https://jetsxfactor.com/2021/06/16/which-personnel-packages-will-the-new-york-jets-use-in-2021/ Which personnel packages will the New York Jets use in 2021? By Vitor Paiva - 06/16/2021 There are so many differences between Robert Saleh‘s coaching staff and Adam Gase’s that it’s hard to cite the most important. However, if I had to pick an improvement that’ll stand out most, it’ll be Saleh and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur‘s ability to mold their schemes to their players’ sills. While Gase trusted his standard 11 personnel offense to beat every defensive alignment and run all of his various concepts, LaFleur comes from an offensive coaching three that believes mastering the same run/pass concepts from different formations can do much more damage than Gase’s approach. That explains why Gase’s Jets ran 11 personnel (1 back, 1 tight end, 3 wide receivers) 72% of the time in 2020, while LaFleur’s San Francisco 49ers ran it only on 44% of the snaps. While the Jets offense was a sea of predictability (you, I and the world knew they were running the ball when 2 TEs hit the field), the 49ers wanted everything to look the same until it didn’t. Formation and personnel variety were both keys to it. The Jets’ free agent and draft classes were a good indication that this staff will remain true to what they did together in San Francisco: flexibility and variation. Tyler Kroft, Keelan Cole, Elijah Moore, Telvin Coleman are all players who can line up in multiple spots on the football field, making it that much harder for defenses to account for them. The Jets also have good depth, which will allow them to keep guys fresh the entire time. While we cannot predict the true depth chart order of this 2021 Jets’ offense, this article will detail the Jets’ offensive personnel packages, while mentioning some wrinkles that will be thrown in by LaFleur to create mismatches. What will the Jets look like when lining up in 11 personnel? What about 21? How does LaFleur plan to get pre-snap mismatches for his players? First – and by no means I’m trying to predict it this way – this article assumes that the Jets skill-position starters will be: X: Denzel Mims/Keelan Cole Z: Corey Davis H/F: Jamison Crowder/Elijah Moore Y: Chris Herndon/Tyler Kroft RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson UT: Elijah Moore With that said, off we go. 11 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson TE: Chris Herndon/Tyler Kroft WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims WR: Jamison Crowder/Elijah Moore Even though I do not expect the Jets to run 11 personnel at a Gase-like ratio, I believe they will start things from eleven at least on 50% of the snaps. Simply put, that’s where the strength of the roster is. The Jets have at least four good weapons on the perimeter, meaning taking them out for either Herdon/Kroft would be decreasing the offense’s talent. The Jets’ running scheme is built for a heavier look, so some pre-snap motions to send Elijah Moore to the backside of the running play or to bring either Davis or Mims inside to help with run blocking are surely going to be part of the equation.
21 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson FB: Tevon Wesco TE: Chris Herndon WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims The 49ers utilized 21 personnel 33% of the time last year, ranking second in the league. I don’t think the Jets will run it more than 30%, simply because they do not have All-Pro fullback Kyle Juszczyk and also invested a large part of their money and draft capital at the wide receiver position. You will see a lot of wide-zone out of 21 from the Jets, much more so than last year, but it won’t be the team’s leading personnel package. 12 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson TE: Tyler Kroft TE: Chris Herndon WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims The 49ers only used 12 personnel on 12% of their plays last year, but that was largely because George Kittle had an injury-plagued season. When George Kittle and Jordan Reed were both healthy, San Fran loved them some 12. For the Jets, It’s up to Chris Herndon to take the next step and show he can be a consistent player. This running scheme can be so deadly out of 12 when at least one of the TEs is also a big threat in the passing game. I could see the Jets running 12 personnel on about 20% of their snaps. 10 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson WR: Corey Davis WR: Elijah Moore WR: Jamison Crowder WR: Denzel Mims 10 personnel is not common for this offense, considering that it likes to run the rock with a TE on the field. The 49ers only utilized 10 personnel twice last season, for what it’s worth. I definitely think the Jets will use 10 personnel a lot more than San Francisco. As I previously noted, this team’s strength is at the wide receiver spot, and Elijah Moore’s unique skill set allows LaFleur to be creative. Don’t be surprised if the Jets take the field in 10 personnel only to line up in a split backfield with both Elijah Moore and Michael Carter next to Zach Wilson. 01 Personnel TE: Chris Herndon WR: Corey Davis WR: Elijah Moore WR: Jamison Crowder WR: Denzel Mims A grand total of zero snaps were run by LaFleur’s 49ers last year in 01 Personnel. I expect the Jets to top that number this year, but not by much. 13 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson WR: Corey Davis TE: Ryan Griffin/Trevon Wesco TE: Tyler Kroft TE: Chris Herndon Here’s a personnel grouping that I believe the Jets will occasionally deploy this year. Even though the 49ers didn’t run it once last season, their TE room was injured for a great part of the season. Kyle Shanahan loved some 3 TE sets out of empty to explore mismatches when he was in Atlanta (8% of the snaps in 2016, when the league average was 2%), and his disciple, Kevin Stefanski, did this a lot last year in Cleveland (14%, which led the NFL). 22 Personnel RB: Michael Carter/Ty Johnson FB: Tevon Wesco WR: Corey Davis TE: Tyler Kroft TE: Chris Herndon The 22 personnel package is usually considered a huge tell that the offense is running the football, but LaFleur’s 49ers threw the ball on 37% of the snaps they went with 22 personnel in 2020, which ranked second among teams that ran 22 personnel at least 20 times (behind only his brother Matt LaFleur’s Packers). San Francisco ranked fourth in 22 personnel percentage usage at 9%, behind the Ravens (16%), Raiders (12%), and Vikings (9%). I definitely don’t think the Jets will surpass San Fran here. As we mentioned earlier, this offense’s strength lies in its wide receivers, not the tight ends. Let’s look at some ways to create mismatches.
