David Bailey's final CFB season provides 2 major red flags for Jets

The New York Jets ended months of debate on the first night of the 2026 NFL Draft when they selected Texas Tech's David Bailey over Ohio State's Arvell Reese.

Both Bailey and Reese were considered the two best defensive prospects in the entire class, and the question leading into the draft was which defender the Jets would use with the No. 2 overall pick.

The argument for Bailey was his perceived high-floor, while Reese, the freak athlete, took some projection to argue. The Texas Tech star was college football's sack leader in 2025, while the Ohio State product played mostly off-ball linebacker and is expected to develop into a pass rusher in the NFL.

New York opted for Bailey's polished skillset over Reese's tools, and only time will tell if they made the right choice. But were there a few red flags the Jets didn't consider when they selected Bailey?

David Bailey's red flags coming out of Texas Tech could concern Jets fans

ESPN's Rich Cimini noted two factors about Bailey's 2025 tape that ended up getting him drafted so high, but they could also give some fans some pause about his jump to the pros.

"Surprisingly, Bailey was double-teamed on only one sack -- a play against Arizona State in which he was chipped by a tight end. No doubt, he benefited from a strong supporting cast, which probably resulted in fewer double teams."

Rich Cimini

If Bailey turns out to be the star that he is expected to be off the edge, he's likely going to be seeing a lot of double teams. The fact that he was only able to fight through one could be cause for concern. We'll see just how early on the No. 2 overall pick receives extra attention.

Second, Bailey and Texas Tech played with a lot of leads, allowing the Red Raiders' pass rush to pin their ears back and get after the quarterback. Considering he's now playing for the Jets, he won't always be in games where his team is ahead by multiple scores.

"It also helped that they played with big leads -- a lot of big leads. Nearly half of Bailey's pass rushes (155 out of 353) came with the Red Raiders leading by at least 14 points. That total (155) led the FBS."

Rich Cimini

There are reasons to be concerned about Bailey's transition to the NFL, but there's also reason to be excited. Cimini quoted head coach Aaron Glenn talking about his "elite" first step, which should help him against pro offensive linemen.

There is no way to know for sure how any rookie will pan out until they hit the field, and Bailey is no different. Jets fans will just have to put their faith in Glenn and Darren Mougey and hope that they made the right decision.

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