What kind of production can we expect from Malachi Corley in his rookie season?

The Jets drafted wide receiver Malachi Corley with the first pick of the third round of the 2024 draft, filling an obvious need for more impact playmakers on offense.

Can we determine anything from recent Jets history to get an idea of what to expect from Corley in 2024?

It may be too much to expect him to emulate the rookie season of the last receiver drafted by the Jets; Garrett Wilson. Wilson posted a thousand-yard season and earned offensive rookie of the year honors in 2022.

The last non-first round receiver drafted by the Jets was Elijah Moore, who was actually selected with the first pick of the second round back in 2021. Moore had 43 catches for 538 yards and five scores in his rookie year, despite missing five games due to injury.

What is different for Corley is that he has more established talent ahead of him in Wilson and veteran acquisition Mike Williams, whereas Moore was behind Corey Davis (who got hurt anyway) and otherwise competing for targets with the likes of Braxton Berrios, Denzel Mims and Keelan Cole.

There should be more targets to go around - and a higher quality of throws to produce on - for the 2024 Jets, though, with Aaron Rodgers starting at quarterback rather than Zach Wilson.

Mims was drafted in 2020 in the late second round, so he was a similarly-rated prospect to Corley. His rookie year wasn't that bad, although he has regressed since then. Mims ended up with 23 catches for 357 yards, but in just nine games.

Wilson had the most productive season by a Jets rookie ever, following a 25-year period of underachieving rookie receivers after Keyshawn Johnson was drafted first overall in 1996. During that period, Moore and Robby "Robbie Chosen" Anderson (who was undrafted) were more productive than every other Jets rookie, including players who ended up being good like Laveranues Coles, Jerricho Cotchery and Santana Moss, and players who didn't like Mims, Ardarius Stewart and Stephen Hill.

One factor that could mean that Corley produces well from the outset is his ability after the catch, which could see them Jets feeding him touches and making a concerted effort to get the ball in his hands. He might get some jet sweep touches as well though, which could impact upon his target share.

Early on, Corley should be more of a complementary piece, unless there are injuries, or Williams is slow to rehab in his return from his previous surgery. However, if he stays healthy, somewhere between 40-to-60 catches would seem a reasonable expectation for him. It should be fun to see what he can do with those touches.

We'll share our in-depth report on Corley within the next few weeks.