Brian Costello
Watching the No. 99 come around the edge is part of Jets lore.
For anyone old enough to remember the 1980s, Mark Gastineau was an iconic player and a force with sack after sack followed by his memorable sack dance. The stands at Shea Stadium and then The Meadowlands were filled with green and white 99 jerseys.
The Jets now need another 99 to do some sacking … and some dancing, if he wants.
Will McDonald wears Gastineau’s old 99, and the Jets might not need him to be as impactful as Gastineau to have a great season, but it sure would help.
The Jets drafted McDonald with the No. 15-overall pick last year, then they sat him. He played 19 percent of the defensive snaps. He managed three sacks in those limited opportunities, showing he can get to the quarterback.
But the coaches never seemed to trust him in Year 1, perhaps because he looked small for the position at 235 pounds. They also had Jermaine Johnson, John Franklin-Myers and Bryce Huff playing in front of him.
Franklin-Myers is now in Denver, and Huff is in Philadelphia. The team traded for Haason Reddick to replace some of those sacks, but Reddick is now two weeks into a contract holdout.
All of this creates a massive opening for McDonald to run through.
“Will McDonald is getting a lot of reps that he otherwise wouldn’t have got, and for it, he’s been improving every day,” coach Robert Saleh said Monday.
Tuesday, McDonald showed his speed, as he beat right tackle Morgan Moses and had what would have been a sack of Aaron Rodgers had he been allowed to touch the quarterback. After a slow start to training camp, when questions about his lack of weight gain were prominent, McDonald has shown up. He has shown his burst and a devastating spin move.
The next step comes Thursday, when the Commanders come to Florham Park for a joint practice and McDonald faces different competition. That will be followed up by Saturday’s preseason game, which McDonald surely will play in.
“Man, he’s taking a huge step,” linebacker Quincy Williams said. “I’m looking for that spin move. That thing look good. So I’m excited to see him go against somebody else.”
So are the coaches. The roster does not have many question marks left on it. McDonald is one. That question is just how big a part of the defense he can be this season. Will he take over Huff’s role? Can the Jets trust him on first and second down?
Saleh said the Jets need to see McDonald win with more than just speed. They want to see him overpower blockers.
“It’s about proving to yourself and to the man in front of you, which is the tackle that you can run through his face on a pass play,” Saleh said. “When he can establish the fact that he can win with power, it’s going to open up all his speed, all his athleticism and all his quickness. But from a run-game standpoint, he plays with great leverage, he plays with great hands. He’s plenty good enough to play the run in our system, so it’s more proving to himself and to the people in front of him, like I said, that he can run through them.”
This is not a question of whether McDonald can “step up.” It is a question of whether the Jets will give him more opportunities to show what he can do and whether he can make the most of those opportunities.
It feels like he will get chances in the preseason. Huff is now with the Eagles. Reddick is somewhere in South Jersey racking up fines. Johnson will probably sit out most of the preseason. The Jets are going to have to give those reps to someone, and McDonald should be at the top of the list.
McDonald’s 2024 season could be dictated by how these next three weeks go. Can he convince the coaches he deserves to play more than 19 percent of the snaps?
If he does, Jets fans may again be buying up No. 99 jerseys.
