New York Jets tight end Jeremy Ruckert looks to make a leap in his sophomore season in the NFL. He didn’t get much playing time in 2022, appearing in nine games and racking up just one reception for eight yards. Fitting in largely as a special teams player wasn’t what you’d expect at first from a third-round pick who stands 6-foot-5 and weighs 250 pounds, but Ruckert struggled with plantar fasciitis all year that derailed his rookie season.
Now that he’s healthy, back in the fold and has one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time throwing to him in four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, it isn’t too hard to see a breakout in the cards for Ruckert. Jets head coach Robert Saleh praised Ruckert for his work during OTA’s, with ESPN Staff Writer Rich Cimini reporting that Saleh said Ruckert looks “awesome.”
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Ruckert, similarly, should have plenty of opportunities to get in on the action with a first-ballot hall of famer slinging passes his direction. Here’s a preview of how he could perform this season, as well as a look at his career from Columbus to the Big Apple.
Ruckert is a New York native who grew up on the southern shore of Long Island and was a die-hard Jets fan from a young age. As such, he isn’t just looking to improve his game from a professional standpoint: it’s his childhood dream to see the Jets win the Super Bowl, giving him an added dose of motivation.
<blockquote class=”twitter-tweet”><p lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Football is fun, right <a href=”https://twitter.com/Jeremy_Ruckert1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@Jeremy_Ruckert1</a>? <a href=”https://t.co/aFHvqN2ZKx”>pic.twitter.com/aFHvqN2ZKx</a></p>— New York Jets (@nyjets) <a href=”https://twitter.com/nyjets/status/1661437294241349632?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>May 24, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src=”https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js” charset=”utf-8″></script>
He’s well set up to move past his challenging rookie season, as he’s been through this song and dance before. After being named the No. 2 tight end in the nation as a high school recruit, Ruckert barely played during his freshman season at Ohio State, recording just one reception as he fought for a place on the Buckeyes’ loaded roster.
He’s a prototypical tight end, used as a blocker as much as a receiving threat, so he slots in well as the Jets’ No. 2 tight end. New York has made it clear that protecting the 39-year-old Rodgers is a top priority, spending two of their top three picks in this year’s draft on the offensive line.
While Ruckert has yet to master his craft at either dimension of his game (blocking and receiving) his versatility as he continues to develop will make him a sneaky weapon in the Jets’ huddle.
During Rodgers’ final years with Green Bay the team opted for a more conservative offensive attack, a drastic change from the freewheeling years of his prime when he’d take massive hits in order to sling the ball downfield. Whether that change stemmed from Rodgers’ needs as he grows older (or was simply a facet of head coach Matt LaFleur’s offensive philosophy) could become apparent as the Jets’ season ramps up, but the fact remains that less lofty numbers didn’t hurt Rodgers’ performance under LaFleur: he still won back to back MVP awards in 2020 and 2021.
Ruckert had an entire year to get his body up to professional speed with the help of NFL weight rooms, dieticians and training staff, a sort of redshirt introduction to the big leagues. Stay tuned to see what kind of leap he’s prepared to make in year two.
