Scouting New York Jets safety VJ Payne

Q: What are VJ Payne's college stats and achievements?

VJ Payne had over 200 tackles and four interceptions at Kansas State, earning two all-Big 12 honorable mentions during his career.

Q: How did VJ Payne perform at the scouting combine?

At the scouting combine, VJ Payne ran a 4.40 in the 40-yard dash and posted a 127-inch broad jump, demonstrating his athleticism.

Q: What role did VJ Payne play in college football?

VJ Payne primarily played as a strong safety, often closer to the line of scrimmage, and showed versatility in both box and slot coverage.

Q: Why was VJ Payne available in the seventh round of the draft?

Despite being expected to be a mid-round pick, VJ Payne's selection in the seventh round surprised many analysts during the draft.

SALT LAKE CITY, UT - NOVEMBER 22: Wayshawn Parker #1 of the Utah Utes leaps over VJ Payne #7 of the Kansas State Wildcats during the second half of their game at Rice-Eccles Stadium on November 22, 2025 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Chris Gardner/Getty Images) | Getty Images Over the next few months, we’ll be breaking down all of the rookies added by the Jets during the draft and as undrafted free agents. We continue today with safety VJ Payne. The 22-year old Payne is listed at 6’3” and 206 pounds and was a seventh round pick out of Kansas State. Payne was a two-time all-Big 12 honorable mention in his college career, in which he started 42 of 52 games and racked up over 200 tackles and four interceptions. **Background** Payne was a three-star high school recruit and headed to Kansas State where he started the opener as a true freshman. For most of the rest of the 2022 season, he was in a reserve role but then started the last three games of the year. For the rest of his career, Payne was a starting strong safety for the Wildcats, posting at least 57 tackles, three tackles for loss and an interception in each season. His most productive year was 2024, in which he set career highs for tackles (64), tackles for loss (3.5), pass breakups (six) and interceptions (two) to earn an all-Big 12 honorable mention. His 2025 season was actually his best, though, even though it wasn’t as statistically productive. He once again earned an honorable mention for his performance. During the pre-draft process, Payne was invited to the scouting combine and participated in the Shrine Bowl. Payne was widely expected to be a mid-round pick, so it was surprising to many that he was still available for the Jets to select him in the seventh round. Let’s move onto some more in-depth analysis of what Payne brings to the table, based on in-depth research and film study. **Measurables/Athleticism** Payne has outstanding length, although he could probably do with adding a few pounds to his lanky frame. He turned heads at the scouting combine when he ran a 4.40 in the 40-yard dash and posted a 127-inch broad jump. He also managed a 35-inch vertical. At his pro day, Payne participated in the agility drills and posted results that were about average for his size. He did not perform a bench press in the pre-draft process. **Usage** Payne played a versatile role in college, typically playing closer to the line of scrimmage more often than he was employed in a deep role. He played plenty of snaps in the box and in the slot. **Coverage** Payne’s pass coverage was a key area of growth for him in 2025. When he was targeted, opposing quarterbacks saw their completion percentage drop from 68 percent in the previous season to below 50 percent in 2025 and he gave up less down the field with no 30-yard plays surrendered. He also didn’t give up more than one touchdown in coverage in any season. In 2023, he had barely been targeted directly other than on dump-offs, so his role had expanded somewhat in 2024 and opposing teams exploited him at times. One thing he did well in 2025 was to hold his own in direct matchups with some of the Big 12’s better tight ends. In the matchup with – a recent UDFA signing for the Cowboys, who many expected to get drafted – Payne held Trigg to no catches on three targets. Against other defenders, he had eight catches on 10 targets for over 150 yards. In coverage, he was often required to line up in an off coverage matchup against a slot receiver or latched onto a coverage assignment downfield. When he would line up deeper, he showed some decent range when patrolling center field. **Ball Skills** Payne’s on-ball numbers are nothing special but he did make plays at times with 14 pass breakups and four interceptions in his career as he uses his length well to disrupt at the catch-point and displays good closing speed and timing. He showcased impressive athleticism to come up with this one-handed interception. His other three interceptions were fairly easy plays on wayward passes and he also dropped one last season. **Tackling** Payne is a productive tackler, capable of chasing players down in pursuit and hitting with good pop. However, he did miss too many tackles at times, as he was occasionally guilty of overpursuing on cut-backs and trying to make arm tackles. He missed eight tackles in 2025, although this represented a marked improvement in terms of tackle efficiency over 2024. He had four forced fumbles in his college career. **Run Defense** Payne has been productive against the run, although scouts believe he could attack the line of scrimmage with more aggression. He isn’t shy about taking on a blocker but sometimes needs to display more urgency to get off blocks and typically fares better when he uses his quickness to beat a blocker to his spot. He does play with good discipline, though, and his performance grades have typically been solid in this area. **Blitzing** Payne didn’t blitz very often but his pressure rates were solid when he did. Officially, he only had one sack, which came in his freshman season, although he did have another one which didn’t count because it came on a two-point conversion. On that play he came unblocked off the edge and made a big hit, but this one saw him chasing the quarterback down after he escaped the initial rush. **Special Teams** Payne may be expected to contribute more on special teams at the NFL level than he did in college. He didn’t play much on special teams during his collegiate career, especially in the last three seasons. He had one special teams tackle in his career. **Physicality** Payne had some big hits at times and was regarded by some experts as a “thumper” in the run game. He can be handsy at times in coverage. However, in his career, he only had nine penalties, seeing a reduction from 2024 when he had five, to just two in his final season. Both of these were for pass interference. **Instincts** Payne is regarded as someone who displays good on-field intelligence and reads and responds well in coverage. However, in his game film, there are a handful of big plays and touchdowns that involved him apparently blowing an assignment or being involved in a coverage mix-up. **Attitude/Demeanor** Payne was a team captain with the Wildcats, having developed into a mature leader over the course of his career. He is confident and has displayed resilience and toughness during his career. **Injuries** Payne hasn’t had any reported injury issues during his career, in which he played in all 52 games for the Wildcats. **Scheme Fit** Payne presumably will have a similar role to his Kansas State role if he can get on the field with the Jets. He isn’t likely to play as a deep safety but could be employed around the line of scrimmage and in the box. With his success matching up against tight ends in 2025, you wonder if he could perhaps be groomed for a role as a specialist eraser. In many ways, Payne shares similarities with another seventh round safety that the Jets picked up later than expected in the draft; . The Jets tried him in that tight ends eraser role and later as a Brandon Browner-style big press corner, so perhaps Payne could be experimented with in similar ways. Payne is a better athlete than Allen, whose ultimate failure arguably had more to do with poor instincts than a lack of ability, so maybe he can have more success if they lean on him to bring similar things to the table. **Conclusions** Payne was one of the highest ranked players available on most experts’ boards when the Jets selected him and sometimes you end up wondering down the road why they lasted that long. This isn’t always the case though, and perhaps we’ll see some of the factors that led to his slide if he struggles to make an impact in preseason. Even so, Payne improved in 2025 and has a combination of length, athleticism, experience and production that makes it hard to see how he fell that far. Reviews suggest his smarts and attitude are solid too. The one thing that is apparent from his film is that he has had some blown coverages in the past, so perhaps teams were not as high on his instincts as draft analysts were. Even so, with the positive attributes he brings, the Jets will be hopeful they can build his confidence in their system and have good communication as a unit so these kinds of things don’t happen to him on a regular basis. The Jets have plenty of other options at safety but aren’t exactly overflowing with depth, so hopefully Payne can get in the mix and prove that NFL teams were wrong to overlook him.