win rate, up there with players like T.J. Watt, Myles Garrett, and Joey Bosa.

He's looking to prove that his pass-rushing productivity wasn't a fluke last season. In the Jets' final preseason game against the New York Giants, Huff racked up an unbelievable 10 pressures, per Pro Football Focus.

Those 10 pressures were by far the most by any player in a game this preseason and evidence that Huff is ready to take his game to the next level in 2022.

He may still be buried on the depth chart behind Lawson, Franklin-Myers, and others, but Huff has quietly been one of the Jets' best pass-rushers. Expect that to continue this season.

1. D.J. Reed, CB, NY Jets

D.J. Reed is another player who's looking to change his reputation around the league. The former fifth-round pick never panned out as a nickel cornerback in San Francisco, but he turned his career around with the Seattle Seahawks.

After starting eight games in 2020, Reed became a full-time starting boundary cornerback in 2021, and he put together what was easily the best season of his career to that point.

Reed finished as Pro Football Focus' 10th-highest-graded cornerback with an excellent 78.6 grade. His 51.5 completion percentage allowed ranked top-10 in the NFL while his 16.2 cover snaps per target ranked fourth in the league.

He was rarely targeted, and even when he was, it typically didn't go well for opposing quarterbacks. It's that stellar play that earned him a sizable three-year, $33 million contract this offseason.

The Jets aren't asking him to be their No. 1 guy, however. That honor is expected to be reserved for Sauce Gardner who should take over that role at some point this season if all goes according to plan.

Reed was legitimately one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL last season, but his leaguewide reputation is almost nonexistent. As with any one-year success story, the only way to change that narrative is to do it again.

Look for Reed to do just that this season.