The Jets signed a tight end Tyler Conklin signed a three-year contract prior to the 2022 season and has caught over 50 passes as a starting tight end in each of the past three seasons. However, that deal is now coming to an end, leaving the Jets to decide whether to try to keep him on the roster.
So should the Jets bring Conklin back?
Why Conklin should be back
Conklin has been a reliable performer for the Jets over the past three seasons. He only missed one game, and that was a season-ending game this year when his wife went into labor. That consistency has been valuable for a team that hasn’t had much depth at the position this season and has been forced to make several offensive changes in recent years.
His hands are also reliable, as he dropped just one pass this season and just seven total for 170 goals in his three seasons with the team.
Conklin prides himself on being an all-around tight end, as at 6-foot-2 and 248 pounds, he has the right size to line up in the line or run routes and produce from the slot.
Despite falling short of his stated goal of making the Pro Bowl for the first time in 2024, Conklin has established himself as a starter-level player over the past four seasons after a slow start to his career in Minnesota.
If the Jets let him go, they won’t have much left at the tight end position, which would create a hole. They were probably hoping for the 2022 third-round pick Jeremy Ruckert and 2023 seventh-round pick Zack Kuntz would have proven themselves worthy of a larger role by now, but that wasn’t the case for any of them.
Why Conklin shouldn’t be back
Although Conklin was a reliable contributor in 2024, his production has been inconsistent in the aftermath Todd Downing took over the management of the game. Over the next eight games, he had just 136 yards on 19 catches. While he had a few productive games down the stretch, much of that production fell into the trash.
Although Conklin prides himself on being able to line up anywhere, his blocking has typically been inconsistent. He’s been used less and less in pass protection in recent seasons, suggesting he isn’t really trusted in that role, and his run-blocking numbers have been poor but shown no signs of improvement, according to analytics sites like Pro Football Focus.
Conklin isn’t a dynamic, big threat either. He doesn’t break tackles and averaged just 8.8 yards per catch in 2024, the lowest number he recorded since 2019. Although he caught four touchdown passes, a career-best, he has not typically been a major red zone threat in his career, with just seven touchdowns over the past six seasons.
The claim that he is an up-and-coming player with Pro Bowl aspirations hasn’t really translated into improvements in performance or consistency. So with Conklin approaching his 30th birthday, he appears to be a player with limited potential.
Verdict
Conklin is a consistent presence and will no doubt land someone on an entry-level deal in the offseason and play an important role for him in 2025 and beyond. Whether this is the right move for the Jets at this point is questionable.
Unless he is seen as an ideal plan for the new coaching staff and the Jets can’t sign him to a contract that doesn’t exceed his current $7 million per year deal, this seems like a situation where the Jets will give him This will allow him to hit the open market and strive to become younger and more dynamic at the tight end position.