New York Jets: Pass blocking, Braelon Allen, and RB playing time

Will Braelon Allen’s pass blocking affect hid playing time?

Last season the New York Jets drafted running back Israel Abanikanda in the 5th round. As part of my breakdown of that pick, I highlighted last year how Abanikanda struggled in pass protection in college and how that might limit his playing time in year 1. Months later, that take came to matter quite a bit with the Jets saying that pass blocking was a reason Abanikanda struggled to find consistent on-field reps.

Highlighting why that matters, Abanikanda’s college struggles quite clearly carried over into the pros and was a rather significantly liability in the few reps he earned.

Given those struggles and how it negatively impacted Abanikanda’s first year, it registers as a bit of a surprise that the Jets seemed to double down on their ability to teach a young running back how to pass block. Who? Fourth round pick draft pick Braelon Allen, who similarly was in contention for least effective pass blocking running back last season within his draft class, with the 2nd highest pressure rate allowed.

So what does all that mean?

On one hand, possibly nothing. It’s within the realm of possibility Allen will simply pick up the skills needed to pass block faster than Abanikanda did. If we wanted to find evidence to suggest that might be the outcome then we could point to how much Allen values pass blocking, which might assist him as he tries to learn the necessary skills.

On the other hand, this could be the same situation that the Jets ran into with Abanikanda, where the learning curve is a bit steeper than fans and the Jets hope for. If that happens, then reps for Allen may be hard to come by, limiting his year one usage and productivity.