LISTEN | Draft Pick Profile - Jabari Zuniga (5/12)

You're also gonna hear from Zeniga himself. I spoke with him after he was selected on that very busy Day two of the NFL Draft for the New York Jets. And e A. This is a player where the Jets selected him. They had their options if they wanted to go with the receiver or they wanted to beef up the interior of the offensive line. But they end up going with the guy who can play defensive line or maybe he can stand up and rush in Jabari Zeniga. Yeah.

Green's first two picks, the Jets go McKay Backton in the first round. They come back in the second round well Back and Joe Douglas takes Baylor wide receiver Denzel Mims. Then of course, Ashton Davis got Day two underway for the New York Jets, and then they came back with another defensive player, Jabari Zeninga, a guy who had an interesting college career at the University of Florida. He can

play all up and down that defensive line. Uh, good first step, explosive player, and Green's he considers himself the steel of the draft. I know a lot of fans are probably looking at and saying, well, why don't you take receiver there? Because interestingly enough, the next two picks that fouled Zeninga were Lynn Bowden out of Kentucky and Brian Edwards out at South Carolina. But Douglas I think

added another chess piece for Greg Williams. Ashton Davis. We talked at length about his versatility, while you're getting another guy who is an extremely versatile player at the University of Florida, and he's got a lot of upside as well. And before e A and I dive into Jabari Zeniga and the player he is, his past of Florida, what he can provide to the Jets. Let's hear from the man himself. Let's hear from Joe Douglas and his staff

on why they like Jabari Zeniga. He can play the end, he can reduce inside and nickel packages the lineup over guard. You know his suddenness, his explosiveness off the ball. You know his motor, his play temperament, how hard he plays that jumps off the tape. The first thing is that he showed was his versatility throughout his career, being able to play all over the front or Florida's defensive line. He's played anywhere from right to left. They'll kick him inside.

It's a sub pass rusher as well, and then at times he would stand up in rush from different spots. So you know, the thing is he shows versatility, but what he does have his his explosiveness and twitch off the ball and get off and talking about a guy who's two pounds ran four six five. Although he missed six games this season, his production rate and what he did show when he was on the field is what we saw on him and what we expect from him transition for us to the Jets in terms of being

able to get after the quarterback. I really like ja Bar He's a versa of a guy that can play up and down the line of experiment he's uh, he's hard charging. You know, he's a brood in there. He's got really strong hands, he's got speed of power. You know, he can reduce as an interior rusher. He's got snapped through the heads. He can play leverage, you can two guys. He's got good strength in his hands. He can hold

the point of attack versus run. You know, this guy flashing at the at the end of place and and and making plays on the ball. And you know, he runs a four six forty, he's about six three, and he's two hundred sixty pounds. He's just really an explosive guy that that that uses his explosiveness, uh to make plays all over the field. He struggled through a few injuries you know, this year and missed a few games. If you watch that Miami game, I feel like he

really took over that Miami game. And uh, you know, he's he's another kid that that that played well at the Senior Bowl. He showed well the Senior Bowl as well. We were fired up to get a guy like this, you know, a guy that's got some real power to him that that you can feel when watching him. You know, he's a force at the point of attack, and he's a good athlete. You know, he's got a high motor. He's gonna fit in well with the guys we have on the d line and at the outside back of position.

You know, he had just sort of an unfortunate beginning to a season in terms of the high ankle spring and sometimes those are tough to get over. And you know, this is a very productive player when he was on the field. He's another player I used the word versatile. You know, he can play outside as a as a rusher on the edge, but he's also quick and and physical enough to to go inside along the defensive front. So he can really almost line up anywhere across that

front line. Uh. And you know he brings the mentioned of pass rush, whether it's off the corner or inside in a sub situation on the interior that you know, you just never have enough guys that can get after the quarterback, and that that's an area that we wanted to improve. We felt like the value was there. He was rated high on our board pretty much through this whole journey from December to February through this month's meetings,

and so he sort of maintained his water. If you want to term it that way, and we thought he would represented good value in the third round. The first thing that sends out to me about Zeniga you here all the Jets personnel staff talk about it too, is he was effective even though he only played in six games this season for Florida because he missed most of the year with a high ankle sprain. And his stats at the end of the season he only had fourteen tackles,

