Rookie wide receiver Xavier Gipson looked terrified before learning he made the Jets’ 53-man roster.
In a preview for Tuesday’s season finale of “Hard Knocks” on HBO, Gipson became overwhelmed with emotion when Jets general manager Joe Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh delivered the news.
“Well, look, man,” Douglas said. “You know, the odds are stacked against you from the jump, man.
“You did a lot of good things this camp. We appreciate your hard work.”
Following a brief pause, during which the 22-year-old Gipson appeared teary-eyed, Douglas delivered the good news.
“We just want to let you know man, you’re a New York Jet,” he said.
Gipson, an undrafted 5-foot-9 receiver out of Stephen F. Austin, smiled and put his head down.
“Why did you scare me like that?” he asked before the group shared a laugh together.
“Welcome to the team, brother,” Douglas added, to which Gipson joked, “Appreciate it, man. I had a lonely 20-minute drive back.”
Douglas and Saleh hugged the rookie before the coach praised Gipson for his mindset on the field.
“You earned it, bud,” Saleh said. “You’re going to do a lot of good things this year.
“You’ve got something to you — the way you approach the game with your intent, your mindset and all that.
“There’s no doubt in our mind that you’re going to maximize who you are. You definitely are one of us.”
The scene played out after Gipson said last week that the Jets higher-ups “tricked” him into thinking he was being sent packing.
“They kind of tricked me into thinking I was going to be released,” Gipson said with a smile. “Then, [coach Robert Saleh] finally said, ‘Man, you made the team.’ It took a moment for me to take it all in.
“It means everything. This is all I ever wanted when I was a kid growing up. I’ve been working hard my whole life to get to this moment.”
Gipson immediately called his mom to celebrate after learning he made the roster.
“She started screaming,” he said. “She was getting an oil change when it happened. She was screaming and said everyone there was looking at her crazy.
“But she deserved this too. She was a firm believer.”
Gipson thought he blew his chance at a roster spot when he muffed his first punt return opportunity in the Jets’ preseason loss to the Browns on Aug. 3.
He also failed to catch both of his two targets.
However, Gipson made up for it with a 46-yard kickoff return in the final minute of the first half to set up a field goal.
He has only continued to improve.
In the Jets’ four preseason games, Gipson returned five punts for an average of 13.4 yards, including two returns of over 25 yards.
Gipson leaned on veteran receiver Randall Cobb for guidance throughout training camp, according to the team website.
The 33-year-old Cobb taught Gipson how to handle pressure and balance being a returner and receiver.
In three seasons at Stephen F. Austin, Gipson returned three punts for touchdowns in 17 attempts and last year averaged 31 yards per return over 8 attempts.
Read more
