New York Jets: Ranking the 53-man roster — No. 12 Robby Anderson

After another lost New York Jets season, it’s time to evaluate this 53-man roster. This daily ranking continues with No. 12, wide receiver Robby Anderson.

The New York Jets immediately knew that they found something special in Robby Anderson. The Miami-bred 2016 undrafted free agent wide receiver starred for Matt Rhule at Temple.

Rhule still loves Anderson like a son for how he handled himself in Philadelphia, dropping out of school to “find himself,” and then excelling in his senior season enough to open eyes on a professional level.

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Anderson went into his fourth NFL season with huge expectations. But after an invisible start to 2019, Anderson quietly caught fire, catching 52 passes (tied for 42nd most in the league) for 779 yards and five TDs (averaging 15 yards per reception), for a robust Pro Football Focus grade of 68.6.

Such statistics will certainly make “Young Amazing” a rich man, in New York or elsewhere.

The Jets must decide whether $12-15 million per season is a worthy expenditure for a wiry receiver with breakaway speed, who blocks poorly, runs sloppy routes, and gets dominated in physical cornerback battles.

He’s also revealed himself stunningly immature — and in this three-strikes-and-you’re-out league, Anderson already has two glaring behavioral strikes against him.

Last week Anderson dropped a cryptic tweet implying interest in joining Carson Wentz with the Philadelphia Eagles — his “I’ve been seein’ a lot of 11.11 recently” related to their identical uniform numbers.

However, Anderson said all the right things this season in green-and-white.

“[Remaining with the  Jets] that’s the ultimate goal. This is where I’ve been. If I wanted to be somewhere else, I would have expressed that a long time ago. That’s obviously not what I want. But it’s a business. I honestly feel like I’m one of the best receivers of the NFL when given the opportunity. I feel like I’ve done that on a consistent basis throughout my career.”

This cold, hard business of football cuts both ways. Head coach Adam Gase and general manager Joe Douglas see a raw talent ready to explode. But then again, so did the previous Bowles/Maccagnan regime.

Anderson could well become yet another New York Jets project to achieve greatness elsewhere. The team desperately needs weapons for Sam Darnold. But they’ve got so many roster holes that salary cap money could be better distributed elsewhere.

Don’t be surprised to hear about Anderson’s impending return to Philadelphia — or a possible Rhule reunion in Carolina.