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Let’s examine the Jets’ undrafted free agent class, which currently has 12 players. That number could change before or after the rookie minicamp coming up next weekend.
People get excited about certain names, because they’ve heard of them, but that doesn’t necessarily make them the top UDFAs, but that is usually how it’s presented on the internet.
Two examples of that are the Jets’ signing of Missouri quarterback Brady Cook and Michigan running back Donovan Edwards.
Those are the two names perhaps creating the most buzz of the 12 UDFAs the Jets signed, but just because they are the biggest names, doesn’t necessarily mean they are the cream of the crop.
We will find out over the next few months if they are or not.
Cook had a solid career at Missouri in 39 starts, throwing 49 TDs to 15 INTS, and he ran 4.59, but there are reasons he wasn’t drafted, related to reading defenses. I know I keep pounding the drum on the “reading defenses” thing when writing about quarterbacks, but there is a reason for that – it’s really important.
And very few prospects can do it well. It’s extremely hard.
I hate using the word “reading.” When you say a guy struggles “reading” defenses, it makes some question their intelligence, but that is often very unfair.
Cook is extremely bright, winning SEC Football Scholar-Athlete of the Year award not once, but twice. If he doesn’t make it as a player, he should do great in whatever else he chooses to do.
Book smarts and street smarts have nothing to do with reading defenses. Reading defenses is a different animal.
It like some people are math geniuses, but not good at learning foreign languages.
You can be a brilliant student in school and not be good at going through progressions on game day.
We will see if Cook can improve his progression scans moving forward.
Edwards was a major recruit at Michigan and had some good games, but was never able to hold on to the starting running back job. Something was missing – some think it’s related to running instincts.
Look, these two signings could turn out great for the Jets, but there are questions about each player, and that is why they fell through the cracks in the draft process.
The Jets signed three intriguing UDFA receivers – Rutgers’ Dymere Miller, South Alabama’s Jamaal Pritchett and Kansas’ Quintin Skinner.
Don’t be shocked if one of them makes the team.
Miller and Pritchett has some similarities. Both are slot receiver types with impressive short-area quickness and are good at running after the catch. Both transferred up to Division One, after starting their college careers at lower levels of competition – Miller went from Monmouth to Rutgers and Pritchett from Tuskegee to South Alabama.
Skinner is an entirely different flavor – a big physical receiver at 6-4, 195. He didn’t put up big numbers at Kansas, but that isn’t exactly a school that is known for having a powerful air attack.
But impressive things two impressive things come to mind about his resume. He’s a really good blocker in the run game, and Aaron Glenn demands that from his receivers whom he often tells, “If you don’t block, you don’t get the rock.”
And also, while he didn’t have prolific career numbers in Lawrence, he had two standout games this year against a pair of excellent programs. Against highly ranked Arizona State, he finished with six catches for 130 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a fine game against Iowa State, catching four passes for a career high 135 yards and a touchdown.
We will get into some of the defensive UDFAs on Tuesday.
May 5, 2025
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