It’s often said to never judge a book by its cover. Laveranues Coles is a strong proponent of that classic line — at least these days.

The New York Jets legend, who ranks fifth in franchise history with 5,941 receiving yards and fourth with 459 receptions, recently revealed a nostalgic tidbit involving Wayne Chrebet.

The moment happened earlier this week on the debut episode of Wide Open with Wayne Chrebet and Laveranues Coles:

“Yeah, I tell everybody all the time; you never judge a book by its cover,” Coles started. “I walked in that locker room, I looked over, and I saw his name tag. I looked at Wayne, and I said, ‘Man, that’s Wayne Chrebet? That’s Wayne? Ok.'”

The Bill Parcells-led Jets front office drafted Coles in the third round of the 2000 NFL draft. Several stories have surfaced over the years regarding Coles’s draft process.

The one thing that nobody refutes is how underdrafted he turned out to be. New York picked up an outright gem of a wide receiver in 2000 — just two rounds after selecting four players in the first round (Shaun Ellis, John Abraham, Chad Pennington, and Anthony Becht).

Remember, 2000 was the first season without Keyshawn Johnson. Parcells and company traded him to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers the previous season, so who would play alongside Chrebet was a major question mark heading into Al Groh’s first season as head coach.

In Coles’s mind, he thought he had the goods to make it happen, and he wasn’t shy about telling his people.

“I called my mom, and I said, ‘Mama, I’ll be starting in a week,'” Coles revealed. “Boy, was I wrong. [Wayne is] the toughest son of a gun I’ve ever played with and loved every minute of him teaching me how to be a pro. So, I love you, brother.”

After starting three games in his rookie year, with Dedric Ward holding down WR2, Coles established himself. In 2001 — Herm Edwards’s first season — he finished with 868 yards and 7 touchdowns on 59 receptions.

From that point forward, Laveranues Coles ranked among the most respected wideouts in the NFL, enjoying two stints (nearly three) with the Jets (2000-02, 2005-08).

For more of Coles and Chrebet together, check out the full live Wide Open episode below, and make sure to check it out each Monday night at 7:00 p.m. ET: