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At Thursday’s OTA practice open to the media, rookie Garrison Grimes (BYU) was the only long-snapper there.
I didn’t see Thomas Hennessy.
If he was there, I apologize for the oversight.
Now, if Hennessy wasn’t there, it should be pointed out that, that OTAs are voluntary, so he’s not required to be there.
Also, he might have needed a personal day.
The only reason I bring this up is that you have to wonder if, for the first time in a long time, Hennessy isn’t a lock to be the Jets’ long-snapper, a job he’s held since 2017.
Grimes, an undrafted free agent out of BYU, was considered by some to be the best long-snapper in the 2026 draft class and one of the most athletic long-snappers to ever come out of the college ranks. Â He earned a Relative Athletic Score of 10.00, the highest score ever for his position. RAS is a formula rating athleticism by putting the 40-yard dash, vertical leap and other tests all together. So perhaps the Jets think that Grimes could help them as a punt cover guy, but Hennessy has been good covering punts over the years.
Not sure exactly what is going on here, but I will dig into this one. Hennessy is a very good long-snapper, and worked with a placekicker (Nick Folk) and punter (Austin McNamara) who both had terrific seasons last year. Never minimize the importance of the long-snapper when it comes to the placekicker and punter.
I would be shocked if the Jets cut Hennessy. He’s very good at what he does. But it’s perhaps possible, if Grimes looks great, they consider trading Hennessy to a team in dire of an upgrade at long-snapper. You just saw Darren Mougey trade a very good special teams player, gunner Irv Charles, to Seattle. Charles missed last year with a knee injury . . .
Last week, Cleveland Browns coach Todd Monken, made news, when he said after an OTA practice – “We threw interceptions in seven-on-seven, for God’s sake. I mean, who does that? There’s no pass rush. I mean, it’s embarrassing.”
7-on-7 drills are nirvana for offenses, with no defensive line coming after the QB.
So, it’s kind of ironic, after this quote going viral last week, the Jets come out in today’s 7-on-7 drill early in practice and there on two near picks.
First, cornerback Nashon Wright almost had a pick on QB Geno Smith, but he dropped it. And QB Bailey Zappe was almost picked by linebacker Marcellino McCrary-Ball.
Look, I’m not criticizing Smith or Zappe about these plays early in OTAs, just found it a little ironic to see this after that Monken quote went viral last week.
On the Smith near pick, this play was a perfect example of what happens early in the off-season practices, when you have so much newness with a unit – Jets have a new QB, a new coordinator, lots of new weapons.
After the play, Smith was pointing to a spot he expected the receiver to be. Not sure who it was.
This time of year is about getting on the same page, not style points. Spring practices are like a football classroom on grass . . .
I know there is limited contact in these practices, but there are some running plays, and linemen can engage on a limited basis, and one of the better running plays in Thursday’s practice was guard Kohl Levao locking up DT Darrell Jackson, on an Isaiah Davis run up the middle.
Levao is an interesting prospect. The massive Hawaian, who was on the Jets’ practice squad the last two years, is an absolute road-grader as a run blocker at 6-5, 360. He’s listed at 6-6, but he’s actually 6-5 . . .
Fullback Andrew Beck was prolific in the passing game today, which featured a lot of check-downs. He’s a underrated receiver with very consistent hands.
With rookie Kenyon Sadiq out after a minor groin procedure, Beck and tight end Jelani Woods took advantage of the extra reps, and both shone today in the passing game.
Woods is way better than many realize. The UVA product has an exotic size-speed ratio for the tight end position at 6-7, 253 with 4.61 speed.
You could tell watching him today that he’s pretty comfortable in the Frank Reich offense, having played for him with the Indianapolis Colts in 2022.
May 28, 2026
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