Insider Explains Hidden Jets Motivation for David Bailey Buzz

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Texas Tech pass rusher David Bailey trying to make a play during a college football game against Houston.

Somewhere, Brian Windhorst is waving his fingers in the air.

For months, the betting favorite to be the New York Jets’ No. 2 overall pick was Ohio State’s Arvell Reese. However, last week, there was some new buzz from some key insiders that revealed that Texas Tech’s David Bailey was going to be the pick instead.

So what gives?

ESPN’s Rich Cimini attempted to explain what the heck happened on the “Jets Collective” podcast.

“Yeah, just for example, like what if the Jets have intel that the Arizona Cardinals are head over heels in love with David Bailey? Picking right behind them, you know, maybe the Cardinals feel like it’s worth it to give up a draft pick to move up one spot to get their guy, the Jets move to 3 & happily accept [Arvell] Reese & the extra draft capital that comes along with it. That could be part of the strategy as well,” Cimini said.

If that idea from Cimini is accurate, the Jets have pulled that off before.

During the 2024 NFL draft, the Jets held the No. 10 overall pick in the first round. The Minnesota Vikings held the No. 11 overall pick. Minnesota wanted Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The Jets didn’t want McCarthy.

However, New York gave off the impression to the Vikings that they could trade the pick to someone else, so Minnesota was forced to trade up one spot to ensure that they would get their guy.

The Jets dropped back one spot and took the same player at No. 11 that they would have taken at No. 10 in Penn State offensive lineman Olumuyiwa Fashanu.

The Jets gave up the No. 10 overall pick and a 2024 sixth rounder, and they got back the No. 11 overall pick, a 2024 fourth rounder, and a 2024 fifth rounder.

Then, general manager Joe Douglas was praised for fleecing the Vikings. Perhaps GM Darren Mougey can pull a page out of that playbook.

The Wrong Narrative

With Bailey becoming the new betting favorite to be the pick for the Jets at No. 2 overall, some analysts have described this recent movement as the Jets changing their draft plans.

Cimini doesn’t like the phrasing of that narrative.

“So the first thing is it’s really not the Jets changing course. I object to that perception. I think what happens is [that] as you get closer to the draft, reporters start having a little bit more access to their sources. Their sources might have a little bit more information to share. That’s what you see stuff coming out closer to the draft,” Cimini explained on the “Jets Collective” podcast.

Jets Are Making Other Teams Uneasy

So what is really going on with the Jets, less than 10 days from the NFL draft? No one knows.

NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero explained how the Jets are keeping everyone on their toes days before the draft.

“Everybody is watching the Jets. I think if you took a straw poll & I kind of have of people around the league, they think David Bailey of Texas Tech would be the pick, but nobody knows for sure,” Pelissero explained on “The Rich Eisen Show.”

Paul Esden Jr. covers the New York Jets for Heavy.com. A New York native, he co-hosts a morning show, “The Manchild Show with Boy Green Digital.” Before joining Heavy in 2021, Esden Jr. covered both national and New York sports for FanSided, Elite Sports NY, and The Score 1260. More about Paul Esden Jr.