The New York Jets didn’t spend the second overall pick on David Bailey just to hope he’d settle in. They took him to hit the ground running, and early signs in camp suggest that plan might not be wishful thinking. The edge rusher already has people around the team talking like he could be one of the NFL’s better players right away.
That kind of buzz can get ahead of itself fast, especially this time of year. Still, it’s hard to ignore what Bailey has already done. He was as good as it gets at Texas Tech, and the expectation is that his game will carry over when the lights come on in the NFL.
Bailey, though, is bringing more than pass-rush talent to the Jets. He has made it clear that he sees energy as part of his job, too, and he’s been vocal about that since arriving.
“Obviously, they selected me for my pass rush ability,” Bailey said, per Rich Cimini, “but also, man, I want to bring a lot of energy to the team. Being a younger guy, I feel like it’s my responsibility to bring a lot of juice.”
That attitude has shown up early in training camp, where coaches and players have been impressed with what they’ve seen. It’s still training camp, of course, and that always comes with a warning label. But the early returns have been strong enough to get people talking.
Defensive tackle Harrison Phillips didn’t hold back when asked about Bailey’s work up front.
“I see him in the backfield all the time,” Harrison Phillips said. “Oh, my gosh.”
Coach Aaron Glenn was just as direct in his assessment.
“He's everything that we expect him to be,” coach Aaron Glenn said.
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