On draft night on Thursday, New York Jets tight end Kenyon Sadiq wasn’t going to suffer the same fate Shedeur Sanders did in the 2025 NFL Draft.
You probably remember the prank call heard ’round the world during the 2025 NFL Draft.
In the midst of what was a legendary draft slide, Sanders received a call he thought was “the call” from a team drafting him.
But as it turned out, it was just a mean prank from the son of Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich.
Sadiq had clearly learned a lesson from the Sanders prank because when he got his call from the New York Jets to tell him he was the No. 16 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, he didn’t believe it at first.
“I was thinking it was a prank call for a second, but no, I appreciate it,” Sadiq told Jets head coach Aaron Glenn.
“No, we’re not pranking you, brother. You’re gonna be a Jet,” Glenn responded with a laugh. “Trust me on that, man. You’ve been a target for us for a while.”
Hey, you can never be too careful in this day and age.
The Jets entered the draft in desperate need of more weapons with a shaky pass-catcher group.
Outside of Garrett Wilson, a three-time 1,000-yard wide receiver, the Jets had a bunch of unproven targets, a list headlined by tight end Mason Taylor and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell.
Sadiq was easily the best tight end in the 2026 NFL Draft class, but he isn’t your average tight end.
The Oregon product is an athletic freak with 4.39 speed, which enables him to line up anywhere on the field.
Because of his athletic profile and versatility, he won’t create a logjam at tight end with Taylor.
Sadiq and Taylor are also great fits for the Jets’ offense because new offensive coordinator Frank Reich loves to utilize multiple tight ends.
During his stints with the then-San Diego Chargers and Philadelphia Eagles as their offensive coordinators from 2014-2017, Reich’s offenses targeted tight ends at the highest rates in the NFL.
So, even though there is now an extra mouth to feed at tight end in New york, there should still be plenty of targets to go around for Taylor and Sadiq.