Reporting live from Florham Park, NJ—The first rookie minicamp practice from Florham Park took place on Friday, and like many things, the New York Jets have a lot to take away.
From the excellent start of the 2025 draft class, or some interesting dynamics in the coaching staff, it all took center stage for the Jets on Friday.
After the first day of rookie camp under new head coach Aaron Glenn, the Jets are looking to instill a culture and way of doing things for the incoming class of rookies. So far, the team is accomplishing that goal, along with many other key takeaways from Florham Park.
5 Key Takeaways From Jets’ Rookie Minicamp
It’s important to remember that these are takeaways from the Jets’ first practice of rookie minicamp. Championships are not won or lost here. Any takeaway, as always, can be pushed aside by the next day. No one should think too highly or too lowly of a prospect from their first day of workouts.
That’s how this works.
So without further ado, and with expectations high, there are plenty of major takeaways to keeep an eye on from Jets rookie camp this weekend.
Strong Showings From 2025 Draft Class
There was a point where all seven draft picks by the Jets played an important part of a big play. Seventh overall pick Armand Membou excelled in specific run downs and didn’t give up a pressure.
Second-round tight end Mason Taylor could have recorded a long reception had this been a game setting. Even fourth-round rookie Arian Smith—the player most Jets fans were livid over—came through with exciting plays that showcased his speed and athleticism.
A big winner on Friday, though, was Miami edge rusher Tyler Baron. He would have recorded multiple sacks during the day of work and looks to already be ahead of the curve in the learning process.
Each of these players can make an impact on the roster in 2025.
Aaron Glenn Moves In Silence
Arguably the most surprising part of New York’s practice was Glenn’s demeanor throughout the session. One would think, as a former Bill Parcells mentee, that Glenn would adopt the same fiery, no-nonsense approach that his mentor would bring.
That couldn’t be further from the truth. At least, that’s what reporters saw on Friday.
Much like his comments about the Jets’ offseason plans, Glenn operated in silence for most of practice, choosing to communicate with specific things on his mind as opposed to installing certain strategies and tendencies moving forward.
It’s apparent the players in the locker room respect him, as well as his assistants.
Glenn is moving in silence on the field as well as off of it. And it seems like a great fit for what the Jets need right now.
Donovan Edwards Will Make Things Interesting
The entire 2025 draft class may have been impressive, but undrafted free agent running back Donovan Edwards looked really strong as well.
The Michigan product busted off multiple long gains throughout the practice and looked like he didn’t miss a beat from starring with the Wolverines over the last several years.
He’s sort of bottlenecked at this time behind a trio of intended contributors. But if he runs with the burst and patience he ran with today, the Jets may have no choice but to keep him on the roster, starting out behind Isaiah Davis and Braelon Allen.
Jets Are Being Coached Differently Than Before
It was made clear under the previous regime that former head coach Robert Saleh never really spent enough time with the offense (until his final season), instead choosing to delegate those roles to his assistant.
That isn’t happening here under Glenn. The fiery head coach was seen consistently in the offensive huddle throughout Friday’s practice – a sign that he intends to live up to his initial comments of being a head coach on both sides of the ball, and not just one or the other.
He gets to be able to handle that thanks to the hiring of Steve Wilks as defensive coordinator. The former Cardinals head coach was seen all over the field with his squad on Friday to make sure everyone understood the intensity increase that they must all play with now.
After one practice, it’s clear there’s an intentional way of doing things from this staff.
Camp Battles Have Already Begun
There aren’t any major position battles to go through during rookie camp, except for one that has already begun.
The battle of the third-string quarterback.
New York has a returning practice squad candidate, Adrian Martinez, competing with undrafted free agent quarterback Brady Cook, who is out of Missouri. Both had some solid passes during the first 11-on-11 drill. This is a matchup that seems to be a focus for some fans going into the offseason.