seven tackles for lost in three sacks. But Joe Douglas mentioned in his media call after they drafted Zeniga that he had a very high production rate despite missing the majority of the season. You look at Zenega, he at forty five tackles in six and a half sacks in two thousand eighteen. So Joe Douglas talked about his production rate. Yeah, it's there. When he was on the field, he was making plays, making things happen. And the other thing that I think stood out to the Jets about this gator

was he played with his hair on fire greens. Yeah. I think one thing about Jabari it seems like he's a very reserved player off of the football field, and then he puts on a helmet and then the switch flips and he really goes after it. I mean, in his career at Florida he red shirted in ten and then played sen to en for the Gators eighteen and a half sacks, thirty four and a half tackles for loss.

And I think what the Jets really like about out him, and I feel like again we're beating a dead horses. His versatility, the fact that he can play any position along the defensive line, he can develop his pass rush over time, and really, I think Phil Savage said it best in that clip we heard earlier. So you can't have enough of these guys, guys that are versatile and

guys that get after the quarterback. And I think that Zaniga, at the end of the day, is probably not the pick Jets fans imagined, but it's a position which Jets fans wanted Joe Douglas to address, and I think Zaniga fits the bill. Frankly well. He can certainly disrupt the opposition quarterback, but he is a penetrator green, so he's gonna try to get up field in a hurry. And he is a guy, frankly is still learning the game.

You played one year of high school football, so you look at his production at the University of Florida playing on Saturdays in the SEC. You mentioned the eighteen and a half acts and forty two career games. What I found fascinating throughout the pre draft process is we talked about him as an edge. Well, he himself talks about how he can play the nine technique, the three technique, Uh, he can play the traditional and spot, and that he can move inside to maybe in sub packages, and he's

playing closer to the center. So at this point in his career, you probably consider him more of an interior rusher greens. Yeah, I think that the guy that comes to mind when I think of a guy like this is almost kind of like Jordan Jenkins in a way where he wasn't the most productive pass rusher at Georgia, but he showed flashes and then he developed his pass rush since coming into the league. And Jordan Jenkins has done that and Jabari Zniga can do that from now

till his third or fourth year in the league. That I think he's on the right path. And when you look at his past, this is another basketball first athlete. He didn't play football until he was in high school. He was five ft eleven and two hundred ten pounds during his junior season before hitting a growth spur. And now he's six three, two sixty four And this is

a guy that was not heavily recruited. He's a three star athlete and at the end of the day, I think this is another guy that has worked up to the position in which he was drafted. And that's something we've said for Denzel Mims, It's something we said for Ashton Davis, and I think it's definitely something that we can say for Jabari Zaniga as well. Yeah, another thing is he's six three, two hundred sixty four pounds. In Indianapolis, he ran the forty yard dash I believe in four

point six four seconds. So I think that caught the eye of a lot of onlookers. People filed the draft and of course the scouts. You saw him playing fast on film. Well, the forty yard dash confirmed that. In Indianapolis, the Jets you're gonna see probably I would imagine George Jenkins and a guy like Darrell Basham's standing up more.

And this guy has room to grow, not only just picking up past rush techniques as his career evolves in the National Football league, but I anticipate will probably put on some weight as well. Greens. Yeah, I think that's fair to say too. And we'll see what happens when we finally get back to the facility and he can

touch the grass a little bit. But I think this is an interesting pick, to say the least, because, similar to Ashton Davis, not only with the versatility, the Jets at the end of the day might have gotten a discount on Jabari Zeniga. If he played a full season and we're healthy for the entirety of the season, if he had a little more senior tape, then maybe he's around two, picking out around three pick You're right six games, But in this case you're talking about Jabari Zanga and

uh not a major injury. So by all accounts, when he gives back to one Jets Drive or when he arrives at one Jets Drive, uh, I think he should be ready to go. And this is a great place for a young defensive alignment. If I'm a young defensive aligneman,

this is a place I want to go to. Andre Carter, great pass rusher in his heyday, had not that Jets defensive line, and Greg Williams a defensive mastermind, and we saw what the Jets did last year and that defensive line is a very deep and it's got a lot of big dogs who get after it. And what better guy for a young kid to hang around or following around the facility than Steve McClendon. Yeah, I don't think there is a better person for a young defensive player

