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New York Jets Draft Guide

by Eric Kirschenbaum

After trading up for the #3 pick the New York Jets are a guarantee to pick a franchise QB with their first pick in this year’s draft, and we are all hoping he eventually pans out ( Jets fan have suffered enough around the QB position). What they do with the other (limited) picks they have left is a different story and they could go in multiple directions because they are a lot of needs on this roster. I will be basing the order of players according to my rankings that you can check out here.

First round: #3 – Quarterback

Option 1: Josh Rosen (QB): He is the best quarterback in this class and he isn’t discussed enough to be selected with the 1st overall pick by the Browns. If the New York Giants don’t pick Rosen, the Jets can grab arguably the best quarterback in this draft ( and the last couple of years too) without having to go all the way to number 1. Rosen’s footwork, mechanics, and ball placement are a thing of beauty. His injury concerns are blown out of proportion, and I don’t think he has any attitude issues ( Josh Allen’s Wyoming receivers didn’t catch passes at his pro day, no story there though…), he has thoughts outside of football, so what? Andrew Luck is super smart and talks with SAT vocabulary and he hasn’t had any issues with his teammates.

Option 2: Baker Mayfield (QB): Mayfield is criminally underrated and is almost a lock to be here at #3, Baker’s ball placement is elite and he has a very strong-arm (underrated as hell), currently my #2 QB, Baker Mayfield will bring excitement to a fan base in the need of hope after almost a decade of QB ineptitude (early Mark Sanchez was OK). His fire and work ethic will push his teammates to be better and this is a guy that had to earn everything and prove every day he belonged after being under-recruited, and being rather short for the position ( he has almost no batted passes in his career though).

Option 3: Sam Darnold (QB): The chance that Sam Darnold is available at #3 is slim, but if he were (and Rosen and Mayfield weren’t) Darnold is the pick here, he has elite traits that you can’t teach, and the kind of attitude you like out of the face of  your franchise. His footwork is messy (which has led to most of his INTs) and he has had issues with fumbling that are a bit alarming. I have heard scouts say he isn’t the best at anything (arm strength, mobility, pure passer, ball placement…) in this year’s draft, but is the best mix of all their traits put together, which I can understand. I still believe Darnold is flying a little bit higher than his 2017 tape indicates thanks to his gigantic hype after his redshirt freshman season in which he already had every scout talking about him.

Given the Jets history with tall, big-armed QBs with accuracy issues, I’m not even going to put Josh Allen as a possibility here. The Jets are the worst possible landing spot for him, with constant Hackenberg comps from day 1 and a bust label ready to be stamped after his first incompletion. And given Gang Green track record at fixing QB projects, Allen could be a huge waste of talent if he landed with the Jets.

Lamar Jackson isn’t an option here because he was a guarantee to be there at #6, so they didn’t move up to get him, I still think he will be a successful NFL quarterback for whatever team drafts him.

3rd round: #72: Pass rusher or Nnadi:

Option 1: Josh Sweat/ Lorenzo Carter; OLB: The Jets have a hole at OLB for a while now, and they need help in the pass rushing department. Josh Sweat is a physical specimen, who has athletic similarities to Jadeveon Clowney minus the hype. Sweat brings versatility from DE to OLB and would be a great value pick here too. Lorenzo Carter was all over the place for Georgia but was overshadowed by Roquan Smith’s presence in that linebacker corp. He is always near the ball and can play both the run and the pass.

Option 2: Derrick Nnadi (DT)/ or highest rated EDGE: Nnadi is too great of a talent to pass up, if neither Josh Sweat or Lorenzo Carter is available, I would be surprised if they passed on Nnadi. After an awful season for FSU, Nnadi was one of the few bright spots of that defense, constantly wreaking havoc with his great first step. He would help greatly Leonard Williams and make our defensive front two-dimensional. If Nnadi isn’t here either then they just need to pick the highest rated EDGE player on their boards, they can’t go into the season with the current projected starters.

4th round: #107: Nnadi, EDGE or Defensive lineman:

Option 1: Derrick Nnadi (DT): If somehow he is here they must pick him.

Option 2: EDGE: If defensive tackle was the pick in round three, they have to go with the highest rated EDGE player on their board

Option 3: Highest rated defensive lineman:  After cutting Mohammed Wilkerson, the Jets need to address this position ( Suh won’t be filling that spot after all), we had the most feared d-line group a few years ago, let’s make a step in that direction with some depth here and maybe a starter if they are lucky.

5th round: #157: EDGE, Tight end or Inside linebacker:

Option 1:  Highest rated defensive lineman: If EDGE was the pick in round 4.

Option 2: Troy Fumagalli/ Ian Thomas/ Dalton Shultz/ Christopher Herndon; TE: The Jets haven’t had a decent tight end since the Dustin Keller days, and we all know how that ended up. With Jordan Leggett leading the TEs, there has to be a rookie to develop and maybe win the starting spot this fall. Fumagalli, of course, would be the preferred option, but any of these guys would be a nice pick-up in the 5th round.

Option 3: Micah Kiser/ Oren Burks/Jack Cichy/ Christian Sam/ Genard Avery; ILB: I wish the Jets had more picks, Williamson and Lee will start at ILB but there is little depth and neither of them is close to being elite (or quality starter material), so a pick here to push them to play better while also an insurance in case of injury makes sense.

6th round: #179: Tight end/ Inside linebacker/ Offensive tackle or Guard:

 Option 1: Best remaining player of the above mentioned tight ends or ILB: If the pick in the 5th was a defensive lineman then the Jets have to choose whomever they have the highest grade on between those players.

Option 2: Tight End or ILB: If a tight end was picked in round 5 then the pick here should be an ILB, if it was an ILB then the Jets should pick a TE here, only out of the previously stated players.

Option 3:  Desmond Harrison (OT), Jamarco Jones (OT) or the highest graded guard remaining. If neither of these players is there then the should either pick a great tackle prospect who falls for either attitude issues, or athleticism issues but would be of great value here, with only two guards under contract as of right now getting a guard isn’t a bad idea.

 

7th round: #235: Center/ Offensive tackle or best player remaining.

Option 1: Trey Martin (C): I’m a huge Trey Martin fan and a believer in his game, I think he deserves to be drafted. Martin didn’t allow a single pressure in all of 2017, and even if he didn’t face top competition he is a very stout pass blocker and flier I would take every time in the 7th round.

Option 2: Ike Boettger (OT): Boettger is a solid lineman who can have a lengthy career in the NFL. The former Iowa standout is a solid tackle who was overshadowed by James Daniels and Sean Welsh.

Option 3: Best player available.

 

Eric Kirschenbaum is a Writer for Couch Rider Report. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook or Twitter.

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