Perhaps no New York Jets news was more shocking than the center position in Florham Park, NJ—when head coach Aaron Glenn told reporters at league meetings that the man who snaps the ball isn’t set in stone for 2025.

New York featured one of the best young safeties in the NFL last season in 2023 second-round pick Joe Tippmann. The Wisconsin product was a top-10 center according to Pro Football Focus last year.

Even so, that didn’t stop the Jets from signing former Green Bay Packers starter Josh Myers on the open market. The Ohio State prospect has started over 50 games in his career so far, and while he has not been as productive as Tippmann, he has the kind of leadership the team could use along the offensive line.

Does that mean Tippmann is in danger of losing his starting job?

To the now-veteran center, that isn’t his primary focus going into training camp.

Joe Tippmann addresses the center competition

If Joe Tippmann was upset that he was the lone offensive lineman openly going through a competition this training camp, he didn’t show it after the team’s first practice Wednesday morning.

In fact, he relished the opportunity to prove his worth to a new coaching staff.

“Just keep competing,” Tippmann told the media. “We brought Josh in, so I have that competition each and every day … It’s an open competition and I’m going to have to keep battling for that position.”

At first glance, it’s hard to see the Jets seriously considering playing Myers over a young star like Tippmann. The former Packer was only given a one-year deal worth over $3 million.

That isn’t the kind of money that goes to a starter.

Despite the positive outlook going into camp, Tippmann made it clear that he wasn’t expecting a competition heading into the offseason.

“At first, it took me by surprise, but Coach AG called me first and let me know the situation beforehand,” Tippmann explained. “I immediately followed him on Instagram and started building that relationship.”

Jets head coach Aaron Glenn also made it clear that while the competition at center has been well documented, the same was to be true for the rest of the roster.

“There’s an open competition everywhere, guys,” Glenn said. “Listen, our job is to make sure we do this: bring in the best players we can, and every player on this team knows there’s going to be competition every day.”

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There is a big difference between the kind of competition someone like Olu Fashanu or Armand Membou (New York’s two projected tackles) is going through and the one Tippmann is being thrown into.

Justin Fields, for example, has not produced at the level Tippmann has over the course of his short career. The Jets can say that there will be competition at quarterback, but they have also made it clear that Fields is “their guy.”

That makes this year’s center competition so intriguing in the early days of camp.

If Tippmann cannot beat out Myers, what does that mean for his career? Would the Jets look to move on from a young player who was one of the better-graded stars from last season? Does that mean they’ll be in the open market for another center in 2026?

All these questions will be blown away if Tippmann wins the job outright. The current competition could be used as a tool to get the most out of an ascending player as well.

The center’s response to the position battle is commendable. He is being a consummate professional at a time when his future is cloudy.

It doesn’t take away from the amount of questions soon to come on his side, at the very least.