The New York Jets imported Davante Adams not just to jumpstart a 2024 playoff push. Interim coach Jeff Ulbrich hopes the Pro Bowl wideout will also help young stud Garrett Wilson continue to develop.
“I think the best thing, I was fortunate enough in San Francisco to be around Terrell Owens and Jerry Rice and to see firsthand all that Jerry taught T.O.,” Ulbrich said Tuesday, via the team’s official transcript. “Jerry, at the time, was in his 18th year, whatever it was, but so established and understood the game at the highest level. I think Davante’s going to provide that same thing for Garrett and for all of our receivers. He’s done this at an elite level for a long time, and on top of all of it, you’re going to see exactly the reflection of a relationship with Aaron (Rodgers), the synergy that they’ve had for so long. So, it’s an exciting time to be a Jet in that way.”
Ulbrich was a rookie linebacker in 2000, Rice’s 16th and final season in San Francisco. Rice and Owens shared the field for five years (1996-2000). They both eventually landed in the Pro Football Hall of Fame (Rice in 2010, Owens in 2018).
Wilson has been Rodgers’ go-to target this season. In his last two games, the third-year pro generated 21 catches for 208 yards and two touchdowns on 33 targets. Wilson is the only player with 20-plus catches since Week 5. He’s the first Jets player with 100-plus receiving yards and 1-plus receiving TD in consecutive games since Brandon Marshall in Weeks 16-17, 2015.
The 31-year-old Adams remains an elite weapon, coming off four consecutive 1,100-plus yard seasons. The veteran’s ability to win off the line of scrimmage and always be available to the quarterback separates him from other wideouts. While Wilson has credited Rodgers with helping teach some of the game’s intricacies, picking the brain of a three-time All-Pro receiver will be even more of a boon to the burgeoning talent.
Make no mistake, Wilson is a star in his own right, but playing alongside another elite weapon will make the Jets offense even more potent, even if neither is force-fed the pigskin at the same rate.
With Adams joining Wilson and Allen Lazard atop the depth chart, the questions ruminating around New York are what becomes of Mike Williams. Good Morning Football’s Peter Schrager reported Tuesday that Williams is on the trade block.
“I think we’ll figure that out in the next couple days, how all these pieces kind of fit together,” Ulbrich said when asked about Williams. “It’s an exciting and a good problem to have because we’ve got a lot of different guys with a lot of different skillsets that can do a lot of things, so Todd (Downing) and his staff will have some sleepless nights with some good problems.”
