New York Jets 2017 Rookie profile: ArDarius Stewart
Taking a closer look at New York Jets third-round selection, wide receiver ArDarius Stewart.
It’s no secret that the New York Jets enter the 2017 season with a lot of question marks. The biggest, of course, is at quarterback — but there are countless others. It’s a young roster all over the place. So, how are they going to perform?
Veterans like Nick Mangold, Darrelle Revis, and Brandon Marshall are out the door, and in their place is an unproven group of players. The offensive line will have at least three new starters. The defensive backfield has no veteran leadership. There is a reason why the team isn’t expect to win very many games.
But there is a position that fans are excited about. The wide receiver position boasts some dynamic young talent that showed promise in 2016. Led by Quincy Enunwa, Robby Anderson, Charone Peake, and Jalin Marshall, this group is young and prepared to grow with Christian Hackenberg or whoever else becomes the quarterback. So many fans were surprised when the Jets used both their third- and fourth-round picks on wide receivers.
Today, we are going to look at one of those picks, third round selection ArDarius Stewart out of Alabama. With players like Julio Jones and Amari Cooper calling Alabama their alma mater, coach Nick Saban has had a strong history of successful NFL wide receivers. How will Stewart fare?
Let’s look at Stewart’s statistics from his with the Crimson Tide (via Sports Reference):
They aren’t the numbers of a guy like Cooper, but they are solid. Eight touchdowns from a rookie wide receiver is certainly something the Jets would sign up for. Now onto the measurables for Stewart:
Measurables (Per NFL.com Draft Profile)
Height: 5-11
Weight: 204 pounds
Arm Length: 32.5 inches
Hand: 9 3/8 inches
At the Combine, Stewart ran the 40-yard dash in 4.49 seconds, which is fast, but not necessarily elite. But we all know that straight-line speed is not all that matters. It’s about how it translates onto the football field.
Here are some notes from his scouting profile:
"Strengths: Brings a physical play demeanor to the field at all times. Has takeoff to push cornerbacks into an aggressive backpedal. Karate fighting hands ward off jams and redirect attempts inside his route. Varies route speed to create uneasiness in defender. Sells route fakes with sharp head turns that tilt cornerbacks.Weaknesses: Burly through the hips and doesn’t have the build of the typical receiver. Saw 70 percent of his yardage gained come after the catch. Benefited from screens, pop passes and reverses. Routes could use more sharpness at his break points."
Now, as the legendary Warner Wolf used to say, let’s go to the videotape!
You have to love a guy that will sell out as a blocker.
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At approximately 2:08 on this tape, Stewart absolutely levels somebody. In the NFL, receivers need to be physical, and not just when breaking pass routes down the field. They must block. Stewart isn’t perfect as he will take coaching up, but he gives it his all, which is huge.
ArDarius Stewart has skills that translate into the NFL. Most appealing is the fact that he can use his hands when getting pressed. There isn’t a lot of press coverage played in college, and when it is seen, receivers don’t typically know what to do about it. Stewart does.
To varying degrees of effectiveness, he can use his hands on a defender as they go down the field. He can be pushed off of his spot. Watch the first long play on that tape. He is pushed out of bounds. Obviously, that won’t work in the pros.
Here is some more tape:
Stewart may compete for time as a returner, which would be a nice added dimension. But, there is a common thread in these two videos we haven’t discussed yet. He is not a very polished route runner.
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Right at the top of this second tape it is clear. He runs a quick slant and it simply isn’t crisp. The cut isn’t sharp, it is more rounded. That will kill the timing when running the play in the NFL. In general, he isn’t a great route runner at this point, especially at the intermediate level. He finds softs spots in the defense to catch passes.
He appears at his best running the jet sweep, as well as those quick bubble screens. That’s not an indictment of Stewart, it’s just an observation. He isn’t the receiver that most of us are used to seeing in a Jets uniform. He won’t do most of his work outside the numbers. He is more of a guy that flashes in these creative “splash” type plays.
Next: Grading every Jets 2017 draft pick
Joe Caporoso and Dalbin Osorio said it best on their most recent Turn on the Jets podcast when they said the Jets will have to manufacture touches for Stewart. Again, that isn’t a bad thing necessarily, it just is what it is. New offensive coordinator John Morton is a creative guy, so it will be interesting to watch what type of role he carves out for Stewart.