Morgan Moses returned to practice on Friday, and he couldn’t help but celebrate with a bit of dancing.
The veteran right tackle joined the New York Jets’ practice for the first time this training camp, marking the first time the team had all five of their expected starting offensive linemen together this summer.
“Being able to go out there today and just run around with the guys and feel like you’re 10 years old again playing football,” Moses said with a big smile, “man, it just felt fantastic.”
Moses, who had offseason surgery to fix a torn pectoral muscle he played with last season in Baltimore, was the last of the Jets’ revamped O-line to join team drills.
He joined center Joe Tippmann, left tackle Tyron Smith, and guards Alijah Vera-Tucker and John Simpson as the starting linemen tasked with protecting quarterback Aaron Rodgers and helping the offense run smoothly.
“Yeah, it’s been a long road for him trying to get back from that pec,” coach Robert Saleh said. “Excited to get him back.”
Moses’ participation was limited early on, as he didn’t take part in all of the 11-on-11 drills. But reaching this point was a significant step for the 33-year-old, who is back with the Jets after previously playing for them in 2021.
“I feel fantastic, man,” Moses said. “Like I told somebody today, I said, look, man, it doesn’t matter how old you are, it doesn’t matter how many years you’ve been in the league, you still get pregame jitters. So Tyron helped me out today a little bit. He looked at me and said, ‘Hey, just run off the ball.’ And I said, ‘Hey, you’re right.’
“And then after that, things just started happening.”
As much attention as the season’s focus is on 40-year-old Rodgers, wide receiver Garrett Wilson, running back Breece Hall, and the Jets’ strong defense, New York’s offensive line is also a key factor.
“Everybody in that room wants to win and wants to do it at a high level, too,” Vera-Tucker said. “We all have big expectations, not only for ourselves but for each other. And I think that’s the difference between the last three years I’ve been here.
So I’m really excited about this group, man. And given that we’re all healthy, it should be a great one.”
The Jets had a lot of changes and problems with their offensive line in recent seasons. Last year, New York used 13 different lineups in 17 games, with 14 players starting at various times because of injuries or poor performance. From Weeks 5 through 16, the starting five changed every week.
“I think we all know from what we experienced in the past that any combination could be out there at any time,” offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett said.
With the line always changing and Rodgers out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon, the offense struggled a lot last season. One of general manager Joe Douglas’ main goals in the offseason was to improve the O-line.
He brought in Moses from Baltimore and signed Smith and Simpson as free agents to join Tippmann and Vera-Tucker, who also missed much of last season due to a torn Achilles tendon. The Jets also drafted Olu Fashanu in the first round, hoping he could be a key backup behind Smith for this season.
Now that Moses is back, the starters will have a chance to practice together with more than a month left before the regular-season opener at San Francisco on Sept. 9.
“It’s always beneficial,” Saleh said of having all five starters healthy. “At the same time, the league is chaotic, right? So the odds of us playing with the same five all season are slim to none, so it’s good for them to work with one another and different combinations, as long as we maintain our communication.”