to follow the Steve McClendon. He's kind of the defensive father of the bunch really. And before we break down, just how Zuniga fits into this Jet scheme and what this roster looks like with him on, and let's hear um Jabari's Aniga himself. Jabari, congratulations. What was it like getting the phone call from Joe Douglas. I mean, it's very exciting. You know, I was with the family, so

so everybody was wining with emotionally. Know my mom, My mom was was almost crying, so so, you know, it was it was just very exciting and an emotional moment. What was your pre draft interactions like with the Jets and did you have a sense that they liked you throughout the process. Um, y'all talked to the Jets about to about five times, and I talked somebody at the Single Bowl, I talked to somebody Combine and then I

talked to him. They zoom called me about three times um after the Comboy, So so I kind of had an idea that that they were interested. But you know, uh, I'm just excippy to be a excitited to be a part of the organization. So you clearly, to your point, had a lot of interaction with the Jets. What do you think that you can add to this defense? I heard you talking about your verse of autility, but what can you specifically bring to this Jets front? Um? Probably senatity.

You know, I feel like you know, I'm I'm um, I'm a very uh progressive player. So I just feel like, you know, I can bring a pass or to the to the UH to the defense. And I feel like it's just just being overall seenations players, being overall senagor football player. And I heard you talking to the media before this, you said you feel like the Jets got the steel of the draft because of course you were hampered with that ankle injury. So at full health, what

do you bring to a defense? UM, I definitely feel like, you know, I'll bring a lot you know, Uh, like you said, you know, I was kind of hampered by my by my ankle injury. But I feel like, like like a healthy, healthy me is is is is a very good football player. And and and that's that's definitely what the Jets to getting. You know, like I said, it didn't you know, a hard worker, you know, somebody's dedicated,

somebody it's gonna do anything for the organization. So, Jamar, did you meet with Greg Williams at all during your pre draft interactions? Whether that was Senior Bowl combine or zoom? I didn't? I sorry? Okay, Well who did you meet with? Um? I met with the GM my position coach and Andre Carter or Joe Vitt Joe Vick okay, and the uh and then the assistant position coach. Okay. And if I were to ask you how to describe your game, what would you say? Uh? Probably versustile. And I feel like

I can play play a lot of different positions. Um No, I feel like, you know, I could play all along the line of different soun packages. Um, it's probably very very versatile. You know. I feel like, you know, I'm I'm I'm aggressive. You know, I feel like it's niceus so so that's probably. And do you prefer to play with your hand in the ground own or standing up? Honestly, it doesn't matter, okay, And I just want to ask

you this. I saw something that said, you know, you're kind of a quiet, so soft spoken guy and you let your play on the field. Do you're talking? Would you consider that accurate? That is very accre Yes, sir, I can say to myself, I want to introverted side and I'm I'm not really a guy who likes the club stuff like that, but but you know when I when I get on the field, I definitely let loose and I definitely let it all out. Hey, Jo Bari, did you know Marcus May and Brian Pool when they

were at Florida too? Because you guys overlapped. But I don't know how friendly you guys were. Yeah, we we weren't the best of friends. But it's not definitely lived

up to those guys. And I feel like my mind knows are two two floor the great snow that two players that that belong and uh, you know hall of Fame, uh football Hall of Fame, let alone the Florida all the Thames so so so I definitely feel like you know those those guys are legendary, but we weren't the closest to friends, but I definitely looked up to him from leadership perspective. All right, Jabar, I just want to

ask you this before we wrap things up. Obviously this is unprecedented times because all your rookie classes and everything will be through virtual program. But what step number one for you now that you're a New York Jet. Of course, getting to know my teammates, but but probably the most definitely, most definite pointies get into that playbook because you know, at the end of day, it's all about uh, you know,

being being a productive player in this league. And I definitely feel like that's that's the most important stuff, is getting into the playbook. Yeah, I think one of the benefits of drafting a guy like this at the at a position where the Jets are rather stout is that I think maybe the expectations are a little less from day one. The only because I don't know how much playhook get as a starter. I assume that will probably

be involved in sub packages to a certain degree. But when you look at the defensive line between Steve mcclennon Bronzovarokasi, Nathan Shepherd, Henry Anderson, Quinnin Williams, and then you think about guys like Jordan Jenkins and Torrell Bash them last year, it just feels like Jabari Snigo will have an ability or an opportunity rather to be almost sponge like soak up as much as he can from all these talented players and then be effective for the Jets on the field.

