Olu Fashanu is feeling proper …. sort out that’s.
The Jets first-round choose labored at proper sort out final week, together with in Saturday’s preseason recreation with the Panthers, after starting coaching camp at left sort out.
The Jets are attempting to cross prepare Fashanu in order that he will be their swing sort out in the course of the season and be the first backup at each spots.
For Fashanu, it’s a fully new place. He by no means performed proper sort out earlier than this week.
“It positively is an adjustment from all the time enjoying left sort out to transitioning to proper sort out,” Fashanu mentioned. “I positively had my justifiable share of reps that I wanted to work on. However I believe I’m in a great spot proper now and I simply must proceed to get higher.”
The Jets took Fashanu out of Penn State with the No. 11 choose total on this yr’s draft.
For a lot of rookies taken that early within the draft, the expectation can be to start out immediately. However the Jets hope Fashanu doesn’t should play in any respect this season. That may imply veteran tackles Tyron Smith and Morgan Moses remained wholesome in entrance of Aaron Rodgers.
The Jets know all too properly how unlikely that’s, although.
Accidents alongside the offensive line have plagued this staff in recent times.
They used 13 completely different beginning offensive line mixtures final season. That was a part of the rationale they chose Fashanu within the first spherical. They now really feel they’ve depth on the road in case accidents crop up.
Fashanu spent the primary three weeks of camp working solely at left sort out, his pure place.
The Jets needed him to get comfy there earlier than introducing the proper facet. Final week, he spent your entire week at proper sort out.
In opposition to the Panthers, Fashanu allowed just one stress in 16 pass-blocking snaps, per ESPN. He additionally was flagged for holding. Jets coach Robert Saleh praised Fashanu after the sport.
“Yeah, new spot. It’s by no means simple,” Saleh mentioned. “I assumed he did a pleasant job. He dealt with it properly. That first observe he was at proper sort out was fairly tough for him, and I assumed he acquired higher because the week went on. He had the holding penalty [Saturday], however total I assumed he did a fairly good job.”
Fashanu has performed the primary half of each Jets preseason video games. The Jets wish to get Fashanu as many reps as attainable now as a result of the expectation is he received’t play a lot as a rookie.
For the informal soccer fan, it might look like shifting from left sort out to proper sort out is not any huge deal, however Fashanu defined how awkward it could actually really feel.
“I believe it’s positively like a sense factor,” he mentioned. “You’re all the time so was once in a staggered [stance] along with your left foot again and now once you swap it to the proper, at instances it could actually really feel like a very completely different factor. At instances, it felt a bit bizarre. The extra reps you get, the higher it feels ultimately.”
Some linemen have in contrast the transfer to utilizing your non-dominant hand to write down.
“I simply strive not to consider it an excessive amount of,” Fashanu mentioned. “On the finish of the day, it’s all simply soccer. I’m simply switching over to the opposite facet of the ball. For me, it’s extra so simply ensuring I management all my controllables and I’m getting off the ball on time, ensuring I’m not late off the ball, ensuring I’m in the proper place to make no matter block I must do.”
Fashanu is aware of that with the ability to play both spot is just going to assist him in his younger profession.
“It was a terrific expertise,” Fashanu mentioned of the sport. “Clearly, I’ve by no means performed at proper sort out earlier than in an precise recreation. It felt actually good simply getting recreation reps. It’s simply going to assist me in the long term for my profession simply being versatile and with the ability to play a number of positions.”
