The career of former Florida defensive lineman Jabari Zuniga took yet another turn on Wednesday when the second-year former third-round pick was released by the New York Jets, who drafted him in 2020. Zuniga is currently dealing with a knee injury, but Jets general manager Joe Douglas said that he wants to bring Zuniga back to the practice squad.
Injuries have been a recurring theme throughout Zuniga’s career. His best collegiate season came as a redshirt junior in 2018 when he played and started in all 13 games and totaled 6.5 sacks. He entered the 2019 season as a preseason First Team All-SEC selection, but injuries limited him to just six appearances.
In spite of health concerns, New York hoped to maximize his upside when it drafted him. That didn’t materialize, as he appeared in eight games as a rookie but totaled just five tackles. He only played in the team’s first game this preseason, totaling one tackle.
His current and collegiate teammate, linebacker Jarrad Davis, is also dealing with injuries and was placed on the injured reserve. He suffered an ankle injury in the team’s second preseason game.
The Jets still hope they can develop Zuniga into a contributor, but it looks like he’ll have to do that development from the practice squad if it’s going to happen in New York.
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