Adonai Mitchell and John Metchie III excited for fresh starts after coming to Jets in big trades

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FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) — Adonai Mitchell had a connection with Jets coach Aaron Glenn long before the wide receiver came to New York in a stunning trade this week.

And neither knew it.

Mitchell went to Ridge Point High School in Missouri City, Texas — where one of Glenn's daughters attended. At the same time.

“Pretty funny story,” Glenn said Friday.

Once he put it together, the coach asked his daughter if she knew Mitchell.

“I think she was like, on social media, they have some of the same friends that went to high school,” Glenn said with a smile. “Again, that means he’s family, right?”

Well, not quite. But Glenn and Mitchell are members of the Jets together after the wide receiver was part of the deal that sent star cornerback Sauce Gardner to Indianapolis. New York got a first-round draft pick in 2026 and another in 2027 from the Colts, in addition to Mitchell.

“I actually got to have a couple of conversations with him,” a smiling Mitchell said of Glenn. "You know, my first conversation, he told me that he was very familiar with the Missouri City area and I may have went to school with his daughter.

“So yeah, we've got a lot of things to talk about, man.”

Most of it will be about what he'll be able to do on the field for the Jets, of course.

The 23-year-old Mitchell, a second-round pick out of Texas last year, fell out of favor with the Colts this season. He made headlines for the wrong reason: He dropped the ball before crossing the goal line against the Los Angeles Rams, costing him the first score of his career and resulting in a touchback in Week 4.

Mitchell played in four of the Colts' next five games and had just two catches for 15 yards.

“I hate that it didn’t work out," Mitchell said. “But I’m excited to be here.”

With the Jets, he has a chance to quickly establish himself as a key complementary piece behind No. 1 receiver Garrett Wilson.

“That’s the plan for him to come here, get a change of scenery, because he is definitely talented,” Glenn said. “When you look at AD, he is a true ‘X’ receiver.”

Before the trade sent social media buzzing, Mitchell was told by the Colts he was heading to the Jets.

"It definitely caught me off guard, but I’m excited to be here,” Mitchell said. “I’m happy I didn’t find out through social media. I was able to have my conversation with the GM, the head coach, ton of respect to them. I was able to say my goodbyes to everybody. It was a very emotional day.

"Like I said, I’m very excited to be here and now I’m where my feet are.”

Same for John Metchie III, who was acquired last week from Philadelphia for cornerback Michael Carter II in a less splashy trade.

Metchie, who was traded from Houston to Philadelphia in August, has four catches for 18 yards this season.

“I mean, of course, it's the second time this season, right?” Metchie said of being traded again. “I’m more of an optimist, so it was just more opportunistic.”

Metchie, in the final year of his contract, was a second-round pick by the Texans out of Alabama in 2022. He has flashed potential since missing his entire rookie season after announcing he was diagnosed with leukemia.

“Metchie is a really good slot receiver,” Glenn said. “I’m not saying he can’t play outside, but, man, he is a master when it comes to the route concepts in the slot, being able to punch in and out of routes, being able to create separation because of his quickness.”

The 25-year-old Metchie, who has 44 career catches for 430 yards and a TD, said his transition to the Jets' offense hasn't been as difficult as when he went from the Texans to the Eagles.

“Similar playbooks that I’ve been in,” Metchie said. “So a lot of words are familiar. So it’s not as hard as going to a system where they use completely different verbiage and everything means nothing to you. So this one has been a little bit easier.”

It was uncertain whether Mitchell and Metchie will play against Cleveland — and if, so how much — for their new team after a whirlwind week for both.

“They’re still learning our system,” Glenn said. “They still have today to go to see exactly how we’re going to look at those guys being a part of what we’re doing this weekend. So, I can’t promise you that, but they’ll definitely be a part of what we’ve got going on.”

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