Rolling with the Rookie: David Bailey, EDGE, Jets

With off-season moves, such as free agency and the draft, comple, rosters are beginning to take shape. It’s time to examine which IDP rookies could make an immediate impact for their respective NFL teams. Which teams are going to jump-start the clock and roll with rookies? One team that will be starting an IDP rookie is the New York Jets, with EDGE David Bailey.

Rewind to the Past

The path to the NFL for Jets rookie David Bailey began at Stanford, where he started as a freshman. In his three seasons with Stanford, he was one of their better pass rushers. Bailey would play in 32 games, with totals of 111 tackles, 105 solo stops, 22½ TFLs, 14½ sacks, seven forced fumbles, and one PBU. His junior season would be his best in a Cardinal uniform, where he led the team in TFLs (8), QB hurries (8), sacks (7), and forced fumbles (5), while adding 31 tackles. After three seasons at Stanford, Bailey would enter the transfer portal and transfer to Texas Tech to play for the Red Raiders. The move to Texas Tech proved to be the right decision.

In his lone season with the Red Raiders, Bailey became one of the nation’s top pass rushers. He would be named to the All-American team, a finalist for the Lombardi Trophy, and a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award. He played and started in all 14 games, while setting career highs in total tackles (52), solo stops (32), TFLs 19½, sacks (14½), PBUs (3), and adding three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery. Bailey’s TFL and sack totals led the NCAA in 2025. He would finish his collegiate career with 46 games played, 163 total tackles (3.54 per game), 105 solo tackles, 64.4% solo rate, 42 TFLs, 29 sacks, 10 forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and four PBUs.

Back to the Future

The New York Jets traded away their top pass rusher, Jermaine Johnson, to the Tennessee Titans in return for DT T’Vondre Sweat. Johnson was not an HC Aaron Glenn draft pick, and that move left a big opening that needed to be filled. With that glaring need, the Jets selected Bailey with the number two overall pick in the 2026 NFL draft. That type of investment in a player who is filling a major need almost always makes them an automatic starter. With that, there will be a lot of high expectations for Bailey, even though he is a rookie. There is no better way to learn than on-the-job training, and the Jets are banking on Bailey being a quick learner who can make an immediate impact.

While the expectations for Bailey are high, he’s more than capable of handling it. Bailey is a natural pass rusher with a nice blend of explosiveness and instincts. He has good bend, lean, and quickness, which allows him to make plays behind the line of scrimmage routinely. He’s a little smallish (6’3”/251 lbs) for an EDGE, and teams will run at him to try to exploit that part of his game. With that, the Jets will make that a point of improvement and learning for Bailey. He runs well and pushes plays wide, so outside help will be important if he can’t get there. He leaves offensive tackles with little room for error with his explosiveness and burst. No prospect is perfect, but Glenn and the Jets staff will have him ready for Week 1.

Fantasy Breakdown

Bailey, being the first defensive rookie selected in this year's NFL draft, puts a lot of eyes and expectations on him, and when you're drafted #2 overall, it’s warranted. As I mentioned earlier, when a team drafts a player this high, they are expecting them to be a day-one starter. Bailey should step into the starting LOLB role opened by the Jermaine Johnson trade and challenge to lead the team in sacks. Last season, it was Will McDonald who led the team in sacks (8). The Jets expect and need Bailey to be the star pass rusher, and that means he needs to hit double-digit sack totals, which is doable. The opportunity for Bailey to hit that mark is there, as all three AFC East opponents finished in the Top 16 last season in team sacks allowed.

Bailey is one of the biggest IDP names in this year’s rookie class and rightfully so. He is one of, if not the top, pass rusher in this class and landed in a great situation. In fantasy, drafting pass rushers early can be tricky, and a lot of it depends on your league's scoring and roster size. If you need a pass rusher and are looking to take Bailey in your rookie drafts, then early results suggest you should expect to spend a late 1st/early 2nd round pick on him. It’s a weak offensive class, and that is driving the price up on this year's IDP rookies. Bailey landed in a great situation with the Jets and will be one of the first IDP rookies off the board in rookie drafts, so plan accordingly.

All stats provided by Pro Football Reference

Thanks for reading my article. I am a member of the FSWA (Fantasy Sports Writers of America). Follow me on Twitter at @HollywoodTitan, on Facebook on my IDPNation page, on Reddit in the fantasy football IDP sub — I’m user KingTitan1 — and tune in each week and listen to IDP Nation and Devy IDP Grind, the podcasts that I co-host, on several different platforms. Feel free to email or dm me with any questions, as I’m always glad to help fellow IDPers. #IDPNation #IDP #IDPDevy