You just have a lot of options, Greg Williams, and he's the first one to tell you, don't say I run a four three. Don't say I run a three four because he's gonna continually mix it up and you play and so many sub packages anyway, So again, good situation. And when you read the scouting reports about Zenena, you know the guy I thought of immediately a little bit when they said the hair on fire, the NonStop mote or the strength, I did think of a guy like

Jordan Jenkins. I'm not saying that he is the same player. I'm saying that d n A, that is the guy I thought of, just the way the style is, getting up the field, never taking a playoff, getting his nose dirty. Uh, the explosiveness and Zenega has a high upside again, and that's what you want in these draft picks. None of these guys are finished products. You know. I'm glad you mentioned that because you can speak to this a little more than I can. I'm pretty sure that Jabari Zeniga's

pro comparison, I don't remember which website it was. It might have been Pro Football Focus, might have been another website. Their pro comparison for Jabari Zeniga was Calvin Pace. So

that's a player that I watched grown up. And you know, you can correct me if I'm wrong, and I'd like you to expand on this, but Calvin Pace, to me, and I think most Jets fans was He's a guy that probably given you between five and eight sacks a year, and he's a great run fender as an edge setter, and maybe in a lot of ways almost feels like an older version of Jordan Jenkins. Yeah. Well, Calvin Pace was a hell of a player. He wasn't a guy who was coming off the edge getting you fifteen sacks

a year. But to your point, he was consistent. He was a dominant in terms oftorney things inside, he was a cerebral assassin greens Uh, he could study it, and he knew the way offenses were attacking him, and he was a key part on some of those great defenses. But strong stout not a blazer off the edge, but he could get there. And also, uh, just a guy who it was gonna be tough ever getting outside of him.

Speaking of pace guys you talked to over the years, is that it's great to have uh number one move. It's great to even have a secondary move. But what separates the good path s rushers from the very good ones to the excellent ones that they have multiple tools in their bag. So if one doesn't work, I'm going to be If he doesn't work, I'm switching to see and that's going to develop over time. But he has

those raw tools that you like. I know we keeps saying this, but it feels like it goes back to Jordan Jenkins again, and he's kind of like this example, this third round example that his pass rush numbers from a sacks perspective has increased every year since he's entered the league in two thousand sixteen. And I think that that is kind of like the poster child of what you want out of a third round pick. I feel

like and I think Jabari is an ego. From everything that I've read, it seems like he has the work ethic, the motors, seems like he's a guy that's gonna fit in the locker room. So I think Jets fans should be excited not only about this pick, but really when you think about what that front seven looks like, fully healthy, considering where they finished last year top ten, number two against the run as a defense, you think about this

front seven now adding another piece. And we've said this before, but the front has an ability to be a very very effective group when football is finally bad. You know, I look at it and say, you were top ten in your yards a lot less year number seven. Overall, there is no reason why this defense can't be top ten again. I think they'll probably want to get those scoring numbers down, but a lot goes into the scoring equation, turnovers,

field position, and whatnot. So I don't know if that's the right stat when you're looking at defenses, nor is yards always the right judge. But by the end of the season, the Jets were one of the better defenses

in the National Football Are you mentioned front seven. I'm just I'm looking at the entire defense, because again you ad did that piece be for Ashton Davis and he gives you more flexibility and versatility, and you're adding to uh all world safety and Jamal Adams and then you got Marcus May back there and where it's gonna be

interesting what happens at the cornerback position. But I just think right now the Jets have a lot of different pieces and they added big time with these two first defenders here early in the draft in Davis in the A four mentioned Jabari Zoninga Um, So you know, I think that, yes, the Jets are gonna have a very

good front seven, but I think extends beyond that. And now you've got Zeninga too, because he's another piece that again if he steps into a sub package role right away, he's another guy you have to account for, a four point six four guy who's two undred sixty four pounds who can get up the field and to trade. So these are more pieces on this defense that was good last year that has a chance to be very good in two thousands one. All right, there you have it.

Another edition of the official Jets podcast, the Draft Pick Profile series presented by Verizon. That was the Jabari Zeniga edition E A myself going back to Gainesville for the next episode with Florida running back with Michael p. Ryan