LISTEN | Jets TE Chris Herndon (8/12)

the Giants. Yeah, you felt bad for Chris Hernon last year because remember back in February two thousand nineteen, Adam Gaze, who was the new Jets head coach at the time, called him a unicorn type player, a guy could do everything. And Green's this is a guy who can get down the field in a hurry. He's got rare athleticism for somebody who plays the tight end position, and I think he can open up a lot of field for people. And most importantly, Sam Darn had a great connection with

him when both of those guys were rookies. Herndon his rookie season second on the Jets and reception yards and touchdowns and was really one of the bright spots for that two thousand and eighteen team and without further ado, like, let's hear the interview with Chris Herndon. Chris, I know I was thinking about this. If there's a handful of guys, you're definitely on the short list that I would imagine are super excited to be back considering your season last

year starting with suspension, ending with injury. Just how excited are you in your own words to finally be around your teammates at the facility once again. I feel great. I have just a bunch of energy, you know, really sitting out that that much last year, just you know, I gained a new appreciation and really just had to opportunity just watched from the outside and now off for like a kid again being out there and my friends

is having fune. What is this offseason been like for you, Chris, Because as typically you'd be at the complex going through spring drills, uh focusing on passing predominantly, and then O t A is canceled. We're in the middle of a pandemic with COVID nineteen, and of course training camp is starting. But it's far different than your rookie year because you guys are an acclamation period right now. Oh yeah, it's been very abnormal. But um, I feel like a lot of the guys took a lot of you know, time

to just enjoy family right now. Really it's kind of something that was out of our control. But I feel like a lot of us just found a lot of positivity and all of this and you know, being able to be around our families longer, help around the house and kind of just you know, do this train as much as possible. I'm sure everybody had nothing but time to work out and just hang around. Speaking of working out, Chris as a Georgia kid I saw and coach Case

was talking about that. You trained with Steve mcclennan a little bit at his new gym in the off season. What is a tight end doing with the defensive lineman in the gym? And just what's it like working out with Big Steve at his new gym. Uh? Yeah, we had we had a few of us training there, Me him, Jordan Jenkins, Henry Anderson, Tarrell, Tarrell bash him here and there. You know, he had another gym he trained that as well, but he came by and got some working with us.

But I mean, I have fun, really, I don't lift as much as Steve and all those other guys, but I definitely definitely pushed myself every day. We all pushed each other. I feel like we definitely, you know, got you know, even closer as teammates and you know, you know, most importantly a brotherhead and I just feel like this this definitely these last few months, we all got really really cool with each other, uh training and you know, just pushing another on the field and in the weight room.

So we all had a lot of fun. How much is big Steve Squatton and do you jump on there on the bar? I'm not certain as Max, but I know one day he had probably six places on east side and it was I'm sure if he could have fit more weight, he could have, but that's all that fit. So I was just standing back there like that looks like a her back for me. But I applaud him. He went hard this offseason, you know, Chris, I feel like, just talking about Steve for a minute, a lot of

defensive players gravitate towards him. I mean, speaking of Fronzo Fukasi two seasons ago, he followed in Steve's footsteps like every day. I'm just curious even though you don't play on the same side of the ball, Like, why do you gravitate towards Steve as somebody that was an undrafted free agent and been in this league for over ten years. Well, I mean, like you just said, even though he was undrafted, Um, he's earned his stripes in this league. He's definitely a

well and highly respected player in the league. And like you said, he's been going on his twelfth year and you know, watching him trains season, he said, he he feels, you know, really good. And that's just somebody you want to be around to push you. You know, he's very wise. He always has, you know, a bunch of things and he just he motivates it. He brings out the best of you, even you know, as being as young as

we are. He could you know, being in the league for twelve years, he sees stuff that we can't always see. So it's just it's always good to have someone like that in your corner. All right, Let's flip to the offensive side of the ball. Though. Those are the guys putting the points on the board. Your rookie season, thirty nine catches over five hundred yards, receiving you the four touchdowns. What are you going to add to this offense? Uh?

I mean I don't wanna, you know, look too far ahead, but as far as I believe I could do, I would just you know, add another reliable playmaker to the field. UM, a hard working person, someone that leads by example and you know, willing to you know, on the line for the team. So I mean, I just I just want to continue to work each and every day, you know, take each opportunity to give me, and you know, kind of take a day by day specifically, i'd ask, what

can you stretch the field, especially down the seam? Uh do not just for your quarterback because we're gonna talk about Sam Donald, but the other guys on the field. And how much do you take pride in that not only catching the football, but having the opportunity to spring up or free some room up for some of your

fellow playmakers. Oh that's that's just you know, part of the fun that comes with this game when you can obviously get your own opportunities, but knowing at you know, you could open it up for the rest of the offense and everybody else could get their opportunities and fair share as well. Because I mean we we are a team, so you know one person won't be able to do it, but Levin men on the field total of twenty two, so you know it's it's it's always fun watching everybody

