Dabo Swinney hyping up Cade Klubnik speaks to his NFL future in New York

Dabo Swinney might not have caught any of Cade Klubnik's NFL preseason debut with the New York Jets, but he is not surprised by how well he performed. Klubnik completed 5-of-7 passes for 56 yards over the course of two series vs. the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Friday night. New York scored a touchdown on its second offensive possession, with Klubnik certainly looking the part throughout.

While Klubnik's college career did not live up to the hype, the talent has always been there. With the Jets running through one quarterback after another, he could provide a breath of fresh air to their organization. Klubnik will likely back up Geno Smith, but he looks closer to being ready to start than even expected. Clearly, the Jets saw similar things in Klubnik that Swinney did when he recruited him.

"He was out by the time we got to the office," Swinney told the media. "I texted back and forth with him last night. Just proud of him. Like I said, he's gonna be a great pro. He's going to play a long time. He's a really, really talented quarterback. That's why he got drafted. They've obviously seen that too, right out of the gate. Hopefully, he stays healthy. If he does, he'll be one of those guys you look up to, and he's played quite a while."

Dabo Swinney expects Cade Klubnik to play in the NFL for a long time

Klubnik's preseason debut may have been against mostly backups playing the most vanilla coverages possible, but he looked like a quarterback who has been in the NFL a few years, instead of fresh out of Clemson. There was a certain swagger he had behind the line of scrimmage, instilling confidence in his teammates. This is why Swinney thinks Klubnik could have staying power.

As long as he takes well to coaching, Klubnik has a chance to extract all the talent that could never be fully mined out of him while at Clemson. Having Frank Reich in his ear over Garrett Riley is a massive upgrade. We are talking about the former head coach of the Indianapolis Colts, instead of Lincoln Riley's kid brother. Of course, Klubnik has to realize that talent will only get him so far professionally.

Swinney may always be in his corner, but Klubnik is soon to find out how tough it is to play in New York. Every team in the NFL has made the postseason more recently than the Jets. This is why pessimism has grabbed hold of the Tri-State media surrounding this moribund AFC franchise. Then again, Klubnik learned so much over the last few years at Clemson that it could help the Jets.

We are talking about a five-star talent coming out of high school, falling to the flightless Jets in the fourth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. While where you land matters, Klubnik may have experienced enough adversity to overcome the persistent challenges of playing in New York. Nothing came easy for him at Clemson. Thankfully, his former head coach never turned his back on him while in school.

The NFL may be short for Not For Long, but Klubnik is not going to let someone else write the narrative on his football life. He has a professional journey to embark on and see through. There were moments at Clemson where Klubnik flashed the same familiar brilliance that made Deshaun Watson and Trevor Lawrence legends. Now that he is in the NFL with them, he has time to go make his mark.

Swinney was willing to play the long game with Klubnik at Clemson. Perhaps the Jets will do the same with him at the professional level?

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