Jets second-year defensive end Will McDonald knows the assignment.
“Get more sacks,” McDonald said after the Jets beat the Commanders, 20-17, Saturday. “I’ve got to get some sacks. That’s the only thing that’s on my mind. Just being that baller and impacting the game every time I’m out there.”
Of the players who are not fighting for roster spots, there may not be another Jet who has more riding on this training camp and preseason than McDonald.
The Jets took him with the No. 15 overall pick in 2023, a pick that drew complaints from fans who wanted an offensive lineman or wide receiver at the spot.
McDonald played sparingly as a rookie but did show flashes of the ability that made him a first-round pick.
He finished the season with three sacks.
With Bryce Huff leaving for the Eagles in free agency and the Jets trading John Franklin-Myers to the Broncos, there is an opening for an edge rusher that McDonald can fill.
The team traded for Haason Reddick to help fill that opening too, but he is holding out, creating even more opportunity for McDonald.
On Saturday, McDonald played 12 snaps. He did not have a sack, but he did drill Commanders quarterback Jeff Driskel on one play after using his signature spin move to beat tackle Mason Brooks.
McDonald ended up getting flagged on the play for roughing the passer, but it looked like a questionable call.
The official said McDonald landed on Driskel with his full body weight.
Even though it ended up in a penalty, the play showed just how explosive McDonald can be off the edge. McDonald is an athletic freak with the ability to bend around the edge.
The Jets wish he would have added more weight to his frame this offseason, but McDonald says he has gotten stronger.
“I’m bigger, stronger, faster,” McDonald said. “I’m better at play recognition. Last year, I was a rookie. I still was trying to do what I needed to do, but this offseason, I made sure that I did what I need to.”
The question entering Year 2 for the Jets and McDonald is how much he will see the field. Jets coach Robert Saleh and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich like to use a rotation on the defensive line.
Last season, the breakdown of snaps went like this: Jermaine Johnson 66 percent, Franklin-Myers 55 percent, Huff 42 percent, Micheal Clemons 33 percent and McDonald 16 percent.
Johnson and Reddick figure to be the top two edge rushers this season, but can McDonald get up to Huff’s level of playing time?
Many have talked about McDonald making a jump this season. He feels he just needs a chance.
“I don’t really think I need a leap; I just need some more opportunities,” McDonald said. “I’ve always been this type of player. Last year, we had a lot of good guys in the room, I just wasn’t able to get as much opportunities, but now this year, I’m hoping to get those opportunities more and just take advantage of those. People always say leap this and leap that, I don’t really think I needed to take a leap because for one, I wasn’t a bad player. I just needed more opportunities so I could take advantage of those.”
The Jets travel to Charlotte, N.C., this week for a joint practice Thursday with the Panthers before playing them in a preseason game on Saturday.
It will be another big week for McDonald.
The Jets posted video of his performance in a joint practice against the Commanders last week, highlighting how well he played.
McDonald now knows he needs to show that in a game.
“It was cool, but that’s practice,” McDonald said. “When it comes to game time, that’s when you really have to go crazy. When the game comes, that’s when you have to be a baller.”
