The New York Jets appear to be set at all three starting wide receiver slots for the 2024 NFL season but may benefit from adding one more talent as a recent scouting report suggested.
On Monday, Bleacher Report’s NFL Scouting Department identified every team’s biggest needs along with their cap space situations and noted that the Jets could use a boost to their receiving unit, alongside their depth charts at safety and defensive tackle (h/t Jon Conahan of Fan Nation’s Jets Country).
Jets linked to former Pro Bowl wide receiver Hunter Renfrow in free agency
Thus, they labeled former Las Vegas Raiders free agent wide receiver Hunter Renfrow as a viable talent for the Jets to acquire to cement their receiving corp for next season, saying:
“Hunter Renfrow would be a good target if the Jets don’t feel [Malachi] Corley is ready for a full-time role in the slot early in the season,” Bleacher Report wrote.
Renfrow was touted as a strong option for the Jets to look at because Corley, New York’s third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, is a “scheme-specific player that fits into a somewhat niche role.”
Renfrow is an accomplished veteran wideout that could give Jets starting quarterback Aaron Rodgers a reliable target in the slot. The California native did only go for 255 receiving yards in 2023 without recording a REC touchdown, but he started a mere three of the 17 games he played.
Nevertheless, his peripherals are encouraging, as he posted a 67.6 percent catch percentage, proving his hands, and went for 10.2 yards per reception, showing his reliability for first-down opportunities.
Is investing in Renfrow worth it with rookie WR Malachi Corley on the roster?
The 5-10 wideout has tapered off from his 2021 Pro Bowl campaign where he went for a career-high 1,038 REC yards and nine REC TDs. However, he would be a great safety net for the Jets to deploy behind Corley should the rookie talent suffer typical rookie woes throughout the 2024 season, or could be a great veteran to take the reigns early before Corley proves himself as their guy on the inside.
Corley led the FBS with 330 receiving yards on screen-pass plays and excelled in the open field with 8.6 receiving yards after the catch. Yet, Renfrow could still benefit the Jets and help the Western Kentucky product come along. With Garrett Wilson and Mike Williams established on the outside, Renfrow would likely veer more toward the inside position.
The Jets have $6.4 million in cap space remaining (Over The Cap). Seeing that Renfrow is coming off of the two-year, $32 million contract extension he signed with the Raiders ahead of the 2022 season following his Pro Bowl year and that his numbers decreased, he could be had within the confines of what the Jets have to work with monetarily.