else on your team eat as well. Chris, you said last season was a learning year from you. Obviously because of your suspension and injury. You have to do a lot of the your football playing just by watching right and learning this offense. How much more effective do you think you can be now that you feel like you've immersed yourself in this playbook this coming season? Oh? Like I said, I just you know, I just want to

take it day by day. I've definitely been in the playbook and going on year two and this system, you know, feeling more confident was just gonna allow me to play faster, think less and just kind of let it flow out there. And you know that's obviously exciting to think about. And uh, when those times homes is just you know, it's just gonna be really fun. I feel like, let's jump into that tight end room. What do you think about Ryan Griffin last year and how are you guys going to

compliment each other? Thirty four receptions last year for big griff even but he got in the end zone five times as well, and he does a lot of things for this offense. Ryan was a beast last season. I you know, I made sure to text him before and after games, you know, encouraging him, letting him know how well he did. And you know, he's a very wise person as well. He's going on year nine and he has a lot of you know, savvy, you know, moves that are in his game that you know you could

always learn from. He he makes sure if you need help or have questions to help you as well. And that's you know, part of being a vet to you know, making sure the younger guys have what they need to be successful. He's, uh, he's definitely really good with that. So I feel like having him in the room definitely is a huge help for all of us, all of us younger. Chris Sam Donald is somebody that's cool, calm and collected. At least that's what a lot of your

teammates and coach Cases said. But I'm curious because Coach Gay said he kind of censors. There's a different way that Sam is going about himself. Do you get that sense that maybe he has a little more confidence now

that he's in his second year in cases system. I mean, that's is definitely what comes with it, you know, second year in the system, continuing to get reps on the field, getting mental reps in the film room, studying more, and allowing himself to be on the field think less, be able to you know, make better decisions, you know, quicker, and also just you know, having fun with it because once, once all that starts to come into play, it's just football all over again, like you know, the kid game

that we've been playing for a long time. Specifically, what do you like about Sam's personality, because yes, you had an on the field connection, but it seemed like you guys community a gated very well together back in two thousand and eighteen. Now we're looking ahead of two thousand and twenty, Like, can you talk about that a little bit? And also what do you enjoy about his physical skill set when you're out there? Uh? Well, I could definitely

say he's a humble guy. He doesn't you know, he doesn't boost himself too much, but he's definitely confident in who he is and his ability. So I feel like he just he jels wealth everybody. He's not someone that's too loud, but he says enough to where you know his his words are felt. So I feel like everybody kind of in the whole locker room just enjoys having him around. And as far as you know, physicality, he

he takes the weight room serious. He takes taking care of his body series and I mean it shows on the field and you know he's slinging the ball down the build without hardly any effort and also able to scramble get out of you know, trouble in the back fields. So he definitely, he definitely brings a lot to this team. Chris, I don't know how many fans know this, but you actually have a friendship with Lawrence Cager, who signed with the Jets as an undrafted free agent. Both of you

of course went to Miami. What can Jets fans expect out of Lawrence Cajre and training camp? And do you have any good Lawrence Cagre stories that you can share with us? Um Well, definitely for him from you know, just going to school with him for a few years. He's definitely a hard working person. He's definitely determined, He's very confident in himself stabilities. He's also you know, just a team guy. But uh, definitely one of the one

good experiences. I mean it's a football experience, but uh, his freshman year he had a one handed catch, I believe against Nebraska, and him being a freshman, he's just kind of Washington, you know, step on the scene and embrace that, embrace that moment, and when it happened, you know, you didn't believe it because it's like he's so young, but he kind of took off from there, and I mean that's an experience that I was happy to be on the field with him and watch him. You don't

have that success, Chris. I just want to jump in and ask you about another former Hurricane, Braxton Burrios. Did Burrios live in the gym this offseason? I've seen a couple of photos and Burrios looks like he put on a couple of pounds. He's looking pretty shredded these days. Yeah, Braxton, He's always been. He's always been in a way since I've known him. He's taking him obviously, taking care of his body as well so that he could performed as

good as he does. But yeah, I mean a lot of people around the facility are definitely seeing Braxton and asking him what he did this offseason, because he definitely he definitely came in looking very different. We're talking receivers here, so let's stick with that topic. What do you think about a couple of newcomers on the Jets that you receiver Rashad Perry in and also rookie denzel Man's Both guys have good size speed combination sub four four speed.

