On most draft sites it seems like Jamal Adams is rated higher than Hooker, and some have the Jets taking Adams over Hooker. But when reading about them I must be missing something. Isn't Hooker the centerfielder, that everyone (especially us) is looking for? Didn't Hooker have better stats for this year, when Adams seemed to slow down a bit? Isn't he the rare cover safety, when Adams is more of a run defender? What am I missing? Is it the injuries? Less experience?
Adams is complete he is not a calvin pryor e can cover he wont be on the board at #6 tho leader mentality love the player , i really like these two safetys i would love to snag one of them but Adams is a safer pick hooker is more upside pick basicly when you take hooker you taking a risk in order to get potentially an ed reed type of player while Adams can be your darren woodson right away.
Both bring extreme value to the Jets. Jamal Adams has that Brian Dawkins type attitude and can do anything in the field. However, I think his greatest impact is in the short to medium ranges on the field. Don't want him really playing deep safety all of the time. Hooker is the ultimate center field safety. He's a better ball hawk then Adams and has far more range. Hooker is exactly the player the Jets need. His tackling in the run game needs work. Adams has been making plays longer which gives him the arm up, but not many freaky rangy safeties come around often. I hope the Jets can grab at least 1 of those guys. Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
Give the slight nod to Adams here. Hooker's an athletic centerfielder but who has only played one season and already is coming off multiple surgeries and this after playing a style that isn't nearly as tackle-intensive as Adams, one of LSU's leaders to boot. Hooker has the athletic upside, Adams the proven polish - take your pick. However after blowing so many 2nd round picks in recent years the Jets can ill afford to miss on yet another high-round pick and why I wouldn't use a 6th on Hooker as good as his upside might be. Jets used a top-10 first round pick on Dee Milliner (5 pre-draft surgeries) who couldn't stay on the field. Can you believe Dee Milliner's still only 25 years old today and out of football? More to the point: which one's more likely to be gone by the #6 pick, Adams or Hooker? Both would be great picks, but at #6 I'm playing it safe.
Joe, I keep hearing people say the injuries are a cause of major concern, but I disagree, he's not Dee Milliner. These surgeries won't impact his NFL career unless something goes horribly wrong. The Clemson game he was already injured the entire game and prior and he shouldn't have played but he did anyway and he played at a very high level. If anyone is Dee Milliner it's Marshon Lattimore. I really like both safeties, would be happy with either, but I think Hooker is the new style center field safety in a cover zone defense. Amazing athleticism, instinct ball hawking ability. I studied this guy in his lone year, because these type of free safeties rarely come around. Earl Thomas, Reggie Nelson back in the FL days. Maybe every 4 to 5 years. The guy makes great reads and he's got the athleticism to boot. The guy can tackle, but he needs to improve on that and once he does he's going to be an All Pro Safety: https://streamable.com/2o0d1 https://streamable.com/izp59 Look at how he reads the QB: https://streamable.com/aqcyc BTW Adams is the #1 safety, that's not knock on Hooker both different players but I think Adams goes first.
I'd take Hooker and the upside personally. Leadership is great but on a team as talent depressed as the Jets, somewhat wasted. Hooker gives schematical options that Adams can't and that opportunity alone makes him a more valuable player to the Jets than Adams would today. That said Adams is awesome and wouldn't be a bad pick.
"both would be great picks" and yes, Lattimore looks like potential Dee health-wise Marcus Williams (Utah) athletic, ball-hawking FS I wouldn't mind in the 2nd round.
Hooker is strictly a FS. He has elite speed, range, coverage ability and ball skills. Adams is a great SS, a sure tackler, great instincts, and a great leader. He makes players around him better. He also has pretty elite speed, has very good, if not great coverage ability, and can also play FS. A player like Hooker is probably more rare, but also a bit more risky since he only started one year in college, is coming off two surgeries, is a poor tackler and sometimes (often?) takes poor angles. Adams is the safer of the two and if he is everything he is said to be, arguably would have the biggest impact of any defensive prospect they could draft outside of Garrett. Foster would be a huge force in the middle of the Jets' D stopping the run and covering TEs and RBs. Hooker would probably pretty much shut down the long completions and TDs. Adams could be a force vs the run and the pass, and could lead the whole D to another level. It's a tough call, and I'd love to have any of the 3, but at this point, would prefer Adams. The only issue imo is what the Jets think of Pryor. If they think that Pryor just had a bad year, and plan to keep him long term, then Hooker would probably be the better pick of the two, as I think Adams would be better in a hybrid role, or playing SS rather FS long term.
I like Marcus Williams as well, but he does have an issue with physical receivers scouting reports have indicated he's been physically outmanned. Hooker has close to 10 pounds on him. But hey if the Jets want a new safety tandem go get Adams and Williams!
Hoo boy, you're really looking to stir up a hornets nest! LOL You're gonna get all the guys screaming for the Jets to draft offense coming after you! LOL
Who is better for the Jets - Fournette or Howard. Take Obi or Budda later. One guy - even an elite guy -added to the poor to mediocre secondary isn't going to fix the pass rush or the offense, and so the Jets will continue to play from behind and lose.
I think Hooker is unique in that players who generate turnovers generate offense indirectly. I agree with Howard as the 6th pick, but if it came down to Hooker or Fournette, I'm taking Hooker.
No, they generate offensive opportunities...you still need a competent offense that can convert them, and the Jets don't have one of those. If the Jets don't upgrade their offense, they're even bigger idiots than I think they are now. The NFL is geared to helping offenses score points. The greatest "D" in the world can't overcome that fact. The Jets have been following that recipe for years and where has it gotten them? The only "D" gut who should be considered early is an elite pass rusher, but unless that was somehow Garrett, I would still take th best "O" guy available first.
People get all caught up in the "value of positions", when really a combination of how impactful and how rare a skill set is. Running back hasn't been devalued because their impact on a game isn't big, it's because there a lot of quality running backs in the league. Hell, there are a number of teams with multiple highly productive running backs. When people say safety isn't a "premium position", it doesn't tell the whole story. A rangy free safety with ball skills is about as rare of skill set as exists in the NFL. Its arguable that there are more high quality LT's, pass rushers, or even QB's than safeties with those skill sets. That's why Hooker is even in the debate of going top 5. For that matter TE's that are a true blocking and receiving threat are also fairly rare, and has a huge impact if the offensive coordinator knows how to use them.
