Position Change? Jets Trying Out Olu Fashanu at RT

Lost in the chaos of the organization in a massive contract stand-off Monday afternoon was the fact that the New York Jets received great news on their prized rookie right tackle.

New York announced 11th overall pick Olu Fashanu would begin cross-training at right tackle outside of his duties on the left side.

So far, Fashanu's strong performance in the preseason and training camp has allowed the Jets to think of Fashanu more than just a project left tackle, but as a stalwart player at a key position who can play on both sides of the line.

"Today was the first day we put him somewhere else, we tried him on the right side today and we'll do that for the next couple of weeks so he can get that balance between left and right," Jets head coach Robert Saleh said after practice.

Fashanu was the highest-graded offensive player on the Jets during their preseason victory over the Washington Commanders Saturday, and the Jets feel that's more than enough to show he can handle more than his designated position.

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"First time out for everyone, for rookies there's always going to be things that you can take away that are good, there's going to be things that he's going to have to improve on," Saleh explained. "I'm looking forward to the second game because you'd like to see a big jump now that you've got the first game out of the way. It's finding a way to improve, you get rid of the nerves and the jitterbugs if you will, but there's a lot of things I thought he did really well."

So far, the early returns are beyond promising for New York's young rookie.