The Colts may have moved on from AD Mitchell before the breakout ever arrived, and now the receiver is flashing the kind of talent that makes that decision sting a little more.
Mitchell, also known as Adonai, has looked sharp throughout Jets training camp and appears to be taking a major step forward after a rocky start to his NFL career. The change of scenery already seemed to help him late last season in New York, and this summer he’s been building on that momentum in a way that has people around the team talking.
One beat reporter put it plainly in a tweet from camp: "AD Mitchell toasting corners right now. Great route in 7-on-7 to get open on go ball.
Now a double move to get open near the sideline. Geno missed him both times," Connor Hughes of SNY tweeted.
The praise has also come from inside the building. According to The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt, Jets wide receiver coach Shawn Jefferson said, "If he continues on this trajectory right here, he will be a really good Robin for our Batman," with Garrett Wilson being Batman in that scenario.
That kind of talk fits the tone around Mitchell’s offseason and camp work. He’s not just looking like a useful piece anymore. He’s looking like the sort of receiver who can justify being a second-round pick, which is what the Colts drafted him to be in 2024 - even if he never quite played like it in Indianapolis.
His Colts tenure had its low point in the catch-and-run against the Los Angeles Rams, when Mitchell showed off his burst but then fumbled the ball out of the back of the end zone while celebrating before he scored. That mistake became part of the story that eventually sent him to New York in the trade for cornerback Sauce Gardner.
Mitchell has since owned the moment. In an interview with Ryan Clark, he said he "got caught up in the emotion" of the play.
He also said, "It was very humbling... I had to take that (expletive) on the chin.
I couldn't look to the man on my left or my right and be like, 'Man, this is your fault'... I knew it was my fault from the jump."
That won’t erase the frustration for Colts fans who watched him struggle early, but it does help explain where he’s at now. Mitchell admitted the mistake, and the Jets are seeing a receiver who may finally be turning that lesson into real production.
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