#Brian Winters faces uphill battle to make Jets’ Week 1 roster

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“#Brian Winters faces uphill battle to make Jets’ Week 1 roster”

June 25, 2020 | 10:14am

As the Jets get close to training camp, I am examining the roster and giving you my top 25 players. Each weekday, we will reveal another person on the list, leading right into camp. I am not including rookies on this list because I do not feel it is possible to fully evaluate them before they play a game.

No. 22: Brian Winters

Last year’s ranking: No. 18

Position: RG

Age on Opening Day: 29

How acquired: Selected in the third round of the 2013 Draft

Years left on contract: 1

2020 Salary Cap figure: $7.3 million

Jets top 25 training camp Brian Winters — Brian WintersBill Kostroun

Looking back at 2019

Winters injured his shoulder in the preseason and never was fully healthy last season.

He ended up playing just nine games, his fewest since 2014. He tore up his left shoulder in the preseason and then it popped out against the Giants in November, ending his year.

Winters struggled along with the rest of the offensive line. It is hard to know just how much was injury related and how much is just a decline in his skills after seven years in the NFL.

The communication on the line was a mess with new pieces at center and left guard, which also had an effect. PFF graded Winters as the 41st best guard out of 82 graded.

Many of Winters’ teammates were blown away with his toughness as he played through not just the shoulder injury but also a knee problem.

Outlook for 2020

If you asked me in January, I never thought Winters would be on the team in June. With no more guaranteed money and a high salary-cap number, Winters looked like a prime candidate to get cut.

But here we are, and Winters is now the longest-tenured Jet. He still faces a battle to make it to Week 1, though. The Jets signed Greg Van Roten and re-signed Alex Lewis at guard. Winters will have to beat one of them out to stay with the team. The team could cut him at the end of training camp and save $7 million.

Jets GM Joe Douglas has been effusive in his praise of Winters and is clearly a big fan of his, so maybe he sticks around.

“[He is] a guy that just battled, battled his tail off all year after injuring his shoulder in the preseason and fighting through,” Douglas said in February. “And you’re going to be hard-pressed to find a better teammate, a tougher guy than Brian Winters. … I’ve heard a lot of optimism and positives about his rehab. So again, seeing him around the locker room, you know, it’s always good to see Brian. He’s got a big smile on his face and he’s an outstanding Jet.”

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