Give Kwesi Credit for a Draft Pick Who is About to Explode
Since the oddly-timed, headline-grabbing decision to fire Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, there has been a widespread criticism of the former GM’s drafting. In short, the effort produced terrible results.
What of safety Jay Ward?
The defensive back is on the upswing. Not an established starter, Ward began to force his way onto the field as 2025 proceeded and dipped into 2026. The soon-to-be fourth-year defender looked fast, physical, and long on the field (all coveted attributes for a safety). Don’t be at all surprised if he shines in 2026.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Deserves Credit for Jay Ward Pick
Going into the 2023 NFL Draft, Jay Ward earned praise for the versatility he demonstrated while playing ball at LSU.
The NFL website offers the blurb: “Versatile defensive back with a fearless playing mentality. Ward has good size and length for a nickel cornerback, but he lacks a little thickness as a safety who likes to hit. He can be counted on to do his job in run support from the slot and has adequate coverage talent from off-man and zone. He will make plays when he’s in position to do so but doesn’t have the route anticipation needed for strong on-ball production just yet. Ward takes good angles to the football in coverage and run support as a safety. His versatility improves his chances of becoming an NFL starter in the future.”
The word about being “an NFL starter in the future” appears to finally be arriving.
Working in Ward’s favor is that he can play corner alongside being someone who can get tossed into the deep portion of the field, as the scouting report suggests. Note that not every defensive back can do so. Far from it, in fact.
Lining up directly across from a shifty, explosive receiver isn’t for the faint of heart. Making a mistake is incredibly easy to see, even for an untrained eye. Ward’s capacity to get over top of a receiver’s toes before then travelling with the receiver down the field is to be valued even if he’s not a shutdown option out there.
Consider, as well, being the deep safety. Being tall and having long arms helps — game of inches, right? — since there’s a greater chance of swatting deep passes away. Again, though, there’s the blatantly-obvious possibility of losing the rep. Any deep safety who gets beat deep is bound to get an earful from a coach (or two) alongside the scorn from onlookers.
Seeing Ward prove capable of doing both — being a corner and a safety — is encouraging, especially within a Brian Flores defense that’s predicated on disguise, chaos, and being unpredictable.
The 6’1″ defender comes in at 190 pounds. He is coming off a season where he played in all seventeen games, starting five. The final tally showed 248 snaps on defense and 284 snaps on special teams.
Across those on-field opportunities, Mr. Ward had 27 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, and 1 fumble recovery. So, too, did he demonstrate some savvy as a blitzer. Getting into the backfield in a hurry often comes down to timing, and Ward has done a great job within limited opportunities.
On July 13th, Jay Ward will arrive at his 26th birthday. Don’t be surprised if he quickly goes off in training camp, generating headlines as a breakout candidate.
