Last season, the Jets rolled the dice on a part-time player in former Lions linebacker Brandon Copeland. Copeland had missed all of 2017 with a torn pectoral muscle and was rarely used by Detroit before the injury, but the move wound up paying dividends as he registered career highs in tackles (35), sacks (5), quarterback hits (14) and tackles for loss (8).
As teams have started handing out future/reserve contracts to players they’d like to get a look at during their offseason program, one player who jumps out as being an early candidate to have a Copeland-like impact for the Jets in 2019 is former Cowboys defensive lineman Charles Tapper.