Frank Reich's praise of Kenyon Sadiq hints Week 3 breakout was just the start

Kenyon Sadiq's Week 3 performance gave New York Jets fans a thrill. With the exception of a brief blip on the radar from Chris Herndon in 2018, the tight end position has been a barren wasteland for the franchise since the days of Dustin Keller.

Sadiq's seven-catch, 105-yard performance was sensational enough to win the 21-year-old Offensive Rookie of the Week honors. The feat was even more impressive in the context of the wide receiver injury wave that left Garrett Wilson flanked by a kick returner in Isaiah Williams, the shell of Sterling Shepard, and other waiver-wire fodder. New York needed someone to step up, and Sadiq did.

While we saw flashes from Sadiq in the first two weeks of the season, the Week 3 explosion represented another level. Was it simply that he caught the Detroit Lions unprepared? Or was this the start of a true breakout? Frank Reich's comments during his media availability on Thursday might shed some light.

Per ESPN's Rich Cimini, Reich raved about Sadiq, but rather than focusing on the extraordinary athletic ability that has the youngster poised to be the next great matchup nightmare tight end, the offensive coordinator focused his praise on Sadiq's adaptability and ability to learn quickly.

Jets rookie Kenyon Sadiq is doing everything necessary to quickly become an elite tight end

The jump from college to the pros is tough for any rookie, but the tight end position has a steeper learning curve than most. When you think about it, it makes sense. The position is basically half offensive lineman and half wide receiver, with a heavy dose of nuance thrown in.

While we've seen some tight ends like the Lions' Sam LaPorta hit the ground running, most struggle in their rookie seasons. A prime example of this is Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride, who, despite being highly touted coming out of college, managed just 29 catches for 265 yards during his rookie season before exploding for an 81-catch campaign in his sophomore season.

For some of the uber-athletic guys like Sadiq, it can actually be even harder to master the position because offensive coordinators want to take advantage of their superior physical skills, using them in ways that can produce chunk plays, but don't actually align with the demands of the position.

We saw a bit of that with Sadiq over the first two weeks of the season. There was his end-around rushing touchdown in Week 1, and over the first two games of the season, he was used primarily in the screen game and on dump-offs, posting a combined average depth of target of 0.0 yards.

That changed in Week 3 as Sadiq recorded an average depth of target of 7.2 yards, and also posted a stellar 3.41 yards per route run.

The stark improvement is further underscored by the fact that Sadiq was even more behind the eight ball than most rookie tight ends due to missing a huge chunk of training camp. His ability to catch up quickly speaks volumes about his work ethic, as Reich alluded to.

There's still plenty of work to do. Sadiq needs to continue refining his abilities in the passing game, and he needs to make a lot of strides as a run blocker. However, Reich's words are encouraging, and it seems clear that we're going to continue to see the Oregon product take massive steps forward week-to-week, highlighting how bright his future truly is.

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