Jets rookie Hamsah Nasirildeen getting used to life as a linebacker

Hamsah Nasirildeen spent his career at Florida State pegged as a versatile safety who could play over the top in coverage and in the box in run support.

But his position title has changed with the Jets.

New York did not draft Nasirildeen, a second-team All-ACC safety with the Seminoles in 2019, to play the position he thrived at when healthy in college. Robert Saleh and Jeff Ulbrich brought Nasirildeen to the Big Apple with an eye on playing him as a weak-side linebacker — a role that calls upon Nasirildeen’s strengths as a multi-faceted defender.

Nasirildeen spent the spring adjusting to his new position at the highest level of football. With the Jets now two weeks into training camp, the North Carolina native is finally comfortable being called a linebacker.

“I think I’m used to it now,” Nasirildeen said Tuesday. “People ask me when I’m around, I give the right answer now. At first, I used to say safety.”

Nasirildeen has taken well to his new position, taking first-team reps alongside Jarrad Davis and C.J. Mosley. That has carried over into the early days of training camp, making Nasirildeen poised for a key role in New York’s defense as a rookie.

Versatility is the name of the game for weak-side linebackers in today’s NFL and Nasirildeen brings that in spades. Listed at 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, Nasirildeen has the requisite frame to play linebacker. He also has the necessary speed and athleticism to play in space and cover shifty running backs and pass-catching tight ends.

“Hamsah’s been really good,” Saleh said. “Both those kids, [Jamien] Sherwood and Hamsah, both of those rookie safeties who were converted to linebacker, their transition has been seamless. Hamsah looks fantastic. He has a lot of energy to him. It’s a matter of continuing to learn the game and learn the process and all the little nuances that separate great players.”

Weak-side linebacker is a new position in the Jets’ defense with New York transitioning from a 3-4 to a 4-3 scheme. Saleh and Ulbrich did not have personnel who fit the position when they arrived at One Jets Drive, but that has changed with the additions of Nasirildeen and Sherwood.

Thanks to those two, the position is no longer an area of concern for the Jets. In fact, it might be a strength by the end of the season.