One thing I’m certain of, with this groups of young, fast, aggressive hybrid LB/S/CB with Saleh at the helm, we are not going to piss away a guaranteed victory with a cover zero call on the last play and no time left on the clock. Those days of idiocy are officially over.
https://thejetpress.com/posts/ny-jets-4-undrafted-free-agents-2021 NY Jets: 4 undrafted free agents who could make the roster By Mason Smoller May 9, 2021, 5:49 PM EDT Every year, over 250 players enter the professional ranks of the NFL, as they are selected by their new teams. However, if a player is not among those picked, it does not mean their football careers are over. In fact, it means that they are still fighting to achieve their NFL dreams. The NY Jets, like every team, scrambled to land the top undrafted free agents following the 2021 NFL Draft. New York once again proved to be aggressive, landing numerous players that were once regarded as draftable players. General manager Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh are looking to build a winning culture in Florham Park. Coming off of a 2-14 season, almost every player is going to be on the block, competing to make the team. Luckily, this could prove beneficial for these undrafted free agents. The Jets have always proven that the most fiery of competitors have a chance to make the team. Off the bat, take a look at now Carolina Panthers star receiver Robby Anderson. The lanky Temple product impressed the Jets during training camp and fought his way onto the roster. Similarly, current players on the Jets like Kyle Phillips and Bryce Huff had to show their passion for the game while competing to make the team. To Douglas and Saleh, this is the type of player they want on their team in 2021. That being said, who out of the NY Jets' undrafted free agent crop can make the 53-man roster? Let’s take a look. 1. Kenny Yeboah, TE, NY Jets This offseason was all about finding playmakers on offense for whoever was to be under center in 2021. That goal remained consistent following the draft as the Jets agreed to a deal with Mississippi tight end Kenny Yeboah. A 6-foot-4, 240-pound tight end, Yeboah is coming off a career year at Ole Miss. In just eight games, Yeboah caught 27 passes, taking them for 524 yards and six touchdowns. Yeboah is also able to line up outside or along the line given his stature. What is most impressive about Yeboah’s 2020 numbers is his 19.4 average yards per catch. The Jets are expected to run an offense that creates opportunities for significant yards after the catch. Yeboah is going to have the chance to make his presence known at training camp. As things stand, the Jets tight end unit has upside, though remains unproven. Current starter Chris Herndon enters a big contract season, as his upside has not made up for his disappointing production. Veterans Tyler Kroft and Ryan Griffin will likely compete for the backup spot, while Trevon Wesco and Daniel Brown are simply trying to make the team. Without a doubt, the Jets have a solid group of tight ends, filled with experience and potential. Given offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur’s past in San Francisco with their tight ends, the position is likely going to be utilized more than the Jets have in the past decade. Taking that into consideration, Yeboah has an opportunity to prove he belongs. Do not be surprised if he makes an early impact in the receiving game for the Jets in 2021. 2. Tristen Hoge, OL, NY Jets With the second overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, the NY Jets selected BYU quarterback Zach Wilson. Coming off of a career year in 2020, Wilson impressed with his arm strength and improvisation ability outside of the pocket. One of the biggest keys behind Wilson’s playmaking this past season was the protection in front of him. He had left tackle Brady Christensen, who went on to be drafted by the Carolina Panthers. Wilson also had offensive guard Tristen Hoge holding down the fort up front. Tristen Hoge is a 6-foot-5, 310-pound offensive lineman, who originally attended Notre Dame. Hoge started for three years at BYU, utilizing his large frame and mauler mentality to protect Wilson. Obviously, his history with Wilson is a massive plus for Hoge, but he was not just signed by the team because of it. The Jets picked up Hoge because he has a legitimate chance to make an impact early as a versatile lineman. One of the top priorities for Joe Douglas this offseason was to improve the protection up front. After all, it has been horrid for years now. Already, New York is set to have multiple competitions up front, as both young players and veterans will get opportunities to show they belong. It is also worth noting that LaFleur’s offense is built for versatile offensive lineman like Hoge. He has the size and length to play either guard or tackle if necessary. Even if he does not make the 53-man roster, Hoge should be in a great position to make the team’s practice squad. 3. Hamilcar Rashed Jr., DE, NY Jets As every Jets fan knows, rushing the passer has not been the team’s strong suit for over a decade. After all, this past season, only Quinnen Williams posted more than 3.5 sacks. Luckily, reinforcements have begun to trickle in. The biggest offseason addition for the Jets came with former Cincinnati Bengals defensive end Carl Lawson, who is among the best in the league at creating pressure. Additionally, the Jets brought in veteran Vinny Curry who has over 32.5 sacks and 92 career quarterback hits in nine years in the league. Nevertheless, the Jets need more pass rushers. It's a position that a team can never have too much talent at. And for New York, Hamilcar Rashed Jr. might be a diamond in the rough. As the team transitions to a 4-3 defensive scheme under Saleh, the Jets need players who fit it. Rashed is a 6-foot-2, 251-pound defensive end who has the athleticism to play either a stand-up or hand-in-the-dirt role. However, his knack for getting after the passer is why he has a shot to make the team. Rashed is coming off of an injury-plagued 2020 campaign where he did not have a single sack. But he has shown he can produce at an elite level. In 2019, Rashed had 14.0 sacks to go with 62 total tackles (22.5 for a loss) and two forced fumbles. The Jets don't need Rashed to start right out of the gate. But with the deep rotation Saleh employs on the defensive front, he can receive an opportunity to make an impact early on as a rookie. 4. Isaiah Dunn, CB, NY Jets If there's any position that the Jets should have invested more into this offseason, it's the cornerback position. Outside of the three cornerbacks the Jets took on Day 3 of the 2021 NFL Draft, their lone addition is special teams ace Justin Hardee. As things stand, the Jets will enter the season with Bryce Hall and Blessuan Austin as their expected starters. Obviously, that is subject to change, given there are plenty of options still available in free agency. At the same time, if the Jets are content with those on the roster, undrafted cornerback Isaiah Dunn should have a chance to make the team. Following the draft, the Jets made Dunn the highest-paid undrafted free agent cornerback in NFL history. Clearly, the Jets see potential in Dunn. Playing his college ball at Oregon State, Dunn never registered an interception. Rather, he is a smart player who had 18 pass deflections and 115 total tackles in 29 career games for the team. Dunn is 6-foot, 193-pounds and has been a lockdown corner at Oregon State for the past four years. He is a patient player with a very high football IQ that helps him be physical at the line of scrimmage. Plus, he has fluid movement that helps him make up for his average athleticism. One issue that Dunn is going to need to touch up though is his tackling technique. It certainly played a role in him going undrafted in the first place. But like the other three previously mentioned, he is in a great position to compete and fight to make his NFL dreams come true with the Jets.
https://thejetpress.com/posts/ny-je...source=spotim&utm_medium=spotim_recirculation NY Jets reportedly had a fourth-round grade on TE Kenny Yeboah By Justin Fried May 9, 2021, 2:37 PM EDT The Jets were high on Yeboah. So high that they even considered him a rock-solid mid-round prospect. According to The Athletic's Connor Hughes, the Jets had a fourth-round grade on Yeboah and were "stunned" that he went undrafted. The NY Jets are very high on Kenny Yeboah While that may seem ridiculous to some, the Jets likely weren't alone in their assessment. Yeboah was widely seen as a Day 3 prospect with many even viewing him as a fourth or fifth-round pick. His conglomerate draft projection, taken from NFL Mock Draft Database, was pick No. 153 at the beginning of Round 5. Yeboah was very much a draftable prospect — a fourth-round grade wasn't far off from where most analysts had him. The 22-year-old should be given every opportunity to earn a spot on the 53-man roster despite a somewhat crowded tight end room. Chris Herndon and free-agent signee Tyler Kroft figure to be locks, but Yeboah should be in the mix for the No. 3 tight end role. His biggest competition will come in the form of special-teams holdovers Daniel Brown and Trevon Wesco. Wesco has experience playing fullback, a role the Jets don't currently have filled at the moment, and Brown has been the team's most active special-teamer over the last two years. But Yeboah possesses the upside that neither Wesco nor Brown does. A one-year starter at Ole Miss, Yeboah transferred from Temple and put together a strong senior season finishing with 27 catches for 524 yards and six touchdowns in eight games. He's an athletic tight end with natural pass-catching traits that should allow him to find success in the passing game. His inexperience as a blocker is evident, although it's never been due to a lack of effort. Nonetheless, Kenny Yeboah stands as good a shot as any undrafted free agent to make the final roster this year. And the Jets seem to be very high on him.
Over 19 yards per reception last season, higher than Pitts. I am quite excited about his prospects as a pass catching TE.
Why wouldn't they draft him in the 6th round if they had such a high grade on him? There's no way all of the picks on day 3 had a higher grade.
Yeah seems weird to me too. Might be a way to boost the kids ego a bit even if it seems backwards. He played a lot more of the off ball H-back or split out role since that's what Lane Kiffin's offense commands so the Jets might be looking at him more as a fullback in the mold of Jusczyk than as an in-line tightend.
Possibly realised he was going undrafted but then again you could say the same for some of the others we drafted in the 5th and 6th round tbh
Area of need, not all picks are BPA. A pass catching TE is a nice to have, not necessarily a need to have.
Granted but if you're picking in the sixth round and have a player on your board rated a 4th rounder, I don't think it matters, need or not. Plus, I would argue that TE is a need on this team.
With the numerous "do not draft" labels, I doubt their board goes much deeper than the 160-180 range. If the NFL draft board is similar to that of the NHL draft boards, you would be surprised how compressed the list is. Edit: Maybe someone else could provide a little more context, do team draft boards exceed 200? I would have to think not. Edit: Edit: haha Just read an article that the average draft board is around 125 names.
For Yeboah to have a 4th round grade, they could have meant he ranked somewhere in the 100's out of 125 to 150 prospects ranked.
I guess all the players they picked instead of him must have been graded as day 2 or higher on their board.
In this offense, a pass catching TE is an absolute need as it's a big part of the offense. Herndon is inconsistent in that regard. Wesco is basically a blocker, and Kroft basically the same, although he's a little better than Wesco. Brown is definitely not a receiving option, and Griffin looked finished this past season, he probably even shouldn't be on the team any longer.
Yeboah's got big potential. Reasons? He has experience as a blocking TE at Temple, then as a receiving TE at Ole Miss, albeit for a shortened season. He expresses positive character traits, saying that his goal is to get a little better every day, and deflecting praising in favor of elevating a teammate (Moore) in his recent 1-on-1 interview. Definitely something to work with there. Still, have to be CAUTIOUSLY optimistic. Think about the TEs that the Jets have missed on recently: Herdon, Enunwa (converted to WR, but injury-ed out), Amaro, Keller, trading for Doug Freaking Jolley, Chris Baker (the touchdown maker), Becht, the list goes on. Here's hoping that Yeboah breaks that trend and earns at least a Zach Ertz sized second contract with the Jets.
Yes, the team missed on all of those TEs, but they were drafted by incompetent GMs, and coached by CSs who couldn't develop a bad cold. That doesn't mean that Yeboah won't fail, but he had a 4th round grade by the Jets and is a UDFA, so it's no real loss if he doesn't pan out, and if he does, it's a steal.
