Did the New York Jets find a fourth-round steal in Max Mitchell?
When New York Jets fans found out Duane Brown would start the season injured reserve, they went into panic. The idea of fourth-round rookie Max Mitchell starting in Week 1 was not something that anybody was looking forward to.
Three weeks later, Mitchell is one of the most popular players on the team.
Mitchell has vastly exceeded expectations over these first few starts of his career. That’s not to say he’s been an All-Pro, but for a rookie who was thrust into the fire much earlier than intended, he has been impressively sturdy.
In fact, Mitchell is holding up better than many of his rookie peers who were drafted much earlier.
As of Week 3, there are six rookie tackles who have played at least 100 pass-blocking snaps. Here is how they stack up in terms of their allowed pressure rates, per Pro Football Focus:
- Tyler Smith, Cowboys (3.4%) – 4 pressures on 117 snaps
- Max Mitchell, Jets (5.2%) – 9 pressures on 173 snaps
- Abraham Lucas, Seahawks (6.0%) – 7 pressures on 117 snaps
- Charles Cross, Seahawks (6.8%) – 8 pressures on 117 snaps
- Evan Neal, Giants (7.6%) – 10 pressures on 131 snaps
- Ikem Ekwonu, Panthers (8.7%) – 9 pressures on 104 snaps
For reference, the 2022 NFL average for OTs thus far is 5.3%.
Mitchell ranks second-best out of the six qualified rookies with an allowed pressure rate of 5.2%. That’s actually a smidgen better than the league average for tackles this year.
Three top-10 picks are currently situated behind Mitchell on the list: Ekwonu (6th), Neal (7th), and Cross (9th). Lucas was an early third-round pick.
Even in the run game, Mitchell is trending up. Mitchell had a rough debut as a run-blocker in which he earned a 42.7 run-blocking grade at Pro Football Focus. But over the past two weeks, Mitchell has a solid run-blocking grade of 65.6 that ranks second-best among rookie tackles during that span (trailing only Tyler Smith). He’s forming an exciting duo with Alijah Vera-Tucker.
What a play by Max Mitchell! Works with AVT to move the 3-tech inside and then peels off to clear the LB out of the way. Hall runs behind him for 16. pic.twitter.com/gXLAQQJZKl
— Michael Nania (@Michael_Nania) September 26, 2022
Thought it was a good day for the AVT/Max Mitchell duo. What a nice job here pic.twitter.com/5f5yDWxLhl
— Michael Nania (@Michael_Nania) September 26, 2022
It’s way too early to make any declarations. Mitchell has to prove this start is for real, and he still has a lot of improving to do before he can be considered a definitively above-average starter. Meanwhile, guys like Neal, Ekwonu, and Cross have plenty of time to develop and reach their sky-high ceilings.
With that being said, I’m sure the Jets are elated about the way Mitchell has played so far. This level of production is beyond the wildest dreams that anyone could have had for Mitchell prior to the year – especially in comparison to how other rookies are playing.
On that note, it’s interesting to think back to the Jets’ decision with the fourth overall pick.
The Jets selected Cincinnati cornerback Sauce Gardner at No. 4, but many people thought the Jets should take Neal or Ekwonu in that spot due to their lack of faith in Mekhi Becton‘s reliability. Sure enough, Becton suffered a season-ending injury a few months later, and the Jets’ decision to pass on the top OT prospects came back into the limelight.
But now that Mitchell is playing better than Neal and Ekwonu while Gardner enjoys a strong start, Jets general manager Joe Douglas is sitting pretty. Douglas is having his cake and eating it too – at least for now.
