Jets rookie Arian Smith puts the focus on his history of drops — with a plan for how to stop them

New York Times

08-08-2025

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Arian Smith's mind used to wander at the worst times. He'd step on the football field with the confidence that he could outrun anyone. But then the ball would be in the air, closing in on him, closer and closer. And then he'd start thinking about things other than catching it, like what he would do after had his hands on it. His focus was lost — and soon so was the catch, the ball dropping to the ground, incomplete.
Advertisement
It's a sequence of events that, he knows, happened a little too often during his final season at Georgia. But when it did happen, he wouldn't hear the frustration from the crowd — the boos (when they came) — only the disapproving sounds in his own mind. The drops were never for a lack of skill, he says. His hands aren't the problem.
'Thinking about the wrong things, worried about stuff I can't control instead of controlling what I can, which is catching the ball,' he said.
Smith has gotten better over time at ignoring that noise — inside and outside his head — when he steps between the white lines. But when he steps off the field, he actually likes to let that noise reach his ears. It fuels him, and in a way it forces him to confront his truth: Nobody can hurt me, not with words, not like I can. In college, Smith familiarized himself with the unbearable weight of self-doubt, the dark feeling of bring enveloped by negative thoughts. Nobody is harder on Arian Smith than Arian Smith.
'I've been so low to the point where nothing affects you,' Smith said. 'You don't get too high, you don't get too low. Nothing bothers you. No person can cuss at me or get me upset other than myself.'
The Jets saw something in Smith that others didn't. They believe he is a receiver who has the potential to be much more than just a track star (which he was in college and high school, thriving in the 100-meter dash). During the pre-draft process, the Jets learned about moments in his senior season when he'd drop a pass he shouldn't have dropped, but then he'd come right back and make a clutch play to help key a Georgia win. Example: the first half of the Bulldogs' second game against Texas last year, the SEC championship, in which he had two critical drops but also made an important catch, converted a fake punt, made an open-field tackle on special teams and recovered a fumble. His Georgia teammates appreciated how he'd come up big when it mattered most, often overcoming miscues — like the 23-yard catch he had late in the first game against Texas, which set up a touchdown to put the game away. Or a similar 34-yard catch late in a game against Florida to help set up another win. He led Georgia with 817 receiving yards as a senior and averaged more than 20 yards per catch in his career.
Advertisement
So far in Jets camp, the staff's belief in Smith's potential to overcome his issues with drops has paid dividends. In a wide receiver room with a lot of questions, Smith has stood out, making plays against starters and backups, using his track speed — he ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine and believes he can run it much faster than that — to sail past NFL-caliber cornerbacks.
When Smith first joined the Jets in the spring, and into the beginning of training camp, his mind was racing as fast as his feet as he tried to learn the plays, the formations, the shifts, the terminology, the routes — and to remember all of it without thinking about it too much when he hit the practice field. Offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand called out the 'rookie moments,' when Smith was 'buffering a little bit as he's running routes' in June. And there were moments early in training camp when Smith would appear to be running so fast that he'd outrun his route, miss his mark, and so the pass would land behind him. Those moments became more infrequent, as Smith started making plays and building his confidence. He was helped along by a coaching staff that has used creative methods to build him up — to help his focus, the biggest issue he had on last year's 10 drops at Georgia, the most in the country.
Every day after practice, Smith first hits the JUGs machine, lifts weights, then he turns to science. Smith will wear 'strobe goggles' to work on his focus as he attempts to catch passes. The lighting on the goggles flicker, switching between clear and opaque and in the process removing visuals from Smith's eyesight and thus forcing him to process things in the moment faster, and to focus on the one thing he needs to focus on: catching the ball. The idea is to train the brain to ignore outside stimuli — and to laser in on the things that do.
'When you put them on, they, like, mess up your vision,' Smith said. 'Well, maybe not mess up your vision but it makes it harder to see. It messes up your focus. So if I'm looking at something, it makes it hard to focus on it. It messes with my eyes, it gives me a distraction. I feel like it helps.'
