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How good can a rookie tight end be with minimal offseason work with the team that drafted him? Jets tight end Kenyon Sadiq is going to put that very question to the test at the start of training camp later this month.
The 16th overall selection in the 2026 NFL Draft, Sadiq came out of Oregon as an offensive weapon more so than a standard tight end.
His 4.39 forty time at the NFL Scouting Combine was the fastest ever recorded for a player at his position.
In the Jets' eyes, having an offensive weapon like Sadiq could do wonders for a passing game that finished dead last in 2025.
There's just one problem, though.
New York hasn't fully seen what Sadiq could do.
The 21-year-old underwent minor hernia surgery this offseason that cost him important time on the Jets' practice field throughout minicamp.
Now, Sadiq will enter training camp seemingly behind other players at his position in terms of learning the new offense.
Will the months off impact Sadiq's potential, at least at the start of the 2026 season? Fair expectations for Kenyon Sadiq's rookie season The Jets have been in this situation before just last year.
Second-round rookie tight end Mason Taylor missed several weeks of training camp with a high ankle sprain.
The missed time cost Taylor valuable reps when it mattered most and led to a subdued start to his NFL career.
That being said, Taylor did manage to finish the year strong, finishing with the most receptions on the team, and second in yards.
Not bad in a passing offense with three different starting quarterbacks, games in which the team failed to post over 100 yards through the air, or without Garrett Wilson for the latter half of the year.
At worst, the Jets are hoping for a similar situation with Sadiq.
The good news is that head coach Aaron Glenn fully believes the tight end will be ready for the start of training camp, where he'll have a month to get integrated with the offense.
That should be enough time, but it all comes down to the player and the role the Jets see for him.
"Sadiq was a player that, obviously we studied, spent a lot of time on and valued as an offensive weapon," Jets general manager Darren Mougey said after the draft, via team reporter Eric Allen.
"And Frank's (Reich) got a great vision for the player and how we can use him in multiple ways and get in 12-personnel and do different things and just use him as another weapon and make it tough on the defense." Expectations for Sadiq should be fair from the fanbase.
A similar run to what Taylor put forth last year seems like a baseline for what the Jets should expect.
His physicality and versatility will make him difficult for defenses to stop.
Running with Taylor should give the Jets the kind of 1-2 punch at tight end that fewer units are prepared to face in the modern NFL as well.
And make the offense one that may be feared for the first time in ages.
Nick covers the NFL for Sports Illustrated/FN.
He was previously on the New York Jets' beat for AM New York with prior experience reporting on the New York Islanders and the Philadelphia Eagles.
The New York City resident is also an Adjunct Professor at LIU Brooklyn.
Follow nick_faria1720.