Even David Bailey was fooled by the Jets' pre-draft smoke screens

In the lead-up to the 2026 NFL Draft, the New York Jets practically held the keys to the whole darn thing. Everyone and their mother knew Fernando Mendoza was going No. 1 overall to the Las Vegas Raiders, and the real intrigue began with New York at No. 2 overall.

Of course, there were only two directions the Jets would realistically go with their pick. Texas Tech edge David Bailey or versatile Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese, and New York would eventually land on Bailey after a long and winding draft process.

The Jets cancelled their pre-draft meeting with Bailey roughly two weeks before the draft was set to begin, setting off all kinds of alarm bells within the fandom. Were Aaron Glenn and Darren Mougey out on the Texas Tech prospect? Or had they seen enough from him that they didn't need the final meeting?

It ended up being the latter, considering the Jets would eventually use the No. 2 overall pick on the prospect heralded as the most pro-ready of the bunch, but even Bailey wasn't 100% sure himself if the Green & White would pick him going into the first round.

David Bailey talks pre-draft process with New York Jets

In an interview with the Jets podcast Gang's All Here, Bailey spoke about his experience with the pre-draft process and how he wasn't sure if New York was interested in him. While he wasn't sure, Bailey's agent seemed to be in the know.

"Since it was my first time going through the (pre-draft) process, my initial reaction was that they're (Jets) not interested. But I talked with my agent, and he's been through this process, and he was telling me, 'Man, don't worry about it.' He had talked to (Mougey); he had talked to a lot of the Jets staff. He said, 'That really doesn't mean too much. Don't think too much into it.'"

Of course, Bailey's representatives, Ryan Williams and Travis Allen of Athletes First, knew what they were talking about. Still, it's cool to know that the Jets were playing it cool throughout the entire process, doing their best to keep everyone on their toes ahead of making their first-round draft choice.

Hopefully that remains the case for the rest of Mougey and Glenn's tenure. It helps to maintain leverage over other teams and could be a massive help in 2027, when New York once again has multiple first-round draft choices to work with.

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