The NFL Draft is behind us, but the dust is still settling. In the weeks that follow every NFL Draft there are always leaks and little pieces of information that emerge as teams and media process what just happened. One of the most interesting pieces of information that's come out had to do with the New York Jets selection of wide receiver Malachi Corley from Western Kentucky.
Jeremy Fowler of ESPN revealed that the Jets had actually been looking to trade up for Corley as early as pick 40 overall, but were somehow able to draft him at pick 65. The consensus mock draft data heading into the 2024 NFL Draft had Corley all over the place, but he was quite often considered a second round prospect. After the team chose not to invest in receiver or tight end in round one, they had to grab another playmaker for Aaron Rodgers in round three.
But why was he available for nearly a half round discount below where the Jets were originally considering him? And what makes him so special?
Malachi Corley is the YAC king
There wasn't a single wide receiver in the 2024 NFL Draft class that averaged more yards after the catch than Malachi Corley. He seriously averaged nearly nine yards after the catch last season for Western Kentucky. At 5'11", 215 pounds he's built like a running back and was an absolute bully with the ball in his hands. If you want to see a small sample how physically dominant and quick he is after the catch just watch his receptions from the Louisiana Tech game last season in the post below.
Every catch from Malachi Corley’s 3 TD game vs Louisiana Tech earlier this year. pic.twitter.com/Kpfci2P5sR
— ImBearingDown (@ImBearingDown) April 4, 2024
It didn't matter if defenders were a step behind him due to his quickness or just in his way, Corley would find a way to add extra yards for his offense. He may need to refine his route running to more naturally separate in the NFL, but his skill set is quite unique.
But why weren't more teams trying to draft him earlier? The long story short is that many of the wide receiver needy teams had already taken a receiver early on. In fact 10 teams had already selected a wide receiver by pick 37 (an NFL Draft record). And although Corley was quite clearly one of the best players remaining after those pass catchers were off the board, Jets general manager Joe Douglas understood he could wait based on teams with remaining need at the position.
That decision to wait on Corley allowed the Jets to grab him at a huge discount by simply understanding the roster dynamics of other teams picking ahead of them. Excellent work.
Malachi Corley's fit with the Jets
Now that Corley is with the Jets, already making his presence known at Rookie Minicamp this past week and gelling with Aaron Rodgers, he looks like the team's obvious go-to slot wide receiver. Corley played over 85% of his snaps in the slot for Western Kentucky last season and the Jets have a huge need there.
Garrett Wilson and new free agent signing Mike Williams can anchor the outside of the offense. Corley will eat up all the quick hitting underneath targets adding extra yards left and right. Imagine the role that Randall Cobb played with Aaron Rodgers early on in his career with the Green Bay Packers. That's the perfect role and fit for Corley in New York.
And if you want to watch some Malachi Corley highlights to see how he could immediately make an impact on the Jets you can check out the video below!
