Bless Austin joins the Jets with a lofty goal in mind.
The Queens native and former Rutgers cornerback has played just five games in the past two seasons thanks to knee injuries that ended both years with surgeries. The Jets took him in the sixth round of last month’s draft. Some would call it a flier on a player who has been unable to stay on the field.
But Austin is not just looking to get back on the field.
“I want to be the best to every play this game at my position,” Austin said. “Regardless of if I was healthy or not, I was always going to come to this level and have that chip [on my shoulder].”
Some might scoff at Austin aiming that high without even playing a down, but spend a few minutes with him and you can feel his intensity. He has needed that as he recovered from the ACL injuries that cut short his collegiate career.
Before the injuries, he was viewed as a potential second- or third-round pick. But the obvious durability concerns pushed him down the draft board, and the Jets grabbed him on Day 3. He was asked if he believes he was a second-round talent before the injuries.
“I feel like I’m better than that, to be honest with you,” Austin said. “That’s just me and the expectations I set for myself.”
Austin is still in the rehabilitation process for his knee, and it is unclear when he will actually be able to practice and play for the Jets. General manager Mike Maccagnan said it is possible Austin will begin the season on the physically unable to perform list.
Austin says he is not looking too far into the future and is focused on doing what the training staff tells him to do. Whether he should have been picked higher than the sixth round does not matter now.
“I’m not even worried about that, to be honest with you,” Austin said. “At the end of the day, I’m here. That’s what matters. Nobody cares what round you went in when you get to this level. Now that I’m here, I’m trying to prove myself.”
Austin was just hoping for a chance with an NFL team. Now, he has one.
“I just needed to get my foot in the door, honestly,” he said. “I was able to do so, so now I’m here, and now it’s time to stay here and be the best to ever do it.”
As a sophomore at Rutgers, Austin first caught the attention of scouts. He had 14 pass breakups that year with one interception, one sack and 41 tackles. Then he suffered the injuries in his junior and senior seasons that had NFL teams questioning if he could return to the player they saw in 2017.
“I’m not trying to get back to the player that I was. I’m trying to be better than that,” Austin said. “I just feel like as long as I do whatever the staff tells me to do and I take the coaching the way I should and I will, then I should be able to do that without a problem.”
Austin said he never doubted he would make it to the NFL, even after the injuries. Now, he has to have the patience to wait for his chance to get on the field.
“It’s been tough, but nothing I can’t handle,” Austin said of not being able to play. “I persevered through this. For me to get this far and then start to stress over what if I don’t get on the field and things like that, it wouldn’t make sense. I’m just taking it day by day.”