There are other methods Smith has learned since he joined the Jets organization. One: He lays on his back and is given a ball with letters on it and as he tosses the ball in the air he is supposed to call out the letters he sees and use his eyes to 'stretch my peripherals', he said.
Advertisement
'It makes it fun,' Smith said. 'It makes you want to do it. It doesn't get monotonous. It's not something I have to do, it's something I get to do.'
All of that has served him well, in camp at least. Smith is expected to play significant snaps in Saturday's preseason opener against the Packers — his first real test against an NFL opponent. His mom and stepdad will be in the crowd, and he wants to make an impact. 'I don't want to sit here and tell you when I get to the game everything is going to go perfect,' Smith said, 'but I feel like there's been improvement on me catching the ball.'
The Jets needs someone to step up and make life easier on Garrett Wilson, the undisputed star of the offense. If the early signs of training camp hold true, that player might be a rookie.
Smith's breakout day of training camp came on Aug. 1. On one play, he burned star cornerback Sauce Gardner in a one-on-one matchup, and quarterback Justin Fields connected with him, in stride, for a long touchdown. Later in that practice, Smith's release off the line was snap quick, allowing him to seamlessly get by rookie cornerback Azareye'h Thomas to the outside; Tyrod Taylor connected with him for a 25-yard touchdown. A few days later, Smith made an impressive sliding touchdown catch in the back of the end zone on pass from Brady Cook.
'The guy that can't catch?' Glenn said after that Aug. 1 practice, smirking. 'Isn't that what you guys said? I thought he did a really good job, and he's continued to improve. He's not where he needs to be, but he's doing a really good job for us.'
When the Jets drafted Smith in the fourth round in April, he might as well have had 'Can't Catch' tattooed across his forehead. It's the first thing that comes up in most of his scouting reports, those 10 drops last year. Some draft analysts called the selection a reach. Most of the questions at his first press conference were about it — same for the press conferences since. It doesn't bother him, not really. In a way, he appreciates it.
'I don't hear anything when I'm out there,' Smith said. 'All I hear is the call, the set hut and the whistle blow. But I remember it before I get on the field. I think about what they say about me when I get on the field. I think about what kind of player they think I am or say I am.'
Advertisement
Georgia teammates used to rave about Smith's calm on the sideline during games — his mood was unchanged, whether he'd just made a huge play or missed a big one.
'His mood never changes on the sideline,' offensive lineman Tate Rutledge said last year. 'He's never in a bad mood. Just the way he handles himself, the way he keeps control and keeps going out there and making plays.'
How does he stay calm in those moments?
Smith started to answer that question, eyes locked with the reporter asking it. He started talking about how he treats every practice like it's a game, locking in in such a way so that, when the big moments come, they don't feel so big. Then, he stopped mid-sentence and shouted. She passed out! She passed out!
In the distance, a Jets employee had fainted. Smith saw it happen. Once paramedics arrived, Smith returned to his train of thought, as if he'd never stopped talking in the first place.
'I always feel like I have something to prove,' Smith said. 'No matter if I do something good or do something bad, the other day the way I played, I'm happy about it. I think it's good for the offense, but in my head I just feel like I'm supposed to do that. I don't get too high or too low. That's just me. I've been through so much – it's muscle memory. I've just been doing it so long, been hearing it for so long, after a while it just becomes you.'
The 'you' that Smith wants to become is more than just a burner. Jets coaches see it, and they've deployed him as such in camp — he's caught passes on just about every part of the route tree. They move him around the formation and they've given him a role on special teams. Glenn has applauded his willingness as a blocker too. He welcomes all of it. Including the doubt.
'I want to do it the right way,' Smith said. 'I want to be a whole receiver. I can catch it on a slant, I can run for 50, I can catch a deep ball for 50, I can block somebody and spring a run for 50, I can get a return for 50. I want to be somebody that works hard and comes off as one of those people who lays it all out there on the line. A the end of the day, I want to be a player that's respected.'
Advertisement
He paused.
'I'm not respected. I wouldn't want to be as a rookie, because then maybe I wouldn't have the same drive. So I appreciate it.'
When practice is over, he retreats to his apartment — or, during camp, the team hotel — turns on practice tape or opens his playbook, and puts on his headphones. He prefers to be alone after practice. He needs to focus.
Spot the pattern. Connect the terms
Find the hidden link between sports terms
Play today's puzzle