Will Tye has called it "the undrafted lifestyle." It's how he's been living since entering the NFL with the Giants out of Long Island's Stony Brook after the 2015 NFL Draft. He created a nice niche with Big Blue, catching almost 100 passes the past two seasons.
Last week the Giants waived bye-bye to Tye, but he rolled with the punch.
"I was surprised a little bit, but also it's a business. It's going to happen," he told reporters this week from the locker room of his new team, the Jets. "They're going to release you and you've got to be ready to go wherever you go."
Tye was in some demand as he said a half-dozen teams put in claims for him. The Jets had the priority and now he's going to try to help the Green & White in their season opener at Buffalo on Sunday.
"It'll be tough at first, obviously, learning a new offense," he said. But asked if he'll be ready for Sunday, he replied, "Yes, because I want to play. I'm going to learn everything fast. I'm going to be here all night, all morning and I'm going to learn it."
It's funny how the football rolls sometimes. With new coordinator John Morton coming in and with Austin Seferian-Jenkins showing his new, improved approach through the preseason, it appears the tight end will reemerge in the Jets' offense.
Yet with ASJ now beginning his two-week NFL suspension, holdover Eric Tomlinson coming back from a concussion and rookie Jordan Leggett not practicing with a knee injury, suddenly head coach Todd Bowles needed more bodies at the position, leading to the waiver claim for Tye and the signing of Neal Sterling.
What does Tye bring to the Jets? "Obviously, experience," Bowles said. With the Giants, he said, "he caught the ball, he's done some things, he's played in games, and it's not too big for him. We just have to get him up to speed."
Tye's used to shifting gears, but being from Connecticut and with his Giants ties and that undrafted lifestyle, it seems as if he'll go from zero to 60 in no time. Coming to the Jets, he said, "was definitely easier in the transition, staying in the same area. I like it here. It's a good place for me."