Have you been able to see them a little bit in action yet? Yeah, so both guys, like you said, obviously get down the field, you know, effortless. They have a tremendous amount of speed, but also their ability to run good routes, catch the ball and do something when they have the ball in their hands. And I kind

of got a chance to see that in Miami. You know, you know, it's just on air, but we all got a chance to see each other throwing each other down there, and now that we're up here getting some more working, you continue to see those things. Chris, I'm glad you mentioned that little trip in Miami. Can you tell us what that was about and what that was like meeting a lot of your new teammates for the first time, and what kind of work you guys put in down there. Uh yeah, it was kind of just a way for

all of us to kind of get familiar with one another. Um. I feel like it was a great, very short bonding experience. You know. We just we threw every day for about two hours, um and just kind of you know, talked it up afterwards for a little bit. And then definitely those those couple of days, I feel like we kind of gained a little rapport. But now definitely being up here as you know, continue to to gel together as well. I want you to get back on the field with

the helmet on. I think it's gonna start next week non paddited practices and then you have a few of those obviously before you guys followed up and get some padditive work before the regular season. But what's it gonna mean to you to get back on the field in

that kind of capacity of practice capacity. It's gonna mean a lot, you know obviously, like I said, how last year went, Kin, you know, took this off season to definitely heal my body and whenever I was clear to go, just taking advantage of getting in the weight room, constantly, getting in work, you know, body maintenance and now that we're finally here, even though it's still under circumstances that

nobody would have expected. Uh. I mean, I'm just you know, gonna enjoy the opportunity that you got out there, just not just for myself but with my team. I gotta ask you, have you been getting in Adam Gates's here and saying, hey, yeah, you got some skilled position talent and the outside, but this tight end room, we got a lot of depth. Hey how about some twelve personnel sets thirteen personnel sets next season? Because we talked about Griff before tray Von Westcoe, he came on as a

rookie and he really had showed some blocking prowess. And then you have Daniel Brown, who's uh kind of a jack of all trades for this team and especially considering his special team's ability. Yeah, I mean we don't really talk a lot in our room. We're kind of just you know, the put our head down every day and just you know, get get get working. But I mean the work will definitely show. So I mean I'll just come with opportunities and you know, proving our team we

can handle that that type of load. Chris is the last question for me. I just want to know what are your first reaction or your first impression of mackay Beckton. Have you ever seen a tackle that big before? So we had a guy, my the biggest guy I've seen since him. We had a guy come in at Miami, Von Donaldson, And when I saw him, I was like, godly, but Hi, he's even bigger than him, Taller, bigger, I mean, stronger for sure, But I mean, yeah, McCay, he's definitely

he's huge. I kind of walked in the facility kind of got mad that he was that close to me being that big, like, give me a few steps. We of course talked about Sam donald before and you just mentioned McKay beck then came in, uh Mammoth person Adam said that Levian Bell has come to camp in phenomenal shape and he looks extremely motivated. What do you think

about Levan in year two? And also for you having that opportunity to play alongside him for more extended time because of what happened last season, Because I know Bell is a guy you can help blocking, also freeing up some space for him down the field, but he can help you out as well. Yeah, he definitely came in great shape. He's been, you know, showing that he's getting into work and you know, obviously motivating others as well,

coming in more. Uh asserted this year also, we've been we've had a few workouts, tight ends and running backs together at the facility, and he's being more vocal, holding people accountable. And you can just tell us a different a different type of personality. He's going on a year two and like you said, he's just he's ready to get out there and you know, put it on display. Awesome, Chris.

We appreciate the time here on the Official Jets Podcast powered by Amazon Web Services, and we're looking forward to seeing you on the field, no problem. Thank you guys for having me. He ate Chris Herndon being hurt last season and now returning. I think it's to your point, it's an overlooked storyline because field yates we spoke to

him earlier this offseason. He said that Chris Herndon, after his rookie season, was on track to be the next big thing in the a f C East because he is a unicorn type of player in a three down tight end. So I think that Chris Herndon's presence and then his expected play could really open things up for this Jets offense, not only in the passing game, but in the running game as well. Now I completely agree, uh.

I think when we think of the Jets offense, we think about an offensive line that's gonna feature five new starters compared to opening day two thousand nineteen, and then the changes in the outside with Breshad Perriman and Denzel Mims. But when we watched the Jets last year, they went six and two down the stretch and Sam Donald at thirteen touchdown passes and four interceptions leading away, and he did not have the use of Herndon and Sam Donald when he was at USC. He loved throwing to the

tight ends. And we saw the success that Ryan Griffin had last year. And now Adam Gatee is going to have more options. The Jets primary personnel package last year was a loving personnel one running back, one tight end, three wide receivers. Now I think it's gonna be interesting to see if you see a lot more too tight on packages and that way you can continue to dictate

things on your terms to imposing defenses. Listen, bottom line, Chris Herndon is a night is a matchup problem for opponents because he is that a lytticism to get down the field, the strength to help you out as an inside blocker, and all these things that we've talked about in the off season, I think are gonna lead to a more productive not only Sam Donald, but Levy on button. Yeah, I agree on all fronts. And that was another episode of the Official Jet Podcast powered by Amazon Web Services.

He and I will continue to come to the podcast with players, with different analysts, maybe sometimes just just breaking down different things. And but we got you covered throughout training camp leading up to the two thousand twenty regular season