Frank Reich and David Bailey helped guide the New York Jets to victory.
The NFL season is in full swing and for the first time since 2009, both the New York Giants and New York Jets are 1-0. For the Jets, their victory was aided by two former members of the Stanford football program, edge rusher David Bailey and last year's interim head coach Frank Reich.
The Jets beat the Tennessee Titans 23-10. Bailey and Reich made an early impact for the Jets. In his NFL debut, Bailey recorded a sack while Reich, who is back in the league as the Jets' offensive coordinator, put together a strong game plan. Quarterback Geno Smith threw for 215 yards while running back Breece Hall carried the ball 22 times for 102 yards and a touchdown.
Bailey, a three-star standout at Stanford from 2022–2024, spent his final season of college football at Texas Tech where he evolved into the nation's top edge rusher. He finished with 14.5 sacks in 2025, and was a unanimous All-American while also receiving the Big 12's Defensive Lineman of the Year Award.
Bailey's strong season at Texas Tech led to the Jets drafting him at No. 2 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Reich was initially supposed to serve as a special advisor for Stanford football under new head coach Tavita Pritchard and general manager Andrew Luck this season. But with the Jets firing their old offensive coordinator and Reich having a strong relationship with head coach Aaron Glenn, he returned to the NFL for the first time since 2023.
The Jets have the longest playoff drought of any major American professional sports team at 15 seasons, but this season they have built a roster that they believe can snap that streak.
Bringing back Smith, as well as drafting guys like Bailey, tight end Kenyon Sadiq and wide receiver Omar Cooper, the Jets — and their offense — could be one to watch this season. With Reich being a Super Bowl-winning coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles, the hope is that he can make the Jets offense a formidable group.
As for Bailey, despite not finishing his career on The Farm, he is one of the highest drafted players to have ever played for Stanford. Known for his speed and quickness off the edge, Bailey is the type of impact player the Jets needed to bolster the pass rush, which was among the league's worst last season.
With their Week 1 win, New York's focus shifts onto its Week 2 matchup against the Green Bay Packers at home.
Green Bay is coming off a disappointing Week 1 loss. The matchup is slated to be a tough test for the Jets; a win would put them at 2-0 for the first time since 2015, a season when, despite missing the playoffs, they finished 10-6. That was also the last time they posted a winning season.
