Jets Offensive Line Sets Tone and Raises Expectations in Dominant Week 1 Win

NASHVILLE, TN — They say the easiest way to win football games is to dominate the line of scrimmage. If that's the case, the New York Jets may win a lot more games than many people expect.

Gang Green's offensive line dominated on Sunday and the rest of the team did their jobs in a 23-10 thrashing of the Tennessee Titans.

"Our guys did a really good job," Jets head coach Aaron Glenn said. "It's just a testament
to everything those guys have been through going from OTAs to training camp. We still got so much more that we got to clean up."

The numbers tell the story. New York ran for over 150 yards, while protecting starting quarterback Geno Smith to the tune of zero sacks and limited pressure. New York's performance leaves even more confidence that 2026 could be much better than originally predicted so long as the group plays like they did on Sunday.

Jets stars pay tribute to dominant line

Quarterbacks are always happy when their jerseys look untouched throughout a game. In the case of Smith, his 215 yards passing came relatively without concern. New York's offensive line allowed just three pressures to former members of the team including Jermaine Johnson and John Franklin-Myers.

Jeffery Simmons, the lone All-Pro of Tennessee's excellent defense was also a nonfactor. It had New York's starting quarterback grinning from ear to ear after the game.

"I thought the guys did a tremendous job at giving me lanes to throw through," Smith said. "I don't think I got touched at all out there and that's always a great sign."

Breece Hall agreed. New York's freshly paid running back recorded over 100 yards in the victory, including a four-yard touchdown run to give the team a two-score lead that they would not relinquish.

"It was cool for the coaches to rely on them heavily in the run game," Hall said. "It made my job, Braelon's [Allen] job easier. We were very successful today."

New York totaled over 360 yards of offense and over five yards per play. In comparison, the team averaged just 4.4 yards per play last season. Sunday's performance showed that the group could be even better than originally thought.

And as long as the offense plays well, the defense will continue to be thrilled.

"How can you not be excited about the offense when they take the field?" linebacker Demario Davis said. "You got top-10 offensive line, and you got a Pro Bowl quarterback. ... They put that on display today, and it's not shocking."

'Exhausting' performance

Yards are important. Points are important. But the best tally that shows how well an offensive line operated is time of possession. New York controlled the ball consistently throughout the game, putting themselves in advantageous situations with short yards to gain.

New York held the ball for over 38 minutes of game action — 17 more minutes than the Titans. That's an almost 2-to-1 differential. There's no surprise that the Jets dominated.

The best example of that came at the start of the second quarter. Leading 7-3, the Jets went on a 19-play drive that resulted in a field goal. It completely collapsed Tennessee's defense with just three pass plays called on the drive.

But in 90 degree heat, even New York's dominant line had seemingly had enough.

"Exhausting," Joe Tippmann laughed. "It feels good to go out there and do that. It was a personal record for me. Just proud of the guys."

It's always harder for offensive linemen to open the year in hot weather like this. New York had practiced for the most part in cooler temperatures this offseason, and there was some worry how they would handle the heat in Nashville.

Those concerns were unfounded.

But that doesn't mean the unit is a finished product. The Jets believe they left points on the board against the Titans. With a difficult schedule upcoming, they know they will need to be even better moving forward.

"We're going to look at this, we're going to flush it, get ready to correct the mistakes, and get ready to move on to Green Bay," Glenn said.

If the offensive line dominates the way they did on Sunday, though, they will win a lot more games than anticipated.

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