Arian Smith’s grip on a Jets roster spot is looking shaky after two preseason games, and the problem is bigger than one bad night.
The former Georgia deep threat has spent his first stretch in New York reminding everyone why he was always such a volatile bet for a fourth-round pick. The speed is real.
The production? Not so much.
And right now, the hands and the consistency are becoming impossible to ignore.
Smith’s college profile was never clean. He went through his first four seasons at Georgia without topping eight catches in a year, then finally broke out in 2024 with 48 receptions for 817 yards, a 17.0-yard average, and four touchdowns.
That season showed the vertical juice that got the Jets interested, but it also came with glaring problems. He tied for the most drops among Power Four wide receivers with 10 and caught just 2-of-9 contested targets.
The Jets took the gamble anyway in the fourth round, but Smith’s rookie year did little to calm the doubts. In 16 games, he managed only seven catches for 52 yards on 16 targets. Even on a roster that was battered by injuries and short on pass-catching help, he struggled to earn real playing time.
There were flashes on film, sure. Smith did separate downfield on a number of plays and simply wasn’t targeted. But that only pushes the same question to the front: if the ball had come his way, would he have finished the play?
His preseason has not answered that in a positive way.
In the Jets’ 2026 preseason opener, Smith dropped a Bailey Zappe pass that turned into an interception. It wasn’t a perfect throw, but it was one he needed to haul in. That kind of play matters even more because Smith had so few chances to show that his hands had improved since college.
The next game was worse in a different way. Smith didn’t draw a target over 23 offensive snaps, and he also drew a first-quarter illegal block above the waist on special teams.
That area had looked like a possible lifeline for him. As a rookie, Smith played 54 special teams snaps, with 44 of them coming as a gunner on punt coverage. He made three tackles, avoided penalties and missed tackles, and his 78.1 special teams grade from Pro Football Focus ranked among the team’s best.
This summer, though, the results have gone the other direction. His 47.8 special teams grade is second-worst on the Jets this season.
New York has tried him in a few other roles too, including punt return blocking and kickoff, but he hasn’t made much of an impression there either. Through two games, Smith has put up 40 offensive snaps, 16 special teams snaps, one target, one drop, one penalty, zero receptions and zero tackles.
That’s a tough sell for a Day 3 receiver who caught only seven passes in 16 games as a rookie.
The age factor only makes it harder. Smith will turn 25 this year, and he’s not being treated like a raw teenager who can be tucked away for a couple of seasons. He’s older than Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and players drafted on the older side are usually expected to help sooner, not later.
And Smith is not helping much right now while other receivers are taking advantage of their chances.
Second-year former UDFA Quincy Skinner Jr. has caught all six of his targets for 78 yards, highlighted by a 31-yard touchdown on Friday night. UDFA rookie Malik McClain has three catches on four targets for 33 yards. Second-year player Jamaal Pritchett has three catches on four targets for 24 yards and continues to show something as a return man.
So far, Smith’s Week 1 drop is the only drop charged to a Jets wide receiver this preseason.
That puts the roster math in a rough place for him. The Jets already have five receivers who look locked in: Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, Omar Cooper Jr., Isaiah Williams and Tim Patrick. Even if the team keeps one more young wideout over Smith, that still doesn’t guarantee Smith a spot just to get to six.
New York could live with five receivers if it wants to use that roster spot elsewhere. The Jets may keep as many as four tight ends because of Jelani Woods’ emergence.
Fullback Andrew Beck, who caught two touchdowns last season, gives them another quasi-tight end option. Rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq, a first-round pick with a historically great athletic profile, is also expected to handle a lot of slot work.
Add in Breece Hall as one of the league’s best pass-catching running backs and Isaiah Davis as a dependable backup in that area, and the Jets have plenty of flexibility in the skill-position room.
That’s why Smith’s path is narrowing fast. Unless he turns things around in camp and the final preseason game, the first Day 3 pick of Darren Mougey’s managerial career may be headed for a practice squad role at best in his second season.
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