Jeremy Ruckert ready to work this offseason after 'rough' rookie year with Jets

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Jeremy Ruckert doesn’t want this season to end, but he can’t wait to attack his offseason and grow into the kind of player he knows he can be for the Jets.

Ruckert has had a quiet year. The rookie tight end has been active for only eight games and played a total of 27 offensive snaps. His only target came in Week 2, and he dropped the pass.

“It’s been rough,” Ruckert told Newsday. “But I’m excited for what’s to come.”

So is his coach.

Robert Saleh believes Ruckert can be “a damn good tight end.” The Lindenhurst product’s work with the scout team and in post-practice training has given Saleh reason for optimism.

“I’m really excited about Jeremy,” he said. “I know he hasn’t had a lot of action this year. I think that’s more of a testament to Conk [Tyler Conklin] and C.J [Uzomah], and [Kenny] Yeboah, the way he’s come on from a special teams standpoint. But with the show team and our Flight School at the end of practice, what you see is an uber-athletic young man.

“If he can put together a really good offseason, I think people will see a damn good tight end. Not just a good one, but a really, really good tight end. He’s got a really good chance.”

Ruckert, who grew up a diehard Jets fan, wishes he could have done more to help his team. The odds were stacked against him from the very beginning, though.

The Jets signed two proven tight ends in Conklin and Uzomah before drafting Ruckert in the third round. He had to play catch-up from the beginning because of a foot issue he dealt with as a senior at Ohio State that worsened at the Senior Bowl.

Ruckert said the pain was “pretty unbearable.” He missed rookie minicamp, all of OTAs and the first week-plus of training camp.

The injury put Ruckert “behind the 8-ball,” Saleh said. Conklin and Uzomah already were ahead of Ruckert on the depth chart and Yeboah passed him because of his special teams value.

It’s unclear if Ruckert will be active for Sunday’s finale in Miami. Saleh said he will give the starters an opportunity to finish the season on the field.

Although this season hasn’t gone the way Ruckert hoped, he’s been able to remain positive because he’s living out his dream.

“I’m not going to say it’s been easy,” he said. “Everybody wants to play, everybody wants to dress on game day, play on special teams. That’s kind of been the tough thing for me just wanting to just be out there, try to get the most in-game experience I could. Obviously, that wasn’t the case. I’m not going to complain about it.

“I just think about how many people would die to be where I’m at right now and I just trust that I’m here for a reason.”

Ruckert enjoys Flight School, the after-practice training for younger players and guys who don’t get many reps. They get to play competitive 7-on-7 and do additional individual work to improve their skills.

Ruckert believes he’s gotten better from this. He also said he’s learned a lot from Conklin and Uzomah about being “an every-down tight end” and from his position coach, Ron Middleton.

“I’m in a great tight end room,” Ruckert said. “Coach Midd is the man. He knows the position better than probably almost anybody.”

Now that he’s healthy, Ruckert is excited about being able to work on his body and game this offseason. He hopes to be able to make an impact next season.

“I’m looking forward to having a healthy offseason,” he said. “I’m not looking forward to the season to be over but I’m definitely looking forward to the offseason to be able to come back next season and be able to contribute and show who I really could be.”

By Al Iannazzone

al.iannazzone@newsday.comAl_Iannazzone

Al Iannazzone covers the Jets for Newsday after spending nearly two decades on the NBA beat with Knicks and Nets.