The final player selected in the NFL Draft is nicknamed Mr. Irrelevant. This year’s Mr. Irrelevant, Alabama safety Jaylen Key, doesn’t seek to shun the less-than-complimentary moniker.

“You just got to take it and lean into it,” Key said, “so for me, I’m definitely going to lean into it – every bit of it. I’m the Mr. Irrelevant this year, and we’re going to make something shake, for sure.”

Key ended up as the 257th selection of the 89th NFL Draft on Saturday because he was the one among the many players available who generated the most excitement for the New York Jets staff.

“We had a pretty cool discussion up there,” Jets general manager Joe Douglas said, “because, obviously, the board’s just – like I said, I’ve never been a part of Mr. Irrelevant, so it was a little wild to see your board just completely wiped out the way it was. That was the not-fun part about it. But then just getting all the guys in the room and like, ‘OK, who’s the guy you’re most excited about here at each position?’ because each one of our scouts is in charge of a position during the undrafted free-agent process, and so we’re getting ready to kick off this undrafted free-agent process, so which guy are you most fired up about? And so we had that discussion. …

“It’s just figuring out who generates the most excitement and staying true to your process – the meetings that we had. We know our scouts like this guy, our coaches like this guy, kind of bringing it together, and felt like we picked the right guy.”

Key said he already had begun contemplating his options as an undrafted rookie when the Jets called.

“It definitely had started,” Key said. “I was getting calls and texts. My agent was calling me and asking me about different spots. …

“It was pretty nerve-wracking, man, just kind of going through watching every day seeing a lot of the guys that I know get drafted and things of that nature, and it coming down to the very last pick. It’s pretty nerve-wracking. I actually was off in the garage while all of my family was in the living room watching. Once I got the call and I seen that it said New York and I knew you guys had the last pick, so when I seen that, I knew. That’s when I ran back in the house.”

Douglas described Key as “another guy that’s just been given nothing and had to earn everything. The right kind of warrior makeup, mentality and perseverance that is going to help him here and in life.”

Before playing for Alabama in 2023, Key spent five years at UAB and played in four seasons.

“Going into that system under (coach) Nick Saban, that was a whole part of it for me,” Key said about his transfer. “It was going there learning from one of the best defensive minds in the game, being able to play under his system. He’s the DB coach there, so for me that’s what it was going to Alabama. …

“The biggest thing is the process – to learn the process of getting ready for a game. It’s very strenuous there because we install so much going into the week because you have to going against some of the better offensive minds in college football. … You’re already kind of being prepared like a pro there as far as the preparation standpoint. That was probably one of the biggest things I learned going to play under coach Saban was the process of preparing for a game.”

Being at Alabama prepared him for the NFL in a way that UAB could not, Key said.

“For me, my overall thing going into the portal was if I’m going to do it, I’m going to go against, like, the best talent in the country every day,” Key said, “so I can get better for the next level, so I can be prepared for the next level so when I ultimately get to the point where I am now, it’s really a seamless transition to where I’ve already been going against the best in the nation every day.”

Jets coach Robert Saleh has a history of moving big college safeties to linebacker in the NFL, including former Auburn defensive back Jamien Sherwood, who is preparing for his fourth season as a New York linebacker. But Saleh said Key would not change positions.

“He’s a safety,” Saleh said. “His football IQ and intelligence, his length, his play speed is actually much, much faster than his timed speed, so we’re excited to get him in that spot and give him a chance to compete.”

Before drafting Key, the Jets had four safeties on their roster.

Tony Adams started 15 games in 2023 for New York. A free-agent signee after starting four seasons for the Baltimore Ravens, Chuck Clark missed the 2023 campaign because he tore an anterior cruciate ligament during the Jets’ offseason program. Ashtyn Davis has started 21 games in his four seasons with New York. Jarrick Bernard-Converse played four defensive snaps in eight games as a rookie for the Jets in 2023.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.