As Joe Tippmann settles in with Jets, his mentor knows well what he can expect

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FLORHAM PARK, N.J. — Joe Tippmann watched the NFL Draft at his family home in Fort Wayne, Ind., alongside someone who knows a little something about the league. And now the two men have something else in common, too.

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Friday, Tippmann — donning a cowboy hat and mullet, fit for an offensive lineman — was drafted by the Jets in the second round, 43rd overall. He celebrated with his mentor  — Jason Fabini, a longtime former Jets offensive tackle. Fabini coached Tippmann from fifth grade through his senior year of high school, and stayed in touch as Tippmann became a standout starter at Wisconsin.

Now he’s following Fabini’s path to the NFL, on the team with which Fabini started at right tackle for eight of his 11 NFL seasons.

“I was able to absorb so much from him,” Tippmann said after being drafted Friday. “He was somebody who helped me with my transition from high school to college; he’s currently helping me with my transition from college to the NFL. He’s been someone that’s been a mentor, a lifeline, someone I can always lean on, someone I can always count on to assist me with anything and push me to be a better player.”

Jets general manager Joe Douglas said that a few people in the building spoke to Fabini during the pre-draft process. “That’s a cool thing,” Douglas said, adding that Fabini “loves Joe.”

“If he wants my advice, he asks for it,” Fabini said earlier this month. “We talk about the process and different connections we both have. I’m really proud of him. He just does everything right, and I think the world of him.”

Fabini also said he could tell Tippmann was “going to be special” early on in coaching him as a youngster. “He had the demeanor, the size, the attitude, the toughness — he had it all, he really did.”

The parallels between their two journeys — both coming from Fort Wayne, to the Jets — will continue into training camp, too. Fabini was drafted by the Jets when Bill Parcells was coach. Parcells didn’t typically like starting rookies, but Fabini won a training camp competition against seven-year veteran Siupeli Malamala that year to become a starter at right tackle right away. At the time, he was the Jets’ first rookie to start at right tackle in more than 20 years.

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For Tippmann, he’ll enter training camp in a competition to start at center with Connor McGovern, also a seven-year veteran, and Tippmann might even be the favorite to win that job. That’s especially true since the Jets re-signed McGovern to a contract — one-year, $1.9 million — that pays him more like a backup than a starter, even though he’s been the starter for the last three years. Douglas also wouldn’t shut the door on the idea of signing free-agent center Ben Jones, who made the Pro Bowl in 2022. If Tippmann starts, though, he’d be the Jets’ first full-time rookie starter at center since Nick Mangold in 2006. Mangold was a first-round pick that year, out of Ohio State.

Douglas and coach Robert Saleh both said they’d have no qualms about playing Tippmann right away. It doesn’t hurt that new quarterback Aaron Rodgers has played with a young center in recent years with the Packers. Douglas said Tippmann played in a “pro-style offense” at Wisconsin and performed well against NFL-caliber interior defensive linemen.

“If a rookie does his job and wins it,” Saleh said, “I think he’ll earn that respect.”

Tippmann is a unique prospect, checking in at 6 feet, 6 inches — most centers are shorter. But Douglas cited Max Unger (6-5), Ethan Pocic (6-6) and Alex Mack (6-4) as centers who succeeded despite their height. Tippmann actually started his college career as a guard/tackle before moving to center, and starting right away, in his third year at Wisconsin. He played only 11 snaps at right guard (compared to 1,445 at center) but Douglas thinks his size and athleticism give him the versatility to play at both guard and center in the NFL.

At Wisconsin, Tippmann allowed only one sack in 625 pass-blocking snaps, per Pro Football Focus.

Douglas’ scouting report: “Excellent size. Excellent feet. Good bend. Great on the move. He’s a natural fit for our offensive style. … He brings athleticism, he brings toughness, he brings intelligence and he’s going to be a good fit.”

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Tippmann described himself as a “physical, dominant player.”

“As far as for the Jets,” Tippmann said, “first things first. I need to earn the trust and respect of my teammates before anything.”

If that goes anything like it did with Fabini, who quickly earned the love and respect of his teammates as a rookie in 1998, the Jets will be just fine.

(Photo: Trevor Ruszkowski / USA Today)