Lenny Krieg Is Starting Jets OTAs on Wrong Foot

One of the most intriguing position battles that will be on the minds of Jets fans and New York’s coaching staff is at kicker. The Jets do not have a clear answer on who will be starting at kicker in Week 1 against the Tennessee Titans.

It could be Cade York, Lenny Krieg, Younghoe Koo, or someone else who is currently not on the Jets’ roster yet. In our first 53-man roster projection following April’s draft, we went out on a limb and said undrafted free agent Will Ferrin would win the kicker competition.

That was a clear misstep on our side, as Ferrin reportedly struggled during the rookie minicamp earlier this month. Meanwhile, Krieg took advantage of the opportunity to start building his case to be the starter. The Jets released Ferrin a couple of weeks ago to make room for veteran wide receiver Tim Patrick.

With Ferrin out of the picture, it seemed like Krieg would only have to worry about York, but the Jets threw a curveball, signing former Pro Bowl kicker Younghoe Koo on Wednesday. With the media in attendance at Thursday’s organized team activities (OTAs), we found out that York is dealing with a groin injury that will sideline him for at least one week.

One would think this would be great news for Krieg, but instead, it was Koo who made a good first impression on his first day with the team, while Krieg took a small step backward.

One bad OTA practice won’t doom Krieg, but he doesn't have room for any more slip-ups

According to Jets on SI’s Nick Faria, who was at Florham Park, Koo was a perfect 4-for-4 on his kicks, which included a make from 47 yards out. However, Krieg didn’t have the same success, going 2-for-4 on his attempts, per Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic.

Kicking tracker:

Younghoe Koo: 3/3
Lenny Krieg: 2/4
— Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) May 28, 2026

For Krieg, this isn’t the performance he likely wanted to put on film with media in attendance at OTAs, but the good thing is that he still has time to make up ground. OTAs will continue heading into June with a few more practice sessions, plus mandatory minicamp towards the middle of next month (June 16-18).

At that time, York should hopefully be healthy, so Krieg will have to fend him off in the process. But York’s resume isn’t perfect, as he’s a career 73.3 percent field goal kicker, and he didn’t kick at all last season.

Meanwhile, Koo is coming off an uneven last two seasons and actually competed against Krieg with the Falcons last summer for their starting kicker job. Koo ended up winning the competition, but didn’t stick around in Atlanta last season, as his tenure was over within the first month of the campaign.

That then led him to the Giants, where he appeared in five games and made 4-of-6 field goals and 11-of-12 extra points.

If Koo can turn back the clock to what he was early in his Falcons’ tenure, Krieg and York might be in trouble. But Koo has to prove it consistently, the same way that Krieg does too.

Given that the Jets have two veteran kickers with NFL experience, Krieg is the underdog and has nothing to lose. If anything, if the former ELF kicker can turn it around, the odds will start to tilt in his favor, and he can put pressure on Koo and York as we inch closer to training camp.

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