Meet the Rookies: Malachi Corley

July 9, 2024

In the 2024 offseason, the Jets needed to fill some depth at the WR position and were struggling in 2023 with help at the wide receiver position other than Garrett Wilson. They may have seemed to fill that hole with the drafting of the “YAC King” Malachi Corley.

Malachi Corley started his playing career in Ocean City, Florida before moving to Campbellsville, Kentucky where he went to school at Campbellsville High School, playing both football and basketball. As a basketball player, in his senior year, he led his team in points with 526, assists with 135, rebounds with 254, and steals with 70. In the fall as a football player, Malachi was a 2-star recruit, receiving 4 offers from Western Kentucky, Eastern Kentucky, Southeast Missouri State, and Western Illinois and after weighing his offers he committed to Western Kentucky on February 5th, 2020.

In college, Malachi did not play much during his redshirt freshman year only having 6 receptions for 65 yards. In his true freshman year, Corley got much more playing time, he appeared in 14 games, had 691 receiving yards, and 7 touchdowns, with 9.5 yards per reception. In his Sophomore year all his numbers jumped leading him to be someone to look out for in the 2024 Draft, he had 101 receptions, 1,295, and 11 touchdowns. In his Junior year, Corley was a Biletnikoff Award Watch List, and All-Conference USA First Team. Although in his Junior year, he played in 2 fewer games than he did the past 2 seasons his productivity was still the same, receiving 984 yards, and 7 touchdowns on 79 receptions. His Junior year stats and productivity led him to be Biletnikoff Award Watch List, All-Conference USA First Team, Phil Steele Preseason All-American, and CUSA Offensive Player of the Week for November 9th. His career of 3,035 receiving yards ranks him 3rd in program history and during his college career he earned a nickname for himself, ‘The YAC King” for his yard-after-catch ability. 

Through the scouting process, Malachi Corley participated in the Reese’s Senior Bowl, and the WKU Pro-Day. In the Senior Bowl, Corley showed off his ability of his yard after catch ability, and route running with all that earning him 2024 Reese's Senior Bowl National Team Top WR. For his Pro-Day, Malachi had 31 teams come and watch him. In his Pro-Day he ran a 4.47 40-yard dash, 27 bench press reps which would have been 6 more than any WR at the combine, and a 4.26-second 3-cone drill, and weighing in at 215 pounds and 5’11”. As a prospect, he was seen as useful in the short pass game and running routes with leverage, but his negatives were not being able to bring down competitive catches and being an average route runner.

In April the Jets during night 2 of the NFL Draft the Jets attempted to trade into the second round but after multiple failed attempts they traded with the Panthers up to pick #65, the first pick of the 3rd round to select Malachi Corley in exchange for the #72 pick and #157 pick. As of now, Malachi Corley is still the only Jets rookie yet to sign his rookie deal but there is still a long time to get that done.

Malachi Corley will now be joining a talented WR group with Garrett Wilson, Mike Williams, Allen Lazard, and Xavier Gipson, with his QB being 4-time MVP Aaron Rodgers.