Former second-round pick Denzel Mims officially requested to be traded by the Jets on Thursday afternoon, as his agent Ron Slavin released a statement on the wide receiver's behalf.
"It's just time," Slavin said in the statement. "Denzel tried in good faith but it's clear he does not have a future with the Jets. Denzel vowed to come back better than ever this season and worked extremely hard in the offseason to make that happen. Still, he has been given no opportunities with the starting offense to get in a groove with them. We feel at this point a trade is our only option, since the Jets have told us repeatedly they will not release him. Joe Douglas has always done right by Denzel and we trust he will do everything in his power to find another team where Denzel can be a contributor."
Douglas and the Jets clearly had high hopes for the Baylor product ahead of the 2020 NFL Draft, as they selected him with the 59th overall pick. Unfortunately for Mims, a hamstring injury during his first training camp kept him on the sidelines and held him off the field until Week 7.
Over the course of his first two seasons with Gang Green, Mims has played in 20 games, catching 31 passes for 490 yards.
Mims currently finds himself a bit buried on the depth chart, with Corey Davis, Elijah Moore and Garrett Wilson likely to see most of the playing time out wide, with Braxton Berrios and Jeff Smith also in the mix.
Earlier this month, Mims said that he sees himself "on top" of the depth chart, saying "I show up every day. It’s up to them if they want to play me or not."
Head coach Robert Saleh also praised Mims earlier this month, particularly for his work in the running game and on special teams.
"[Mims is] doing a really good job and fighting his tail off in the run game," Saleh said. "Because he’s so well-conditioned, he's doing things he hasn’t been able to do in the past. He’s battling in teams, that’s going to be a big part of it, being reliable on special teams."