Jets left tackle Olu Fashanu is looking to put a rough outing behind him before his team visits Chicago to take on the Bears on Sunday.
Fashanu played 66 snaps in last week’s 31-24 loss to the Lions in Detroit, but it was three of those plays that drew the most attention: the 23-year-old gave up 2.5 sacks in the defeat, a performance that made him one of the more scrutinized players on the team this week.
Fashanu said he isn’t rattled by the criticism that followed.
“That’s the reality of being an O-lineman,” Fashanu said. “At the end of the day, every player strives to be perfect. In the NFL, you’re going against guys on the other side that are pretty good, too. Games like that are going to happen. I feel like it’s really on yourself to remember who you are, fall back on your training, fall back to the guys in your room and just keep going.”
Fashanu is part of an offensive line that was expected to be one of the team’s strengths this season. That held true in Week 1 against the Titans, but the unit’s play has slipped over the past two weeks, in both run blocking and pass protection.
Fashanu said he has used this week to correct the mistakes from the Detroit game ahead of Sunday’s matchup in Chicago.
“For myself, it’s just bouncing back,” Fashanu said. “Last week, I didn’t have a good game, obviously. I know that my job in pass protection is to keep Geno [Smith] clean and healthy. I didn’t do that last week. For myself, it’s just remembering who I am, just focusing on my technique, being dialed in to the snap count and all that and just doing everything possible to keep Geno clean.”
According to Fashanu, the offensive line as a group has spent the week trying to figure out what has gone wrong over the last two games.
“Getting our mojo back, getting back to that same mentality we had in the Tennessee game,” Fashanu said of the line’s focus this week. “At the end of the day, we know our ability and we know that these last two weeks haven’t been the best for our O-line. This week was all about getting prepared for Chicago and focusing on ourselves.”
Ahead of the trip to Chicago, the Jets also made a pair of roster moves, elevating wide receiver Sterling Shepard from the practice squad for the second consecutive week, along with linebacker Jaden Keller.
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