Getty Mike White
Mike White was on the street for a little under a month before desperation struck the New York Jets.
The Jets signed the former Dallas Cowboys quarterback to their practice squad on Wednesday, the team announced. In a corresponding move, New York waived tight end Ian Bunting from the taxi squad.
Chosen by Dallas in the fifth-round of the 2018 NFL draft, White did not appear in a regular season game during his time in North Texas. He received significant preseason action amid his rookie year, completing 44-of-70 passes for 414 yards, no touchdowns and an interception.
White participated in the entirely of the Cowboys’ offseason program this year. Once again, he was relegated to exhibition spot duty, cleaning up after Dak Prescott and Cooper Rush. Across four appearances this summer, White led the club with 68 attempts (completing 36) for 305 yards, one TD and an INT. He took a whopping six sacks — triple what Rush (2) and Taryn Christion (2) absorbed — and finished with a 63.7 passer rating.
The Cowboys released White at final cuts on Aug. 31, opting to carry just two QBs on the 53-man roster: Prescott and Rush.
Follow the Heavy on Cowboys Facebook page for the latest breaking news, rumors and content!
Scouting Report
White played his college ball at Western Kentucky, where he was a 27-game contributor and threw for 8,540 yards, 61 touchdowns and 15 interceptions from 2015-17. Prior to his Hilltoppers tenure, he spent the 2013 and 2014 seasons at South Florida.
Heading into the draft, White received a mid-round draft grade from NFL.com analyst Lance Zierlein, who likened the 6-foot-5, 220-pound signal-caller to former Titans QB Zach Mettenberger.
“White saw major downturns in every important passing category this year, but evaluators will have to balance his inconsistent play against the porous protection he got,” Zierlein wrote in his 2018 scouting report. “White has good size and a live arm which is enough to get him drafted, but if he doesn’t do a better job of recognizing blitzes and making decisions faster, his arm talent won’t matter. White has QB3 potential with a shot to move up the ladder as a backup.”
Fit in Big Apple
He won’t start (yet), but White provides valuable insurance for a snakebitten Jets organization that lost second-year franchise building block Sam Darnold to mono and backup Trevor Siemian to a gruesome ankle injury.
Gang Green currently has Luke Falk under center as Darnold eyes a not-so-distant return. They have no one else behind those two on the active roster. And based on their rotten luck, it probably won’t be long before White sees regular season snaps.
READ NEXT: Cowboys WR Amari Cooper Reportedly Battling New Foot Injury
Follow Zack Kelberman on Twitter: @KelbermanNFL
Comments
New York Jets Sign Former Cowboys Quarterback