All Denzel Mims wanted was an opportunity to play. That was the reason behind his trade request back in the summer. Now that he finally is seeing the field, Mims is making the most of his chances. On Sunday against the Bills, Mims saw plenty of time on the field and even though he didn’t see a ton of targets or make a lot of catches, he delivered right when the Jets needed him to.
The Jets ran 60 offensive snaps in their 20-17 win over the Buffalo Bills in Week 9. Mims was on the field for 50 of those 60 snaps, good for 83%. That’s a bump up from the 75% snaps (44/59) he saw in Week 8 against the Patriots. He also saw one more target against the Bills than he did against the Patriots.
His yardage total against the Bills (12) was nowhere near his total against the Patriots (76), and he had just one catch against the Bills. That catch, however, was a very important catch that put the Jets in position to win.
2:10 left in a 17-17 game. It’s 3rd and 5 from the Buffalo 19. Zach Wilson is in the shotgun with Mims lined up as the Z receiver on the right side. Mims runs the quick slant across the face of Bills cornerback Kaiir Elam, gets the target, makes the reception and it’s 1st and Goal for the Jets.
“It means a lot,” Mims said about getting that pass. “It lets me know that they trust me and if it comes down to a crucial moment, they can trust me, so it makes me happy.
A few plays later, the Jets line up for a 28-yard field goal and Greg Zuerlein kicks it through. One more defensive stop later, the Jets scored their biggest win of the season, moving to 6-3 heading into the bye week and pulling within just a half-game of the Bills in the AFC East.
Mims waited for this opportunity and it paid off.
“It means a lot,” Mims said. “Last year kind of bothered me, but this year I told myself I’m going to keep my head down and just keep working. Just let my agent handle whatever else he needs to handle, or that side of it. All I can do is just come every day and work, and just hope I get my opportunity. And it came today. I’m grateful for it.”
Head coach Robert Saleh said last week Mims had earned a role in the offense moving forward, even after wide receiver Corey Davis returns from injury. After that big catch Sunday, it’s becoming harder to ignore him. “When we needed a third-down conversion, Mims played big boy ball on a slant and Zach delivered a strike that allowed us to take another couple of minutes off the clock,” Saleh said after the game.
Mims is back and he couldn’t be happier.