The Jets used their second-round draft decide on D’Angelo Ponds, a nationwide champion who drew immediate comparisons to Aaron Glenn, when he was a player in the late Nineteen Nineties.
They signed free agent Nahshon Wright, who led the NFL with eight particular person takeaways last season and earned a Pro Bowl nod.
But the cornerback they were trying for was already in the constructing.
While Ponds has seen restricted snaps after struggling a calf pressure, and Wright has been inactive for the previous three video games, second-year cornerback Azareye’h Thomas has been a key element for a protection that ranks fourth in the NFL in passing yards allowed per sport (175), third in yards per try (6.1) and fifth in passing first downs per sport (9.6).
“He’s able to go up and play man coverage and play press man coverage, but also he has the intelligence to be able to go out there and play zone,” said Glenn, now the Jets coach. “He understands what the landmarks are. He understands where his help is. And man, the more reps that he gets, the better and better he’s getting. I like exactly where he’s at. He’s a big man that can run. And again, he’s intelligent enough to be able to play man and zone.”
New York Jets cornerback Azareye’h Thomas (1) reacts during an NFL soccer sport against the Green Bay Packers in East Rutherford, N.J., Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. AP Photo/Adam Hunger
Thomas, 22, broke up two passes in Sunday’s win over Cleveland — giving him 5 through 5 video games — while permitting just one reception for 8 yards. The former third-round decide ranks seventh in yards allowed per snap and sixth in yards per goal among outside corners with at least 100 protection snaps this season, according to the team.
The 6-foot-1 cornerback has also produced Pro Football Focus’ sixth-best protection grade and is tied for eleventh in passes defended, while stopping any completions longer than 20 yards.
“Year 1, you got all these thoughts going through your brain and you try to do too much and you play a little slower,” Thomas said Thursday. “Last 12 months I was hesitating, not actually trusting my movie research, making the sport greater than what it is. This 12 months I’m just trusting my convictions on the discipline. It’s something you gotta domesticate. When you’re a rookie, you don’t need to make errors. Year 2, I’m getting a lot more comfy.
“It’s football. Trust what you see and live with the outcome. Trust what I see and hit it.”
Thomas appeared in 12 video games last season, making 5 begins following the commerce of Sauce Gardner. In his closing six video games as a rookie, Thomas recorded six go breakups and 21 tackles before struggling a season-ending shoulder damage, which pressured him to bear surgical procedure for the first time.
After the season, Thomas ditched the No. 23 in favor of No. 1, which was most not too long ago held by the one-time Jets franchise cornerback.
“Sauce left, and I didn’t want to hop on it [right] away,” Thomas said. “I wanted some time to think on it. I talked to my family and they said, ‘Don’t be afraid to do it. If you feel like you want the number, get it.’ ”
No regrets. No concern. No mercy.
“We ain’t out there being nice,” Thomas said. “We out there playing grimy and gritty, how [Glenn] wants us to play. … You’re gonna always face someone who is better than you or faster than you, but the difference is who wants it more.”
Source hyperlink
