Gang Green Nation
Taking a look at the Jets’ new tight end
The Jets signed former Chargers tight end Stone Smartt to a one-year contract during the first week of free agency. Today we break Smartt down in detail.
The 26-year old Smartt is listed at 6’4” and 226 pounds. He was undrafted out of Old Dominion in 2022. He’s mostly been a reserve over the course of his three-year career, but he has started six games and caught 31 passes for 380 yards and a touchdown.
Background
Smartt began his career as a quarterback and wasn’t a highly-sought after high school recruit so he opted to go down the junior college route.
He started off at NAU in 2017, but only saw action in two games, completing 13 of 28 passes for 105 yards and a touchdown with one interception. He also rushed for 97 yards and two scores.
After the season, he transferred to Riverside City, where he was a first team JUCO all-American and the NJCAA Athletic Bureau Offensive Player of the Year as he completed 64 percent of his passes for over 2,700 yards with 31 touchdowns and only three interceptions. He also rushed for 583 yards and nine scores.
From there, he transferred to ODU, where he started seven times in 2019, but only had 1,006 passing yards and a touchdown with six interceptions as he completed 57 percent of his passes. He did rush for five scores though.
After the 2020 season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Smartt converted to wide receiver. He played in eight games in 2021, starting five, and had 167 yards on 17 catches.
During the pre-draft process, Smartt worked out at multiple positions and the Chargers opted to sign him as an undrafted free agent and convert him to a full-time tight end.
He made the team as a rookie, although he didn’t play much, catching four passes and making just one start. However, his role increased in 2023, as he made three starts and caught 11 passes for 155 yards.
He had a similar rotational role in 2024 for most of the year, but got some opportunities for additional playing time down the stretch and had some good production in those games to end the year with 16 catches for 208 yards.
The Jets signed Smartt to a one-year deal in the first week of free agency.
Let’s move onto some more in-depth analysis of what Smartt brings to the table as a player, based on extensive research and film study.
Measurables/Athleticism
Smart has decent size and a good wingspan. Despite being listed at only 226, he’s probably bigger than that by now, as he needed to bulk up early in his career. He was listed at 232 in college but only managed 12 bench press reps at his pro day.
He otherwise had excellent numbers at his pro day workout, which profile similarly to Zack Kuntz, who in addition to being his new teammate on the Jets, was...
