{"id":286507,"date":"2026-06-06T16:20:32","date_gmt":"2026-06-06T20:20:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=286507"},"modified":"2026-06-06T16:20:32","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T20:20:32","slug":"adonai-mitchell-otas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/06\/06\/adonai-mitchell-otas\/","title":{"rendered":"Adonai Mitchell Shining in OTA&#8217;s is Huge for Now and the Future"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: left;\">The New Jets, on paper, have gotten a lot better on offense throughout this offseason. The rookie additions of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/05\/29\/kenyon-sadiq-injury-update\/\" target=\"_self\">tight end Kenyon Sadiq<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/06\/01\/jets-sign-omar-cooper-jr\/\" target=\"_self\">wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr.<\/a> as well as the addition of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/05\/26\/geno-smith-franchise-record\/\" target=\"_self\">quarterback Geno Smith<\/a>, and the retention of <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/05\/08\/jets-breece-hall-new-contract\/\" target=\"_self\">running back Breece Hall<\/a> were all very important to the success of this group in 2026. Combine this with a <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/05\/22\/garrett-wilson-jets-offseason\/\" target=\"_self\">returning Garrett Wilson<\/a> and things are really looking up for Gang Green. However, there&#8217;s one more piece to this puzzle who gained valuable experience as a starter in 2025 with the Jets and is looking to level up. That player is Adonai Mitchell, and his rise may already be beginning.<\/p>\n<h2>Adonai Mitchell Is Making a Statement in OTAs<\/h2>\n<p class=\"\" style=\"max-width: px\"><smartframe-embed class=\"smartframe_wp_element\" customer-id=\"17b65b9e7d04d0189d37abf8a57b170b\" image-id=\"LBFW5z2BLZHG\" style=\"width: 100%; display: inline-flex; max-width: 5819px; aspect-ratio: 5819\/3879;\" ><\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n<p>The WR hierarchy is pretty much unknown after Garrett Wilson. The battle for WR2 will be between the aforementioned Adonai Mitchell and new face Omar Cooper Jr. Both are talented, showing WR1 upside in college with different skillsets. Mitchell is a great athlete with field-stretching ability and a large frame. Meanwhile, Cooper wins more with technique and is lethal after the catch. Both have valuable qualities.<\/p>\n<p>Focusing more on Mitchell&#8217;s summer thus far, it seems he&#8217;s building up his game very well. He&#8217;s shown great timing and improvement in his route running according to those in attendance. His work in the offseason has also seemingly blossomed into great chemistry with his new QB as well. He also seems to have developed a respect for his new signal caller already, calling him a &#8220;baller&#8221; and the &#8220;alpha of the room&#8221; during a press conference.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Geno Smith hit a leaping Adonai Mitchell at the sideline in 11 on 11. Chemistry growing with those two.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Zack Rosenblatt (@ZackBlatt) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ZackBlatt\/status\/2061859061906149638?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 2, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>This is great news, as it shows Adonai Mitchell&#8217;s commitment to the team and himself getting better. This comes despite pre-draft criticisms of his <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/40105771\/why-colts-adonai-mitchell-character-maturity-2024-nfl-draft\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">preparation, attitude, and perhaps even immaturity<\/a>. It&#8217;s safe to say that those rumors can end now.<\/p>\n<h3>Why Mitchell and Smith Are a Great Pairing<\/h3>\n<p>Mitchell&#8217;s role within the Jets offense is as a serious threat while Garrett Wilson and presumably Omar Cooper Jr. handle the intermediate and short areas of the field. In the 8 games he played for the Jets, he racked up 13 targets of 20+ yards, with only 3 of them being completed. That has a lot to do with poor QB play.<\/p>\n<p>Speaking of QB&#8217;s,\u00a0 his new one just so happens to love to take shots. He only took 47 last year, which was a nightmare season with subpar weapons and blocking, but the numbers were much higher in Seattle. From 2022-2024, he attempted 193 throws of 20+ yards. He attempted at least 60 in each of those seasons. He graded out in the top-10 when it came to 20+ yards in each of these seasons as well per PFF, including being #1 in 2022. In 2025, Jets quarterbacks combined for 43 20+ yard pass attempts. It&#8217;s safe to say that Adonai Mitchell should have ample opportunity to show off his skills in 2026.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Tyrod goes DEEP to AD Mitchell for the 52-yard TD!<\/p>\n<p>ATLvsNYJ on FOX\/FOX One<a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/HkKw7uXVnt\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/HkKw7uXVnt<\/a> <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1Vn37w4nNN\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/1Vn37w4nNN<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; NFL (@NFL) <a  href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/NFL\/status\/1995219374429618347?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">November 30, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3>Why Mitchell Must Step Up in 2026<\/h3>\n<p>The Jets locking up their receiver trio of the future of Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, and Omar Cooper Jr. would be a great boon to the team-building process. The team has <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/05\/01\/darren-mougey-helped-jets-future\/\" target=\"_self\">three first-round selections in 2027<\/a>, with one of them presumably going to a quarterback. If the Jets have their offensive personnel locked down next offseason, they can continue to load up on defense. Another premier edge rusher? A new shutdown cornerback? A dominant defensive tackle? All of those things would be incredibly beneficial to the team. If the process falls this way, and they hit on their quarterback selection, the team could genuinely become a contender by 2028.<\/p>\n<p>Mitchell is still incredibly young as well and could remain with the team for some time. He&#8217;ll turn 24 during the 2026 season and is still under contract for the next two years. After that, it would be likely that the Jets get a deal done with him if he earns one, as he most likely wouldn&#8217;t be going for a WR1 rate. WR2 money may be expensive (see the new <a  href=\"https:\/\/www.espn.com\/nfl\/story\/_\/id\/48966432\/sources-packers-wr-christian-watson-reach-1105m-extension\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Christian Watson contract<\/a>) in Green Bay, but the Jets will hypothetically be paying a rookie QB at the time. On top of that, cap space has also been steadily increasing every offseason. This further supports a long-term deal for Adonai Mitchell if he plays into it.<\/p>\n<p><em>Main Image: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The New Jets, on paper, have gotten a lot better on offense throughout this offseason. The rookie additions of tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. as well as the addition of quarterback Geno Smith, and the retention of running back Breece Hall were all very important to the success of this [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5648,"featured_media":286552,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36,6,6431],"tags":[32427,8994,815,7330,33998],"class_list":["post-286507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-news","category-jets","category-nfl-teams","tag-adonai-mitchell","tag-garrett-wilson","tag-geno-smith","tag-new-york-jets-news","tag-omar-cooper-jr"],"modified_by":"Mike Roberts","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/286507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5648"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=286507"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/286507\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":286562,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/286507\/revisions\/286562"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/286552"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=286507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=286507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=286507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}