INDIANAPOLIS – For most people, uprooting their lives and relocating from Palo Alto, California, to Lubbock, Texas, would rate fairly high on the culture shock meter. For David Bailey, whose unusual migration may soon go transcontinental and could next take him to the Big Apple, it’s all just part of the process.
And while Bailey, an All-American pass rusher for Texas Tech in 2025, wasn’t exactly trading in a career in Silicon Valley to become an agri farmer, he did gain valuable life lessons during his brief stay in the Lone Star State. (And for the record, he also earned his diploma, graduating from Stanford after three years, before joining the Red Raiders.)
“I just learned about like adjusting to a new environment,” Bailey said at this week’s NFL scouting combine when asked about his transfer portal journey. ‘Just how to navigate that experience. I think that’ll take me to the next (place).”
And his next team could very well be the New York Jets, who hold the second overall pick of the 2026 draft, given Bailey might be the best player available this year not named Fernando Mendoza.
“I think he’s the most polished of the pass rushers,” NFL Network lead draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said of Bailey. “He’s got elite, elite juice off the edge. He’s got a long track record of being able to do it. I feel like he’s safe but yet offers upside.”
Plenty of upside.
Bailey led the country with 14½ sacks – equaling his three-year total with the Cardinal – for the Big 12 champions in 2025 and paced the conference with 19½ tackles for loss. He said he’s comfortable playing in three- or four-man fronts and also had a targeted message for NFL talent evaluators.
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“I want them to know that I took a good step from junior year to senior year. But I also want them to know that I feel like I’m not really scratching the surface as a football player that I can become,” said Bailey, who’s 6-foot-3 and played at 250 pounds last year but thinks he can carry more weight and eventually generate more power.
“Like there’s just so much stuff I can work on. I can become a great player.”
Said ESPN chief draft analyst Mel Kiper Jr.: “David Bailey, to me, is the best pass rusher (in this draft). You think about what he did at Stanford – he was a good player. He became a great player at Texas Tech this past year.”
Kiper also noted his on-field intensity as another asset.
Bailey formally met with the Jets early this week but acknowledged he didn’t know very much about the perennially struggling franchise. Here’s a tip, David: They haven’t had a pass rusher like the ones you pattern your game after in about four decades.
“So I try to emulate my game after Von Miller,” said Bailey, who cites explosiveness, a quick first step, countermoves and scheme versatility among his strengths.
“Watched a lot of DeMarcus Ware, Aidan Hutchinson. So just watching different pass rushers, getting a little bit different – like tips and tricks from them – and then obviously, like, I play my own game.”
Bailey admits his run defense needs to improve and that he needs to become a better “student of the game.” Doesn’t seem like that should be a problem for a guy who acquired that Stanford sheepskin ahead of schedule but admittedly coasted a bit academically at Texas Tech.
“Last year, I was really, I was living like a pro,” he said. “I was taking classes just to be eligible, but I wasn’t trying to earn a master’s (degree) or anything. So had a light course load, and it just allowed me to just really lock in on football.
“I feel like if I want something, and I put my mind to it, I feel like I’m able to achieve that. My goal of graduating in three years, I really didn’t think about it until after freshman year. So really, it was after that where I started taking, like, community courses and online courses try to get some more credits and graduate. So as soon as I knew that’s what I wanted to do, man, I put my mind to it, and I was able to achieve that.”
Sounds like the kind of guy the Jets or any other team – no matter how far from Lubbock – should be eager to invest in.
