Love doing these things and honestly college football is changing many looks at which players are Studs and which ones were purely overhyped. Round 1: Cameron Heyward, 3-4 DE, Ohio State. A very popular pick for us in almost any mock you see, and my thought is hey why not! He's a perfect addition to the Dline and a impact 3-4 End that can come in and start immediately. Id go OLB on this pick but I feel many3-4 OLB's will go very early and many will be picked before we pick ( Id say 28th - 32nd pick) Round 2: Ryan Kerrigan , 3-4 OLB, Purdue Kerrigan is a Sexy Rexy pick here, not 100 percent sure he'll fall all the way to the bottom of round 2 but if he's there hes a MUST pick. The attitude, leadership , and work ethic on and off the field is far superior to many NFL players today. Hes a great pass rusher and has also shown he can stop the run when needed . He's also exceptional in coverage and really can shine in this type of defense. Round 4: Andrew Rich , SS/FS, BYU A ball-hawk of a safety who hits like a truck and has the instincts similar to our own Jim Leonard. He falls this far because of some injuries he had at BYU and his lack of polish but with the Jets coordinators on his side he can really be the heart of the secondary come soon. Round 5: Brad Jefferson, ILB, Georgia Tech A great rotational LB who can play ILB and OLB . He needs to work on his run stopping but his work ethic , consistency with getting passed huge Olineman, and experience in the 3-4 Defense makes him a great pick. Injuries again set him back to this far in the draft but if he can get over his few injury plagued seasons he can contribute off the sidelines. Round 6: Harold Ayodele, NT, Emporia State ( Transfer from Tennessee State) At 6'2 338 Lbs , hes an absolute monster, he needs polishing for sure and to get into a bit better shape but he has a motor if anyone ever had one and is a steal at the end of the 6th. He doesn't have a big name but has shown consistency in stopping the run and has basically been double teamed his whole football career. Round 7: Kendric Burney, CB, UNC Kendric has great cover skills at CB but his suspension from the UNC team really killed his draft stock, if he can get his head right he can become a good nickel specialist to eventually replace Drew Coleman.
I like this mock. I'd take another BIG 10 lineman over Ironhead's kid if he's there...JJ Watt is going to be a stud. I highly doubt Ryan Kerrigan makes it to the back end of the second. I could even see him going late first. I think he'd be a great fit in our scheme, but he's too talented to fall that far. I doubt Burney falls that far, even after the off-the-field issues. Brad Jefferson's a bad man. I'd love to see him in green and white. I think he'll go a lot higher than the fifth...maybe in the third round. ...don't know much about Harold Ayodele. I'll try to do some digging. Interesting pick.
Kerrigan was my concern because I wasnt sure where he could land , to be honest Id say hes a 36-49 pick. I was hoping that he falls with the amount of OLB that will be taken by the teams who need them so early. Will see what happens with his stock Burney can go from a 5th rounder to a UDFA it all depends on his performance at Pro days and his interviews. Coming back from suspension he seemed a bit off and inconsistent and thats why I had him fall, with all the added off the field issues. I see what your getting at though. Brad Jefferson is my second favorite pick behind Kerrigan, he is a BEAST and just punishes people, his injuries though are a concern , Its not too far fetched for him to fall to the 5th. Id even trade up for him. Ayodele is my super sleeper, not many know of him but he's got raw talent and murders lineman. He'll be talked about soon enough.
I would get an instaboner if Kerrigan fell to us in the 2nd. I doubt it happens, but I really like his playstyle in our system
To be honest the Round 1 and 2 pick could be switched and seem just as possible. Its all about how they do in the combine and are rated. Last years draft showed us many of the players we thought would be there had gone much lower or where reached for by miles. It just shows the draft is a very hard thing to spot on exactly. Will just have to wait.
The more I think about it the more I dislike taking a defensive lineman (outside of a NT) in the first round. The role of the 3-4 defensive end is to basically hold the point and let the linebackers make play. Yes I know Shaun Ellis is getting up their in age and perhaps their is a possible upgrade over Devito. Still I'm so tired of our anemic pass rush and our pass rushing linebackers are all 30 or older. I'm willing to take a bigger risk on getting someone who can get to the passer, I just dont think that a 3-4 should be addressed unless nothing else is available Other than that good mock and I agree about Burney probably not being their in the 7th Also as much as I like Jim Leonhard, I'm not sure we need another one. We need an athletic guy who can patrol center field and make plays in coverage
Honestly if there is no OLB there and a good 3-4 end at our pick, we dont reach , plain and simple. Another Jim Leonhard wouldnt be terrible, itd be alot better then Pool or Eric Smith. Rich is a poor mans Tyler Sash.
Two things the Jets have to get this off season. A pass rushing linebacker to really increase the speed of the linebackers. A bigger, faster safety to replace Pool.
I mean I guess reach depends on your definition, but like I said if their is no other option I cant complain about adding some quality D line talent early on. But only if it is a last option Yes another Jim Leonhard wouldnt be terrible, but then again another Pool or Smith wouldnt be terrible either. I still would like an athletic guy who can make plays in coverage
Nah, off of game speed. We need a safety that can play to man to man with tight ends. We need a linebacker that can beat someone one on one to get to the QB and can also play the run and drop into a zone. This defense could be insane if they could get pressure with 4 and not get beat by the tight end when they send those all out blitzes.
My definition of "reach" is picking a players leaps and bounds past there value just to secure them , even when they may be there at your next pick. The problem with getting a safety early is that there is just such a huge drop off in value, it goes from 3 great safeties to 2 good to simply dicey players. It may be to much of a gamble unless one is there that is just exceptional. Similar to a Kyle Wilson type pick where he was just to good to pass up. If a kid like Tyler Sash or Deunta Williams is there by our late first round pick , we take them over need IMO unless there is a superb OLB there as well.
Like this draft ALOT. Though I would actually switch Kerrigan and Heyward as rounds 1 and 2 pick. The rest are great and i love the ILB pick we need a solid rotation there too. Great work brother!
I want Kerrigan just because of how BA that picture is. I'd switch Heyward for either McDaniel or Deunta Williams. FS is a much bigger need IMO. Rex's scheme can fill the DL with big bodies, but you can't scheme a FS who can actually play. Instead of going FS in the 4th, go DL there.
That's what I've been seeing in mocks with Heyward and Kerrigan. Kerrigan's been the top-20, 25 pick, while Heyward has dropped to mid, late 2nd.
Heyward wont regain his stock that he had before the season, but my guess is after the combine and workouts he will get his range back into the 20-35 range.
