The New York Jets have the No. 2 overall pick in this draft, and typically, for a quarterback-needy team, you could pencil in a quarterback being selected there.

Well, not in the 2026 NFL draft, Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza will likely be selected by the Las Vegas Raiders with the first overall pick, and for the Jets, it makes the second pick a hard decision.

​Geno Smith is the likely starter for the 2026 season, and that’s clearly not the long-term answer. New York has done a fantastic job filling in its offensive line, so that’s not an option either. Defense is the next answer, edge rusher specifically.

​General manager Darren Mougey faces a fascinating decision. Go with the proven edge rusher in Texas Tech’s David Bailey or the versatile linebacker/edge rusher in Ohio State’s Arvell Reese.

Where Does Jets Still Lack Elite Talent?

Let Tony do the scouting, you just make the pick.

Pick your positions. Get Tony’s top 5:

QB

RB

FB

WR

TE

C

CB

DE

DT

G

ILB

OLB

P

PK

S

T

View Tony’s Picks

It’s been a heavy topic of discussion within draft media throughout this process, but here today, we’ll break down the decision to shed light on why both, realistically, can make sense.

​Background on the two prospects​

When introducing two players, you have to set the stage, and you certainly have to for these two talented players. Bailey was a four-star recruit coming out of high school and committed to Stanford in the 2021 recruiting class.

He spent three seasons with the Cardinals, totaling 91 pressures, 15 sacks, and 11 quarterback hits. Then, after the 2024 season, Texas Tech came calling, and he transferred.

He took over college football, having 81 total pressures, 14.5 sacks (tied for first in the FBS) and 23 quarterback hits. The stat line earned him All-American honors and a certain type of excitement leading into the NFL combine – he didn’t disappoint.

​

Bailey came in at 6-foot-4, 251 pounds and measured 33 ¾ arm length with 10 ¼ hands at the combine. He ran a 4.5 40 with a 1.62 10-yard split and showcased the elite athlete he is on the field.

​Reese was also a four-star recruit out of high school and committed to Ohio State as part of the 2023 recruiting class.

He has a very different career from Bailey’s, who saw on-field action for four seasons of college football. Reese has only seen action in two seasons.

He played in 2024 as a true sophomore, but totaled just 309 snaps throughout that season – 19 of those were pass rush snaps. In 2025, as a true junior, Reese quickly shone. 

Against Texas, he was all over the field, showcasing his rare athletic abilities, putting the NFL world on notice. In 651 snaps, he totaled 36 tackles, 34 run stops, 27 quarterback pressures and eight sacks.

He was a versatile and explosive weapon, but one hard to project for the NFL Draft – until he worked out at the combine.

He came in at 6-foot-4, 241 pounds and measured in with 32 ½ arms and a 9 ½ hand size. His workout was otherworldly, with his on-field drills looking completely different from the rest of the group.

Fluid, smooth and explosive are words that just perfectly describe what he did on the field. He ran a 4.46 40, with a 1.58 10-yard split. The only question that remains for Reese isn’t about his athletic profile, but where he’ll play in the NFL.

​How they fit into the Jets

​Now that the backgrounds are set, how do each of these prospects fit into the New York Jets?

​First off, head coach Aaron Glenn will be calling plays and shifting to a 3-4 defense from the 4-3 the team ran last year. The shift will need an athletic edge who can also drop back off into coverage and be aggressive enough to fill in the run.

New York brought in interior defensive line help in T’Vondre Sweat and David Onyemata, and already has players like Harrison Phillips and Will McDonald IV who will be the main players on the interior of the 3-4 defense.

​

The holes lie on the outside. The team signed Joseph Ossai in free agency, and he fills one side, but the other remains open in terms of the edge rusher position.

The Argument for David Bailey

Bailey thrives on being that wide 9 rusher who screams up the field with his explosive first step and more finesse-type pass rush profile. He can bend around the edge, has a fun spin move and most importantly, just wins with pure strength through a tackle.

The only problem is his size. He doesn’t have the elite size you’d usually see from a top-5 pick, being 251 pounds, ranking in the ninth percentile for edge rushers.

​

Still, for the Jets, Bailey totaled 14.5 sacks. He’s shown he can win in multiple ways off the edge, and it’s clear he has a pass rush plan in front of him when he lines up. A big knock on him is his ability to stop the run, which, in a 3-4, you’d better hope your edge rusher can do.

But later on in the Texas Tech season, Bailey showed he could do that.

Watching the Oregon tape in the playoffs, he was stellar in that regard.

Is he always perfect? No, but he can do it.

​Another note is that he had more run stops, 40, which was more than the other top defensive prospects in this year’s draft.

​The Argument for Arvell Reese

Reese is the definition of versatile. The main discussion around him is where he’ll play in the NFL. Is it edge rusher or off-ball linebacker?

Honestly, the answer could be both because that’s exactly what Ohio State did.

Matt Patricia, the Buckeyes’ defensive coordinator, used Reese in the perfect situation throughout the 2025 season. Lined him up as an off-ball linebacker in even fronts, but when he wanted to shift into those heavy odd fronts, he put him as a stand-up edge.

​The question is, will the Jets use him like that in the NFL? Because if they were to just play him as a true off-ball linebacker, it’s hard to justify taking a linebacker with the second overall pick.

From a financial standpoint, linebackers are one of the lowest-paid positions in the NFL.​

If he was just used as an edge rusher, there’s a smaller sample size; in 651 snaps, he rushed the passer in only 119 of those, totaling 27 total pressures, six quarterback hits, and eight sacks. He’d have a pass-rush win rate of 22 percent, which ranks him above Bailey, who has a win rate of 21.3.  

​Many throughout this draft cycle have compared Reese to Micah Parsons, who, quite frankly, was a far more developed edge rusher coming out of Penn State.

Reese’s arm length ranks in the 16th percentile among edge rushers, but is almost a whole inch longer than Parsons, who came in at 31 ½ through his draft process.

​It’ll take time for Reese to become a full-time edge in the NFL, but he has the skillset. He can convert speed to power, which is a fantastic base to start with as an edge rusher.

Mix that with the athletic traits, and you start to understand why he’s a top prospect in this draft class.

​Who’s the better fit?

​Looking at the scheme of the Jets and the overall profiles of both the prospects, Reese stands out as the pick for the Jets. With the 3-4 scheme, Glenn needs a chess piece for his defense that can play and be anywhere on the field.

Reese can start out playing both off-ball and edge in the NFL, but as he gets into an NFL weight room and training program, he can slowly develop a full pass-rush plan and the ability to get after the quarterback.

​It’s still Mougey’s decision to make on April 23rd, but Reese would be the card I’d turn in, come April.