Jets' Stuckey hoping to catch on BY TOM ROCK tom.rock@newsday.com May 12, 2007, 9:12 PM EDT Seventh-round pick. It's a title that carries little weight. Which may be why Chansi Stuckey is so eager to drop it. "I'm just the type of person who has a lot of hunger," the wide receiver, selected in the final round of last month's draft, said of playing with something to prove after being ignored for the first 234 picks. "I want to be the best whether I went in the first round or whether I didn't get drafted at all." The Clemson product was one of four players the Jets selected who were at a three-day rookie minicamp that began Saturday. For Stuckey, who has rehabbed a number of injuries in the last few years, this is the first step in rehabbing his chances of making an NFL roster. A concussion, a thumb injury and, most recently, a broken foot in October, contributed to his declining status in the eyes of scouts. A below-average performance at the combine didn't help his case, as he fell from a possible first-day selection to a guy the Jets took a chance on with an almost worthless pick. One need only look as far as Saints receiver Marques Colston, a seventh-round selection from Hofstra a year ago, to see what kind of overlooked gems can be mined in the seventh round. But Stuckey isn't using that as inspiration. As far as he's concerned, he has a fresh start. The injuries, the poor 40-yard dash times, the long wait to hear his name called from Radio City, they're all in the past. "Whatever happened happened," Stuckey said. "You have to start somewhere, but it's all about what you do when you get to the team." What he's done so far is impress the Jets' coaches. Eric Mangini said Stuckey's enthusiasm, personality and hard work have caught his eye, but he's also noticed increased ability since watching Stuckey at the combine. "As he moves further along with that [injury recovery], naturally he's going to regain some of the things he had before the injury," Mangini said. Stuckey said he is running at 100 percent now ("I feel like my old self," he said), thanks to some down time and training-room attention since the Senior Bowl. He went against the Jets' first-round pick, cornerback Darrelle Revis, in seven-on-seven drills Saturday morning. "We're battling, we're battling," he said of the matchup, which was closed to the media. But he was able to give a good scouting report on Revis after a few reps. "He's big, he's physical and he's fast," Stuckey said. "I think if he keeps working, he could be one of the really great players in the NFL." Some might have said that last part about Stuckey at one time. He's here hoping it can apply once again. Notes & quotes: One hundred and nineteen days until the regular season begins and already there are matchup questions regarding the Jets and the Patriots. Of particular interest is a potential combination of Revis covering New England's newest receiver. "Randy Moss, I grew up watching him," Revis said. "He's a great player. It's going to be a little crazy going out there playing against a guy like that. But I just think of it as football. We're a team. There's no one-on-one with me and Randy Moss, it's 11 as 1." ... Mangini confirmed that guard Pete Kendall has not been participating in voluntary offseason workouts lately. Kendall reportedly is looking for a new contract from the Jets ... Besides the four players drafted, the Jets brought in 14 free agents for the camp: FB Jesse Allen (Virginia Tech), RB Alvin Banks (James Madison), DT Mike DeVito (Maine), DB Caleb Hendrix (Southern Mississippi), DE Matt King (Maine), OL Dominic Moran (Western Michigan), WR Dustin Osborn (Colorado State), S Leonard Peters (Hawaii), QB Brett Ratliff (Utah), OL Nick Smith (San Diego State), RB Kyle Steffes (North Dakota State), DE Jason Trusnik (Ohio Northern), OL Andrew Wicker (Mississippi) and LB Mark Zalewski (Wisconsin) ... The Jets invited 30 tryouts and have TE Joe Kowalewski, OL Ed Blanton and DE Darrell Adams, last year's practice players, working out this weekend.
