Aaron Rodgers gives Jets defensive coordinator chance to dream big again

This is the dream:

Aaron Rodgers has thrown a touchdown bomb to Garrett Wilson and a TD checkdown to Breece Hall, and the Jets are leading the Bills or Dolphins or Patriots 20-0 in the third quarter.

And now Quinnen Williams and Haason Reddick meet at the quarterback. Jermaine Johnson and, yes, Will McDonald, put pressure on the quarterback to create a Sauce Gardner interception. Quincy Williams forces a fumble and C.J. Mosley recovers.

It is Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich’s dream.

It was Ulbrich’s dream last summer, and it is Ulbrich’s dream again this summer.

Rodgers affords him the license to dream that dream again.

It was a dream he never got to dream with Zach Wilson and Tim Boyle and Trevor Siemian at quarterback.

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“It’s an exciting idea, for sure,” Ulbrich said Tuesday, “and we got guys that can take advantage of that. We played in a lot of tight games the last couple of years, and to have an opportunity to play with substantial leads and let our dogs just absolutely eat is exciting.”

When Ulbrich talks about his defense’s standard, here is what he means: “That we find a way to win every single week, that’s what it is. And we’re the reason that we win. We put that on our backs. That’s bigger than stats, that’s bigger than analytics, it’s bigger than all that. We find a way to win every week.”

The 2023 Jets defense ranked second in passing yards and third in total yards allowed per game. Ulbrich’s players are hardly shy about craving the league’s No. 1 defense ranking.

“Raheem Morris said this when he took over for [former defensive coordinator] Brandon Staley at… the Rams and they were the No. 1 defense statistically that previous year,” Ulbrich said, “and they asked, ‘How are you gonna maintain the No. 1 defense in the league?’ And he’s like, ‘My job’s not to be the No. 1 defense. My job is to win a Super Bowl.’ And that’s what our job is, to find a way to win every single week. Whatever that looks like.”

The first two days in pads have left Rodgers, playing chess against Mosley, frustrated against the Jets defense.

“We put an install in, which is our counterpunch to something that they’re doing, and then they see that, they put their counterpunch in,” Ulbrich said. “There’s gonna be days where they win, where we win.”

The 2023 Jets defense was 25th in rushing defense. Welcome man-mountain defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw.

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“Have you ever seen a man that made Quinnen Williams look little?” Ulbrich asked.

Uh, no.

Reddick, signed to replace Bryce Huff, remains a contract holdout.

“I have not been around him a whole lot, personally,” Ulbrich said, “but I know a lot of people that have, and coaches rave about not just the player, we know the player he is, but the human being that he is and the work that he’ll put in.”

The Jets need athletic edge and 2023 first-rounder Will McDonald to make the kind of second-year leap that Johnson did a year ago.

“The physicality, the strength, the size, that’s something that we challenged him this offseason to get bigger and stronger and become a better run defender, a better every-down player, and he had absolutely stepped up to that challenge,” Ulbrich said. “In my opinion, we’re the best edge-setters in football, and he is putting that on tape consistently right now.”

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Left tackle Tyron Smith is making those edge setters better on the field and off.

“It’s gonna be a big reason that all of our defensive ends become that much better,” Ulbrich said.

The 2023 defense was tied for eighth (27) in takeaways. Gardner needs to intercept more than two balls. D.J. Reed recorded one last season.

“To be great defense, elite defense, like historic defense, you gotta take the ball away,” Ulbrich said. “Ultimately that changes games and wins games and wins championships.”

Ulbrich is tickled that a bigger and stronger Sauce has taken a huge leadership leap.

“I’m starting to feel his voice on the entire defense now, challenging guys, making sure things are right, pushing guys to be the best of their ability,” Ulbrich said.

Rodgers will give Ulbrich the chance to let the dogs out.

“I’m excited to be able to kind of play the game on our terms and dictate the terms of engagement,” Michael Carter II said.

Dog day afternoons, or nights.

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