Position Reset for '25
When the Jets' No. 1 tight end last season Tyler Conklin signed in free agency with the Chargers in the offseason, rookie GM Darren Mougey and rookie HC Aaron Glenn knew there was a lot of work to do at the position. In addition to Conklin (who played in 50 of 51 games over three seasons and caught 170 passes), reserve TE Kenny Yeboah also departed (DET).
They didn't waste much time, snapping up the Chargers' reserve TE, Stone Smartt (6-4, 226). Smartt, 26, caught 27 passes for 363 yards (13.4 per catch) over the past two seasons. Eighteen of his 31 career catches were for first downs. After the Jets drafted Mason Taylor (6-5, 256) out of LSU in the second round of the draft (No. 42 overall) and with Jeremy Ruckert (6-5, 250) entering his fourth year after a modest three seasons, Smartt will be battling for time in a group that also includes second-year man Zack Kuntz (6-8, 251), 1st-year pro Neal Johnson (6-4, 250) and hybrid Andrew Beck (6-3, 255).
"That's another player that I think he's improved quite a bit," Glenn said of Ruckert, who has 35 catches for 264 yards (without a TD). "That's another player, actually, that I had a chance to talk with face-to-face and told him about the things that he needs to improve on. He wants to be good. He comes from a really good program [Ohio State, having played there with QB Justin Fields], and we have a number of guys from that program [including WR Garrett Wilson and OL Josh Myers]. And I've stressed him pretty hard throughout this camp because I think there's a lot of meat on the bone with that player. Good size, long arms. I think he can help us in the passing game. Obviously, he's going to be a really good blocker for us, but there's some technical things that he had to improve on, and he's doing everything he can to improve on those things."
| Jets TE | '24 Team(s) | Exper in '25 | '24 GP-GS-DNP-IA | '24 O-ST-TotSnaps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jeremy Ruckert | NYJ | 4th | 17 - 9 - 0 - 0 | 393 - 200 - 593 |
| Stone Smartt | LAC | 4th | 15 - 2 - 0 - 2 | 181 - 155 - 336 |
| Zack Kuntz | NYJ | 1st | 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 | 1 - 6 - 7 |
| Neal Johnson | NYJ | 1st | .......... | .......... |
| Mason Taylor | LSU | R | .......... | .......... |
Storyline to Watch
With the versatile Justin Fields, the Jets have a QB capable of running with the ball. That's not to mention a trio of capable running backs in Breece Hall, Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis.
"I think our group, we're excited about our group to be that group that leads the team," Ruckert said. "And coming from Detroit, the way they ran their offense, that was a lot of 12 personnel, a lot of three tight ends on the field at once. So they need to rely on us."
The Jets are especially keen to improve their performance in the red zone after finishing No. 21 in the league last season in scoring efficiency (54.55%) inside the opposition's 20-yard line. The Jets scored 18 TDs passing while Hall led the team with 5 rush TDs in the red zone, a number OC Tanner Engstrand is committed to improving upon.
What They're Saying
HC Aaron Glenn on Mason Taylor in OTAs and Minicamp:
"I think he's been doing an outstanding job. And it's not just the pass catching, because that's what you guys [reporters] see, that's what you guys really think is an aha moment, but it's the blocking to me is what really gets me going. Because I know what he can do in the passing game, but for him to come out and do the things he's doing in the run game, even though you can't do a lot of running because it's not a physical part of the season, but him understanding exactly what he's supposed to do and the position, the body language, the leverage, all those things, man, I really love that when it comes to the run game."
TE Trivia
Jeremy Ruckert and Stone Smartt have the experience in the room, but Mason Taylor has the "security blanket." The second-round pick enters his first pro season with a personal stretch of at least 1 catch in each of his last 28 games at LSU. Of course, that won't carry over into Taylor's pro career, but perhaps he can begin on some numbers out of the Jets gate. For instance, Mickey Shuler holds the team record for longest streak by a TE at 86 consecutive games with at least 1 catch from 1982-90.
