The Jets have gotten zero production from the tight end position this year, so it looks like they've decided to beef things up by adding a former second-round pick.
The team announced on Monday that they've claimed Austin Seferian-Jenkins off of waivers. The Jets should be a good match for ASJ because they both had rough weekends. Seferian-Jenkins was cut by the Buccaneers on Friday in a move that came shortly after he was charged with a DUI in Florida.
The DUI arrest was the second one for Seferian-Jenkins since 2013.
The arrest in Florida was the last straw for Bucs coach Dirk Koetter, who clearly became annoyed with ASJ's attitude over the summer. Back in August, things got so bad that Seferian-Jenkins was actually kicked out of practice by Koetter.
The tight end had been in Tampa Bay since 2014, when the Buccaneers made him the 38th overall pick in the NFL Draft.
During his time in Tampa, ASJ played in a total of 18 games and caught 45 passes for 603 yards and seven touchdowns.
Before being cut by the Bucs, Seferian-Jenkins had tallied three catches for 44 yards and a touchdown in 2016. Although that might not sound like a lot of production, those numbers are way higher than what any Jets tight end has produced this season. Jets tight ends have zero catches through three games, making New York the only NFL team that hasn't produced a tight end reception.
Seferian-Jenkins is 6-foot-6, which means he'll be a big target for Jets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, and if you watched Fitzpatrick on Sunday (six interceptions), then you know that a big target is exactly what he needs right now.
To make room for Seferian-Jenkins on the roster, the Jets released linebacker Julian Stanford.