Jets have clear vision for ‘exciting’ first-rounder David Bailey — and aren’t buying his pre-draft knock

The knock on David Bailey during the pre-draft process was that while he was an elite pass rusher, he was not a good run defender.

Take flight with the Jets

Text with Brian Costello all season as he brings Sports+ subscribers the latest Jets intel from on the field and off.

Advertisement

tRY IT NOW

Jets coach Aaron Glenn does not buy that.

“I never had an issue with his run game coming out of college,” Glenn said Friday of the player the Jets took No. 2 overall in the draft. “I know that’s the one thing that everyone has a knock [on him about]. I think everyone tries to pick holes in every player that comes out. But I thought he was well-versed with that. The reason I say that is, you saw some of these guard pulls, you saw tackles pull and he was able to take those guys on and set an edge in that aspect. I have no issue with his run defense.”

Bailey was on the field in Florham Park for the first time Friday as the Jets opened their rookie minicamp.

Advertisement

Players were in shorts and had no pads on other than helmets.

Things were mostly moving at half speed and there was no blocking or tackling, so it was hard to discern much.

Glenn said he wants to see how the players absorb coaching and apply the techniques they are being taught.

That should not be a problem for Bailey, who graduated from Stanford in three years.

“Obviously, he’s a very intelligent man,” Glenn said. “So that part we knew wasn’t going to be an issue, just being able to function as far as communicating with the coaches back and forth, communicating with the players in the meeting room. Then, once he got on the grass, you could tell he has that first step quickness that we all knew. He’s going to be an exciting guy to coach. I can tell you that.”

Advertisement

Bailey said he wants to improve in all aspects of his game, not just playing the run.

“There’s always room for improvement, whether it’s pass rushing or playing the run,” Bailey said. “There’s always going to be room for improvement, but I’m confident in my ability to play the run. I’m confident in Coach Glenn’s plan for me. I’m sure he’s going to put me in the best opportunity for success and he’ll put me in a position where he sees me thriving. I’m confident in my ability, so looking forward to that.”

At Texas Tech last year, Bailey led the nation with 14 ½ sacks and 19 ½ tackles for loss.

He also forced 10 fumbles in his career, something Glenn said was a big part of the Jets wanting Bailey.

Advertisement

Glenn said the Jets have a clear vision for how they want to use Bailey.

“He’s going to be one of the outside backers when it comes to the base defense,” Glenn said. “Then, he’ll be a D-end when it comes to four-down [linemen] defense. There’s a number of things we plan on doing with him when it comes to sub pass rush. We have a roster full of guys we can move around quite a bit. I’m excited about that. As we go through the process and really see exactly what each guy can do, we’ll start plugging guys into spots that will help us be able to play good defense.”

Glenn said he can use both Bailey and 2023 first-round pick Will McDonald on the field together.

Advertisement

They play a similar style.

“When it comes to similarities, both of them have that first-step quickness, both of them can beat guys around the edge,” Glenn said. “Will actually got better with his long arm and power rush this past season. We want to continue to do that with him. That’s something Bailey has. We want to improve in that aspect, but I can see why some guys would say they’re similar.”

Bailey is wearing No. 31, the same number Glenn wore as a Jets player.

Bailey said Glenn told him that and showed him a picture of Glenn in the uniform.

As for his rookie year, Bailey is not putting specific statistical goals on it.

Advertisement

“I don’t really think about specific accolades or objectives that I want to reach,” Bailey said. “My main thing is getting a consistent routine that’s going to allow me to get better each day, get better in the run, get better in the pass and just become a better football player.”