Is David Bailey already the best player on the New York Jets defense? Through eight games, I don’t think it’s even close.

The Jets rookie edge rusher continues to etch his name into NFL history. Per ESPN Research, Bailey has 7.5 sacks through his first eight career games. That’s the most by a first-round pick over that stretch since Hall of Famer Julius Peppers in 2002. Peppers had nine sacks through his first eight games, so Bailey isn’t quite there. 

Still, being mentioned in the same breath as one of the greatest pass rushers to ever play is exactly where you want your first-round pick to be.

New York lost to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, but Bailey was phenomenal once again. He has been phenomenal all season.

David Bailey keeps showing up in big moments

Look, rookie pass rushers usually need time. The jump from college tackles to NFL tackles is real, and plenty of high picks spend their first season figuring out how to win with more than just speed. Bailey hasn’t needed that adjustment period.

He has already put together a couple of multi-sack games, and the Chiefs and Browns performances stand out. In both of those games, he looked like the best defensive player on the field. That’s not the best rookie on the field or the best Jet on the field. 

It’s the best defensive player, period.

I’ll tell you this much: that’s the kind of production that makes an entire defensive staff change how it calls a game. When you have a guy who can win off the edge consistently, everything else on that side of the ball gets easier.

The Defensive Rookie of the Year race has a New York twist

Bailey’s hot start has him right in the middle of the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation. He sits second in most betting markets for the award, trailing New York Giants linebacker Arvell Reese.

And the irony there is hard to miss. The Jets were down to Bailey and Reese with the 2nd overall pick in April’s NFL draft. Darren Mougey went with the pure pass rusher, and Reese ended up across town with the Giants. Now the two are battling for the same award in the same market, and every week is going to bring another round of comparisons.

Who knows how the voting will shake out? Reese is clearly having a strong season, and the oddsmakers have him in front for a reason. With that being said, I don’t think the Jets regret their pick for a second. Pass rushers who can produce like this as rookies are rare, and New York got one at a position it badly needed.

If Bailey keeps up this pace over the second half of the season, that betting gap is going to close in a hurry.

A cornerstone piece on a struggling defense

Now, the bigger picture for the Jets hasn’t been pretty. The defense has been a struggle all season long, and it has held this team back from sitting around .500. That’s frustrating, especially for a franchise that has been through as much as this one has. It is the Jets, after all.

But again, none of that really falls on Bailey. He has done everything he can on that side of the football. When the unit around him has had rough stretches, he has been the one consistent bright spot, and that matters for a team trying to build something real.

Make no mistake, Bailey is turning into a foundational cornerstone for the Jets defense. New York can build around a player like this for the next decade. The rest of the defense needs to catch up, and that will take time and more investment.

The Jets found their guy on the edge, and I expect David Bailey to keep climbing the record books, keep pressure on Reese in the Defensive Rookie of the Year race, and finish this season as the clear face of this defense.