Indianapolis’ College And Pro Scouts Might Fix The New York Jets’ Cornerback Problems

Earlier this month, it was reported that the New York Jets were talking to free-agent cornerback Logan Ryan. But two days later, Ryan said on NFL Network that although potentially signing with the Jets “makes sense,” he was “completely open for business.” 

Two weeks later, that open for business sale still is plastered in his virtual storefront window.

Shortly afterward, it was reported by the Miami Herald that Ryan’s asking price was in the neighborhood of $10 million per year, which likely explains why he still is unsigned as June quickly approaches quickly. That is a lot of money for somebody who is a slot cornerback at this stage of his NFL career. 

Besides, New York already spent money on a slot corner this off-season, re-signing Brian Poole to a one-year deal with $4.5 million in guaranteed money. Unless the Jets want to try to trade Poole, that would mean they either will have to use Ryan on the outside if they signed him, or perhaps convert him to safety. 

Consider that Ryan ran a 4.56 in the 40-yard dash at the 2013 NFL Combine. It is quite doubtful that the passage of seven years has made him faster, thus paying big money to him to play outside corner wouldn’t make much sense. 

If Ryan is not in the Jets’ plans, they have several options to fill the outside corner spot opposite Pierre Desir, who seems penciled in to start after being signed in March one day after being cut by Indianapolis. Desir has a one-year deal worth a guaranteed $3.25 million. 

Here are those candidates, listed in descending order of salary. Note that all but one of the veterans, like Desir, have played for the Colts. That’s because assistant general manager Rex Hogan spent two years in Indianapolis’ front office before coming back to the Jets last June for a second tour of duty. 

Nate Hairston ($2.133 million): Hairston was acquired in a trade with Indianapolis for a conditional sixth-round pick last August, and made his first start for the Jets against Cleveland in Week 2 after Trumaine Johnson was benched. Hairston played in 11 games, starting six. He allowed two touchdown passes and made one interception, off Miami veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick. 

He was benched during the first half of the game against the New York Giants on Nov. 10 after back-to-back series in which he allowed four first downs, committed two penalties, and gave up a 39-yard touchdown pass to Darius Slayton. He eventually started again but played no defensive snaps after Week 15. Hairston seems to struggle in press-man coverage, which makes him a poor fit in coordinator Gregg Williams’ aggressive schemes. 

Hairston played his college ball at Temple and was selected by Indianapolis in the fifth round in 2017.

Quincy Wilson ($1,251,309): Remember how the Colts traded Hairston to New York for a conditional sixth-round 2020 NFL Draft choice? Well, those conditions apparently, as usual in such trades, probably had a lot to do with such things as playing time and defensive snaps. And because Hairston did not accumulate that many snaps, the Jets got the pick back. And then re-traded it last month back to Indy for yet another Colts cornerback. 

Wilson’s potential still is somewhat intriguing in that he is only 23 years old but has three years of NFL experience. He was a second-round pick of the Colts in 2017 from the University of Florida and got grades of 71.1 in 2017 and 69.9 in 2018 from analytics company Pro Football Focus and was rated 59th out of 121 NFL cornerbacks in 2018 by PFF. (Desir was ranked 18th that season by PFF.) 

Wilson made seven starts in 2018, including both playoff games. His season got off to a rough start when Cincinnati’s John Ross got away with an apparent pushoff for a 3-yard touchdown catch on a fade pattern in the season opener, but it was the only TD pass Wilson gave up all season. (He could have been implicated in one TD pass in a 29-26 win over Jacksonville on Nov. 11). Wilson had one interception in 2018, off Tennessee’s Marcus Mariota. It seemed he wasn’t picked on much by opposing quarterbacks. 

But his playing time dwindled markedly in 2019 after the Colts switched from a press-man scheme to a more zone-based system. Wilson played only 17 defensive snaps in the final 10 games, only three of which he played in. 

The Jets are betting Wilson can recapture his press-man form of 2017-18. If not, maybe they again can recoup the draft pick from Indianapolis. If that happens, redeeming it for yet another Colts cornerback probably would not be in their best interests. 

Arthur Maulet ($875K): Maulet started six of the last eight games of the 2019 season, missing two because of a calf problem. He gave up no TD catches and had one interception, off Buffalo backup Matt Barkley in the finale. Maulet was re-signed as a restricted free agent, having received no offer sheets from other teams. 

Maulet received a respectable 65.2 PFF rating in 2019. (For what it’s worth, that was a shade above Ryan’s PFF score of 64.9.) Maulet’s play was unspectacular yet solid down the stretch, but if the Jets were totally comfortable with him as a starter, they would not have brought in Wilson. Oh, and of course, Maulet played five games in 2018 for—you guessed it—Indianapolis. 

Bless Austin ($715,743): Austin, a sixth-round draft pick in 2019, received a 71.4 grade from PFF as a rookie. He played only five games in 2017 and 2018 at Rutgers because of recurring knee woes. But he lived up to his pre-injury reputation of being an excellent cover corner until allowing a 29-yard scoring catch to Pittsburgh’s Dontae Johnson in the next-to-last game.

Austin somehow let Johnson get behind him despite there being only nine seconds left in the half when the play began, and despite giving him tons of cushion. An angry Williams benched him for the rest of the game and for the season finale. It will be a mistake by Williams and the Jets if that one mistake, egregious as it was, results in Austin never getting a fair chance to reclaim his starting position. 

Bryce Hall (fifth-round pick, Virginia, still unsigned): Hall was considered a lockdown corner worthy of perhaps a first- or second-round pick before suffering a devastating leg injury midway through the 2019 season. His progress in rehabbing from that likely will rule him out from being a potential opening-day starter, but perhaps he could be in the mix later in the season. 

Whatever happens, and whatever the Jets decide, a lot will be riding on Rex Hogan’s opinion. If the Jets cannot find at least one suitable starting cornerback from all of the Indianapolis castoffs that Hogan has had an obvious say in acquiring, then perhaps general manager Joe Douglas will have to re-evaluate his trust in Hogan.