We should address the OL on day 2 or day 3 for depth. Especially with reports DT wants to continue to play. We really don’t have a hole on our OL I don’t know why we should spend a high pick on OL?!?! LT: Becton/Fant LG: AVT C: McGovern RG: DT RT: Fant/Moses looks solid to me
if we can fix the RG spot that easy it would be great. I hadn't heard anything about LDT wanting to stay here though
yah i seen that earlier today. That's pretty awesome. it's good players like being here and good if we can fill the RG spot before draft. I'd be happy with becton, AVT, mcgovern, LDT, and fant. then we don't have o-line as a priority. we can take a cole strange or lindstrom in the mid rounds. use our top 4 picks on edge, WR, TE and a BPA. that means (and i'll do it in a way you like) we could move back with 1 of the picks to get extra picks and still get jermain johnson, burks, mcbride, and maybe a cine, mcduffie, or brisker with the 4th pick. i'd be pretty happy with that
Technique is sound but he is way undersized. I can't see how he holds up at the next level unless he really bulks up. He just looks way too lean. Granted he's got 6'6 frame, so maybe there is room to bulk
Would you take Ikem Ekwonu at 4? This dude's technique is SO raw, but his athleticism is insane, and the ceiling is high. The pure violence he plays with is something the Jets line currently lacks, Becton is a mauler, but Ikem is a straight killer. If you're in the man's path, he's putting you on the ground or punishing you 14 yards off camera.
And play him where? Guard? Taking a guard at #4 would make me nauseous. I just can't understand the logic behind taking an OL at #4. We have Fant at LT who's very good and Becton's fine if he can stay healthy (big if, granted). I just don't think it's remotely smart to burn a #4 overall pick on an insurance policy for Becton. If Becton is still unreliable next year then by all means it's time to look for a replacement, but it's too early to do that and #4 overall is too valuable.
If Becton doesn't work out, shows up out of shape again, and injured, then it will be too late to do anything of real value at that point. You have to objectively look at his record - the Parcell's Dictum - and ask whether you can count on him. I think the answer is no, and if that proves to be the case, that's another big hole in the OL. Given we haven't had a decent OL in over a decade, I'm going to err on the side of caution and want to draft another stud there.
The problem with waiting until next year is this: Let's say Becton comes back and is in marginally better shape and plays poorly. This year is key in the development of Zach. The last thing he needs is to be running for his life because his LT or RT are struggling in pass protection. So if we go that route and Becton does play poorly and we have to look for a new OT in 2023, are we going to give Zach a 3rd year without labeling him a bust? You know as well as I that many Jets fans will not, some in the media will not, and for that matter, you probably wouldn't either, since you already have strong doubts about him. The OL needs to be rock solid so there are zero doubts when it comes to Zach and so he has the best opportunity to develop. Normally, I would agree that I would be vehemently opposed to taking an OG in the top 10, much less top 5. I would also normally strongly agree with the idea that using the #4 pick on insurance is nuts. This isn't a normal situation, however. We're trying to develop a young QB and ascertain if he is our QB of the future. NOTHING is more important than that. If that's what we have to do to ensure that Zach has every chance to develop and our offense to flourish, then that's absolutely what we should do. As I stated in another post, JD can re-sign Joyner or even Maye for that matter (Maye to an incentive-laden deal), sign another S in FA, and then draft a S, and we will be more than fine at S. Having a stud S is a luxury at this point in the Jets' development. I think the best and quickest way to improve our secondary and our D is to use FA to address those needs. Sign a S, sign a CB, cut Rankins and sign a run-stopping DT. The only position on D that I think is crucial to draft is Edge.
I'm not a huge fan of going guard at #4 but the logic of "We have two tackles already" is that even ignoring Becton's issues, Fant is on the last year of his contract. Assuming any of the big ~4 tackles works at guard (which is not necessarily the case), which is a hole on our offense, you'll know by the end of the year if Becton is worth keeping around and/or Fant is worth resigning. One of them won't be around if we take a #4 overall tackle. The draft is ultimately about getting value on rookie pay scales, and if you can lock down a high end tackle for 5 years that's worth a #4 overall pick. The main issue I'm having is that Ikem and Neal have major upside but neither are slam dunk players. The potential is there obviously but when you're taking a #4 pick at what's ideally an insurance policy taking a guy that has serious holes in their game is a huge risk.
I think they can do both. I don't think there's a WR in this class rated as good as Chase, meaning IDK if there's one worth taking at #4 and that you couldn't get or get one as good as that with a later pick. OTOH, I'm almost certain Neal and Ekwonu won't be there even at #10. So if one of the two top Edges isn't there for us, I think they should take either Neal or Ekwonu if available at #4, then take the best WR available at #10, then grab the best TE with their 3rd or 4th pick.
What serious hole(s) does Ekwonu have in his game? I haven't done a lot of research into Hamilton, but I've seen several things that have indicated that his game isn't finished or polished either, so it sounds like he still has a hole. The bottom line is that no draft prospect is perfect. Some are more developed/polished than others. Some have higher ceilings than others, but are rawer. GMs have to pick their poison. They can go with a prospect who may seem safer, but may only be an average or above average pro or they can go with a prospect who is riskier, but if he develops can be a stud/star. That's why the draft is a crap shoot. Some players develop late, while others don't develop at all. Some "safe" picks that are extremely talented, bust.
Yes is I think the short answer. But not only plays guard immediately and at a high level (presumably) he hedges/backs up/insurance policies/deepens like... everything. So from that sense he's not "just a guard" He's a potentially excellent player and with him and LDT on board pretty much no matter what goes wrong Zach's protection should be able to absorb it and remain completely effective. And while thats not exactly a bad strategy or situation to be in general, given the fact that the Jets are desperately trying to develop a long term solution at QB this would seem to me to be an excellent way to deploy resources. You've blown your wad on a #2 overall QB. Go the extra mile to get him as much help as possible. Unless one of the big edge rushers is available I think Ekwonu would probably be my personal choice currently. If the Jets trot out him, one more effective WR they get somewhere (either draft, trade or FA... don't care how), two new TE's along with the rest of the returning crew I'm not necessarily saying they will take the NFL by storm but I'd be feeling awfully good about it. And even if doomsday happens and Zach totally folds up and fails at least you'll never be left thinking you didn't give him every possible chance.
And you can't plug him at Guard until he can move to Tackle next year (which he has experience at)? