Of course this is only for rounds 1-3 and due to the trade back and the players that disappeared between where the Jets were and where they actually drafted post trade it's going to be incomplete until we see who the Jet get with the 5th round pick. But at this point in time I'd give it either a B+ or an A-. Williams get's an A+, consensus best player in the draft at pick 6? Smith I give an A to. He wasn't my BPA at that point, DGB was, but that was based on physical skills only and not character or work ethic. Lorenzo I give a B to for now, in part because of some players we lost in between where we were and where we drafted and who went off the board between those points. That said he's a solid player and that B could turn in to a B+ or even an A- if the Jets get a really good player who fell with the 5th round pick.
I believe you can't really grade a draft until years later. Basketball is a good example. But I like this year's draft compared to last years!
To get a true grade I 100% agree, but at this time we can only gauge by our current perspective. True grades, like you said, won't be known (hopefully) for years.
A- is a good grade to me. Leonard Williams A+ Devin Smith A- Lorenzo Mauldin B- Leonard Williams was an absolute steal. I really like Devin Smith. I'm not gonna lie...I wanted Dorial-Green Beckham initially, but now I am happier with Smith. The reason is, is that this team BADLY needs a deep threat with speed...a WR which the Jets lack. Marshall runs mid-deep routes and competes well. Decker runs good intermediate/short routes and is a solid catcher. Kerley is a good slot guy. Jets were missing the speed deep threat until now. Lorenzo Mauldin I never heard of before tonight tbh. I like his story and I will be rooting for him, but I wanted someone else there. To be honest, I disliked the trade down. A 5th Rounder and 7th Rounder mean nothing to me (nothing usually comes of players past the third round), and DeVier Posey is a scrub WR. The Jets ended up missing out on Duke Johnson as a result. Also would have like Eli Harold. Overall very solid draft. Not perfect, but definitely one of the best in a while.
Love the first two picks, and I am so-so on Lorenzo. It has less to do with him and more about the fact that we passed on other, more talented guys. Tough to give a letter grade but I would say something like a B+ or A-.
More detail.. Williams - F for need A for talent. Have to go out of our way to find a way to play him along with our other studs. Neglected OLB again, passed on a dynamic WR, turned down trade offers(granted we don't know what they were) Just an unfortunate pick that netted a great player. Smith - B not anywhere near the player White or Cooper are but this is a pretty good get in the 2nd round. Sadly, this fills one of the lesser needs we had leaving OLB behind once again because we addressed the strongest position we have at pick 6. It can be debated which duo would have been best for us as a football team (not which overall talent is best) Beasley/Smith White/Whoever Williams/Smith Lorenzo Mauldin - B have to wonder why we traded down with Eli Harold a early 2nd round talent falling down to our 3rd pick. I like this pick just question whether the trade down to get what we did was worth it. Not sure this guy fills the gaping hole we still have, not that it's expected.
I'll give it a B+...close to an A I would've selected Coleman in the 3rd instead of trading back but I'm willing to trust the front office on their pick. Gotta address oline and get a dual threat runner tomorrow and I'd probably push it to an A.
There's a RB I really like for the 7th round, just not a lot of tape on him as he didn't carry much but his measurables are off the chart.
Immediate reaction after every pick - F Hours later - C/B This is the best draft so far we've had in a few years. They haven't gone with any of the players I wanted but they haven't picked any whack busts or made reaches either. I don't think any team in particular is killing it every pick this year. Once Mariota and Cooper went off the board I really wanted Beasley, thats my biggest gripe. round 2-3 guys I wanted were Harold, Kendricks, Lockett, Coleman and David Johnson.
I love it. I haven't really been following who went where or who was on the board when we picked because I was busy. But I love the three players we picked thus far.
Leonard Williams A+ great pick Devin Smith B+ could have traded down here (instead of next round or taken DGB / Randy Gregory / Eric Kendricks, etc. (hell, Strong fell to round three) Lorenzo Mauldin C+ could be a good player for us but we could have done better especially if we didn't trade down (trade up was the smart move here) So far we are between a A- and a B+ (flip a coin)
A- thus far. Leonard Williams - A. If be met a more pressing need it'd be higher but that's how the board shook out. He's a stud though. Devin Smith - A-. He's good although I preferred Jaelen strong. There's no arguing with this guys yard per catch average. He's someone to be accounted for on every play and maybe be can round out his game. Mauldin - A-. I think he has a good shot at starting this year. He's a position of need and I'm higher on him than some guys taken above him , including Golden and Harold.
B+ - no amazing picks but more importantly no dogs or WTF picks either - I think its great to get arguably the best player in the draft at #6 but I don't like what it might mean for Wilks (who along with Mangold is my favourite player on the Jets - I know it might make sense to trade him but it doesn't mean I have to like the idea)
Yeah, A- seems right. Lorenzo will get to rotate in and spend the year learning from Pace, maybe he can even start next year, we'll see. The other two are day one starters who I expect to be stars.
Leonard Williams: A There's absolutely no way you can give this anything but an A. He is the best defensive player in the draft, he's been called the best overall player period in the draft and thankfully our GM was smart enough to pick him up once he somehow fell into our laps. Not only is he one of the best DL prospects in years, he helps us off the field in the sense that we have leverage with Mo and if it unfortunately gets to that point, we can dangle Mo in trades and assuredly get back multiple picks or a good player. Devin Smith: A- The only reason it isn't an A is because I think Strong is going to be the better overall receiver. Smith is a perfect fit for this current crop of receivers. He's the best downfield threat in the draft and we haven't had one since... I don't even know when. Great hands, blazing speed, solid football pedigree, good head on his shoulders. I personally liked this pick more than the Williams pick. And the best part about drafting Smith is we didn't draft Green-Beckham. That would have been a mistake. Lorenzo Mauldin: B I'll be honest, I have no business "grading" this pick because I don't know enough about him. What I do know is that a guy with a background like his will never ever stop fighting. I have a feeling he's going to be a player for us right away. I'm not worried about the speed at all... as someone said, you don't need 40 seconds to get to the QB. What you DO need is the ability to get through a line full of behemoths and he has that. Overall: A-
I'd rate the Jets draft as: I'm happy with it. I'm actually glad the Jets moved down in the 3rd. They ended up with a high character player, and while many here do not put much stock in the 5th round pick, the Jets have seen several 5th round picks in recent times that ended up being solid contributors for the team. I find it hard to believe that the player the Jets would have gotten is that much better than the guy we ended up taking that losing out on the extra pick would've been worth it. The extra 7th and Posey are camp bodies. Still, it's good to see the Jets are also taking ownership of improving the special teams, not just the O and D. When you don't have a good quarterback, you need all 3 phases to be very good, and special teams often falls out of sight with these things.
I wanted Eli too, but you have to wonder why all the other teams hadn't picked him up as well. Maybe they know something we don't.
