The Jets recently signed undrafted rookie defensive tackle Ben Barten. Today, we break Barten down in detail.
The 24-year old Barten is listed at 6’5” and 330 pounds and was a two-year starter for the Wisconsin Badgers, where he recorded 63 tackles, eight passes defensed, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks in his career. He previously spent time with the Giants.
Background
Barten was a three-star high school recruit, who also played guard and tackle in high school. He arrived at Wisconsin in 2020, but redshirted his first season and didn’t see the field in his second season despite seeking work on both sides of the ball.
He finally made his debut in 2022, registering four tackles in seven appearances, but established himself as a rotational contributor in 2023 with 13 tackles and a sack in 13 games.
In 2024 and 2025, he became a full-time starter, as he started 24 games in a row. He had 22 tackles and five passes defensed in 2024 and 24 tackles and a sack in 2025.
Having gone undrafted, Barten ended up with the Giants but was waived a few weeks ago and the Jets picked him up.
Let’s move onto some more in-depth analysis of what Barten brings to the table, based on in-depth research and film study.
Measurables/Athleticism
Barten weighed in at 316 pounds at his pro day, which was a little less than his listed size. The Jets are listing him at 330, which is probably more like his desired playing weight.
One issue is that he is a bit on the tall side for an interior lineman, and has short arms. He also lacks footspeed with a slow 40-yard dash and agility numbers at his pro day.
He does display good strength and some lower body explosiveness though. He posted a 32.5-inch vertical at his pro day and his 33 bench press reps would have been good for second-best at the combine.
Usage
Barten played exclusively on the defensive line at Wisconsin and while he played some snaps aligned across from a tackle and some in the A-gap, he was primarily lined up in the B-gap.
Some scouting reports suggest that if he doesn’t make it as a defensive lineman at the NFL level, some teams might be interested to try him as a guard.
Motor
Some scouting reports describe Barten’s motor as relentless as he battles for leverage and penetration in the trenches and plays to the whistle.
He has shown he can handle a big workload for a man of his size. However, his effectiveness clearly benefited from his reps being reduced in his final season.
Pass rush
Although he had two sacks in college, Barten offers very little as a pass rusher, with a low pressure rate. Offensive linemen often didn’t have to work too hard to stay in front of him as he lacked any plan or go-to moves.
He has the strength to walk the center back and collapse the pocket on early downs rushes, but that’s about all he brings to the table in this area as he was routinely taken out of the game in passing situations.
Run defense
Barten’s best trait is how difficult he is to move in the trenches. He can take on double teams and penetrate to bottle up runs or set up his teammates to make plays.
He is a little limited in his ability to move laterally but can shed blocks to get in on tackles and shoot gaps.
Technique
Barten’s height can be an issue at times because he needs to be consistent with his pad level. When he isn’t, he can be driven off his spot or controlled easily.
As noted, he has excellent strength, which gives him a good foundation to anchor himself and fight off his man’s block.
In terms of pass rush moves, he doesn’t really display anything of that nature and can only realistically be expected to produce in clean-up or blown assignments.
In some of his later film, he was trying to win with a bull-jerk move which may have some potential but the first time he tried it there was another blocker right in front of him and the other time it was successful but was far too late in the play to impact it, so clearly this needs work in terms of when to deploy it.
Special teams
Despite his short arms, Barten has shown a knack for blocking kicks with his ability to penetrate and elevate with timing.
During his time with the Badgers, Barten also rushed punts and served as a blocker on the placekicking unit.
Tackling
Barten hasn’t been a particularly productive tackler during his career, and lacks the short area quickness to close on and bring down ball carriers efficiently. He missed a handful of tackles in each of his seasons as a starter.
Coverage
Barten never dropped into coverage, and was often off the field on passing downs anyway. However, his knack for deflecting kicks also extends to the passing game, as he batted down eight passes in his college career, including five in his first year as a starter.
Instincts/Intelligence
Barten displays good instincts in the trenches as he keeps his eyes up while engaged with a blocker so he can time his attempt to shed the block or move his man into the ball carrier’s path to bottle up runs.
He is sometimes fooled by misdirection, preoccupied with his block or caught unawares by a down block, but generally his ability to read and react seems solid.
Barten was a four time all-Big Ten academic selection and on his high school honor role.
Attitude/Demeanor
Barten’s role lends itself to being someone who is tough, team-first and not afraid to do the dirty work. His teammates reportedly nicknamed him “The Professor” due to his mature and business-like attitude to game preparation, but he was also described as approachable with a light-hearted nature.
On-field discipline is not an issue with Barten, who only had one defensive penalty in his college career.
Injuries
Barten didn’t have any documented injury issues during his college career, playing in all 37 games over the last three seasons.
Scheme Fit
Barten’s NFL role will most likely be as a role-playing nose tackle on running downs only. He probably wouldn’t have been a fit for the 2025 Jets but could provide some useful cover now that the Jets will be operating out of odd-man fronts more often.
He was a teammate of current Jets players Joe Tippmann and Braelon Allen at Wisconsin.
Conclusions
We’ve seen limited defensive line prospects like Barten before that have gone on to forge an NFL career for themselves. While many of his traits and measurables are less than ideal, his strength and anchor are rare and could give him a shot at sticking around.
Those unheralded nose tackles that have succeeded have typically also had good quickness, which Barten doesn’t really display much of, but it could be an area where technical improvements and scheme familiarity start to make a difference.
You would have to consider Barten a long-shot, especially after he clearly failed to impress the Giants’ coaching staff. However, if the Jets have more patience, perhaps they can develop him into something useful.