Jets rookie D'Angelo Ponds should put fast pressure on Jarvis Brownlee

When the New York Jets acquired cornerback Jarvis Brownlee from the Tennessee Titans midseason last year, he immediately played a versatile inside-outside role as needed. Brownlee played exclusively outside for the Titans despite being undersized. The Jets got him and occasionally made him a nickel corner.

Heading into the 2026 season, Brownlee's first full campaign with the Jets, he's expected to play nickel almost on an exclusive basis. After an offseason of change, the Jets now have Nahshon Wright at outside cornerback in addition to Brandon Stephens and Azareye'h Thomas.

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That doesn't mean Brownlee can sleepwalk into the every-down nickel role. The Jets also drafted D'Angelo Ponds in the second round. Head coach Aaron Glenn recently confirmed at OTAs that Ponds will initially play nickel, despite being versatile.

"We'll start him [Ponds] out at nickel, see how he operates and then we'll put him outside and see how he operates there," Glenn responded to a question about Ponds' primary position at OTAs.

Ponds is a highly instinctual cornerback who plays the position with high football IQ. That makes him an excellent fit to thrive as a nickel NFL defender. The role currently belongs to Brownlee, but expect Ponds to apply pressure throughout OTAs and training camp.

This article originally appeared on Jets Wire: Jets rookie D'Angelo Ponds should put fast pressure on Jarvis Brownlee