In August 2014, before Aaron Rodgers had his second MVP season and Joe Tippmann was still six years away from playing a college football game in the same state, the Packers needed to make a belated change of direction.
Starting center JC Tretter suffered a knee injury during the preseason and will miss the regular season.
Corey Linsley, a fifth-round pick that year, moved up a level and started all 16 games as a rookie, anchoring a Green Bay offensive line (“probably the best line we’ve ever had,” Rodgers said Wednesday) that was one lead away from losing a single onside kick and heading to the Super Bowl.
The Jets’ center outlook going into 2024 is different.
There were no injuries that would have forced last-minute changes.
Tippmann is entering his second season.
However, Rodgers mentioned Tippmann himself in his first press conference of training camp when answering questions about the Jets’ standard and atmosphere.
This year, Tippmann, a second-round draft pick in 2023, began camp as the unquestioned center.
He won’t be moving between that position and guard like he did last year.
He also won’t be switching between first- and second-team duties.
Tippman developed as a rookie and positioned himself to be a key piece of an offensive line that includes a 30-year veteran in the NFL among the projected starters.
And Rodgers, a 40-year-old quarterback in his own right, wants Tippmann to “empower” him and for him to “take over,” just like Linsley did 10 seasons ago.
“He came in, he motivated the guys, they listened to him,” Rodgers said of Linsley. [Tippmann] If we can do that, we have to empower leadership.”
The stability during training camp helped.
Last year, Tippman came in as a contender to take the job from Connor McGovern.
His first NFL start came at right guard in Week 3 after an injury to Duane Brown.
But just eight weeks into the season, on November 6, Tippmann was under center in the next game after McGovern was sidelined with a season-ending knee injury.
The results were promising.
Per Pro Football Focus, Tippmann has allowed just three sacks and seven of his eight fouls came after switching centers, but he has settled into his new role and laid a foundation for 2024, with head coach Robert Saleh predicting in December that Tippmann “is going to be a very good center for a long time.”
During an overtime session in June, longtime Jets center Nick Mangold coached Tippman on technique and footwork. Tippman asked and got Mangold’s phone number, telling him he was free to call or text him anytime.
And Tippmann has incorporated those insights into his routine.
“All that jumping around and doing stuff has definitely helped me become a better player, and I’ve gotten to see from a guard’s perspective what a good center can do and how it can help me and how it can elevate my game,” Tippman said Thursday, “but it feels good to be able to focus on one position, one technique and not have the mental strain of learning both and practicing both every day.”
A productive season for Tippmann would be the latest step in cementing his place in the Jets’ long-term plans.
But in the short term, he would be the poster child for consistency for a team that has seen constant roster turnover in 2023 and allowed 64 sacks.
Right guard Alijah Vera-Tucker rejoined the team last week and is expected to gradually increase practice frequency after suffering a torn Achilles tendon.
Right tackle Morgan Moses was also on track to return last weekend.
The left side of the line — tackle Tyron Smith and guard John Simpson — is already intact.
And at the center of it all, quite literally, is Tippmann.
He impressed Smith with how “very mature for his age,” and Rodgers paid his own compliment.
That’s exactly what the Jets had in mind when they drafted Tippman out of the University of Wisconsin.
They’ll need that to make the offense work again this season.
Then, and maybe when, Tippmann could become the nucleus of a postseason run, much like Linsley was for Rodgers as a young center.
“Tippmann has really blossomed this year,” said Vera Tucker, who also described him as a “technologist.” “Yes, he has. [Tippmann]He’s going to be a big star.”
