National Football League

Jets get Robert Griffin - not that one - in 6th rd

Published Apr. 29, 2012 2:34 a.m. ET

foxsports

Robert Griffin is coming to the New York Jets.

No, not RGIII, of course. Same school, though.

Baylor guard Robert T. Griffin - nicknamed ''RGII,'' ''Big Griff'' and ''Deuce'' - was selected by the Jets in the sixth round of the NFL draft Saturday, one pick after New York took his Bears teammate, running back Terrance Ganaway.

Griffin, listed at 6-foot-6 and 330 pounds, was a first-team All-Big 12 selection as a senior after making 12 starts at right guard. He also started at right tackle as a junior, helping protect quarterback Robert Griffin III - the No. 2 overall pick who is of no relation.

''He's like a brother,'' the Jets' newest offensive lineman said. ''We have the same name, but didn't treat each other any differently. It was an everyday thing, but I was the one putting my hand in the dirt and he was the one putting his hand on the ball and throwing the rock. I didn't feel different. On the inside, I felt I had to do a little extra for him because we have the same name.''

Jets coach Rex Ryan joked that he was thrown off by the pick when general manager Mike Tannenbaum announced it.

''There's something where everybody thinks there's a quarterback controversy and all that,'' Ryan said, referring to having both Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow on the roster. ''When Tannenbaum said, `Hey, we just got Robert Griffin from Baylor,' I'm like, `What?'''

The Jets' Griffin plans to keep the ''T'' in his name despite no longer being teammates with the new Redskins quarterback. He's also going to keep all of his nicknames.

''Me and my agent, we make jokes about it,'' Griffin said. ''I'm going to keep my motto, I'm going to keep `Big Griff' and `RGII.' It's nothing different.''

Griffin adds some versatility and depth to New York's offensive line, but thinks he is more aggressive playing guard.

''That's where I can make my living at,'' Griffin said.

New York drafted North Carolina defensive end Quinton Coples in the first round Thursday, and on Friday took Georgia Tech wide receiver Stephen Hill in the second round and Arkansas State linebacker Demario Davis in the third. Ryan said Saturday night that he thought Coples and Hill would step in as starters this season. But he then quickly backtracked to talk up defensive end Mike DeVito - the team's incumbent starter at defensive end, where Coples will also play.

''I really can't tell you the exact role right now,'' Ryan said of DeVito. ''I shouldn't have said that about Quinton, either. It really depends on what package and all of that stuff. I can tell you this about Mike DeVito: He is an outstanding football player.''

The Jets drafted Wake Forest safety Josh Bush earlier in the sixth round with their first pick of the day. In the seventh round, they took South Carolina safety Antonio Allen and Western Michigan wide receiver Jordan White.

Ganaway set Baylor's single-season marks with 1,547 yards rushing and 21 rushing touchdowns last year as a senior. At 5-foot-11 and 240 pounds, Ganaway is a thickly built and powerful runner who adds depth to new offensive coordinator Tony Sparano's run-first offense.

''I'm a work-in-progress,'' said Ganaway, whose uncle is former Pro Bowl linebacker Jeremiah Trotter. ''But, I'm ready to make things happen.''

Ganaway originally began his college career at the University of Houston for coach Art Briles, but transferred to Baylor after running for 550 yards and six touchdowns as a freshman for the Cougars. Reunited with Briles, who took over as coach at Houston, he had limited carries in his first two seasons for the Bears before getting 250 attempts as a senior and putting up eye-popping numbers.

He didn't catch many passes at Baylor - 12 receptions in three years - but he didn't need to in the system the Bears used.

''In our offense, Robert Griffin III had a lot of options,'' he said, ''and the running back was the fifth option for him.''

Bush was an all-ACC selection last season as a fifth-year senior for the Demon Deacons after moving from cornerback to safety and had six interceptions.

''This past year actually was the only time that I've played full-time safety,'' he said. ''Other than that, I've been a corner pretty much. In my sophomore year, I actually started the season off at corner and I played about six games at free safety.''

As a sophomore, Bush picked off then-North Carolina State's Russell Wilson to end his NCAA-record streak of 379 consecutive attempts without an interception. He and Allen will add depth to the Jets' secondary, which needed help with LaRon Landry and Eric Smith as the team's only experienced safeties.

Allen is a big-hitting safety who played effectively in zone coverage and inside as a run stuffer. He had 88 tackles, three interceptions and a sack in his senior season with the Gamecocks.

White bounced back from tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in each knee in separate seasons early in his career - ''freak accidents'' in practice, he called them - to catch 140 passes for 1,911 yards and 17 touchdowns in his senior year.

''Thankfully, the Jets saw something in me, in my ability, the things I can do on the field,'' White said. ''Here I am right now, ready to put on a show for the Jets to the best of my ability.''

Notes: Ryan was asked what he thought of his defense, which finished fifth overall last season, with the new additions. ''I don't want to put any undue expectations on our team,'' he said. ''So, I would expect we'd lead the league.'' ... Joey Clinkscales, the team's vice president of college scouting, brushed aside reports that he could leave the organization to join Oakland's front office and be reunited with Raiders GM Reggie McKenzie, his former high school and college teammate. ''I expect to be here,'' Clinkscales said. ''This is where I started, and this is where I plan on being.''