11 Personnel 2.0 FB: Tevon Wesco WR/RB: Elijah Moore WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims TE: Chris Herndon The defense, here, reacts to 11 personnel. Wesco is your backfield player and the Jets are huddling with three wide receivers. Usually, when matched up against this look, defenses tend to go nickel, since 11 personnel is a pass-heavy tendency. In this personnel package, the Jets can utilize Moore as the team’s RB and catch defenses off guard, running out of the I-formation against a lighter defensive group. Take a look at this play below, where the 49ers do just that, running a toss to the left with Deebo Samuel as their RB. It’s a nice way of utilizing Moore’s unique skill set out of 11 personnel. 21 Personnel 2.0 RB: Michael Carter RB: Tevin Coleman WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims TE: Chris Herndon You probably have already read Michael Nania’s piece on Tevin Coleman’s elite performance when lined up in the slot. It showcases Coleman often matched up against linebackers who couldn’t keep up with his speed and shifty route running. Most of the time, when Coleman’s in the slot, the offense is lining up with another back in the backfield. That’s why he’s so constantly matched up with linebackers: the defense sees 21 personnel and thinks of heavy, run-first looks. Running 21 personnel with a 3×1 or 2×2 set look with Coleman in the slot gives the Jets a favorable matchup down the middle. 12 Personnel 2.0 RB: Michael Carter TE: Tyler Kroft TE: Chris Herndon WR: Corey Davis WR: Denzel Mims This is a package the Jets could use in the red zone or from the 30-yard line. Kroft, Herndon, Davis, and Mims are all big targets who could be field stretchers. Sending out two TEs tells the defense the offense is running the football, so this could draw linebackers to cover Carter, Herndon and Kroft. The Jets could line up out of the Ace or even align Herndon as a slot. The size and speed mismatch this formation offers the Jets could be useful in the red zone, where the team has historically struggled. Conclusions The numbers tell us that we are out of the pure 11 personnel, 3×1 sets era in New York. Fans can expect a lot more of 21 and 12, with multiple alignments. The classic 3×1 sets we saw under Gase will not be a part of this offense. Moore, Davis, and Crowder will move around the formation on a play-by-play basis, creating misdirection for the defense with their pre-snap movement. Wesco will be an important player on early downs, and TEs will be more involved as primary options in the play-action passing game. Also, it is fair to question what Denzel Mims’ role will be in this attack since his playstyle is much more suited to a vertically oriented offense. Remember: in this offense, everything looks the same. Until it doesn’t.
NC, thanks for posting. Great stuff and what a breath of fresh air this will be. Its going from AG prehistoric and laughable O to today's current NFL standard. Can not wait to watch it develop,,,
You're welcome! I loved it both because it explains what to look for from the Jets offensively, but because it explains all these different personnel groupings. Does anyone know how and when these numberical names for the position groups arose? I had never heard of them until a few (?) years ago or so. Even then, I had only heard of the 11 and 21 I think. I was always a little confused when I heard it, and now am glad that I have it here in black and white for reference. I thought others might not know as well and find it helpful and interesting.
Thanks for posting NC. I love the education as well as the percentage of use numbers. If we had a football knowledge Jets thread this would be a great post to sticky.
First, thanks for posting this! Very informative. But I have to say that Gase's insistence in forcing his players to bend to his (outdated and predictable) offense ought to be a federal crime. Why federal? Because the Jets crossed state lines, thereby making it an interstate offense.
In San Francisco Mike LaFleur was able to feature an All-Pro TE in Kittle and an all-world FB in Kyle Juszczyk. Unfortunately we don't have that in NYJ. Therefore I'm expecting to see a lot of 4 wide sets with both 6'3's on the outside in Corey Davis/Denzel Mims with both Elijah Moore and Jamison Crowder flourishing and exploding out of the slot (s) with Michael Carter coming out of the backfield @ RB. @NCJetsfan excellent thread thnx you for this share I'm fired up about Mike LaFleur.
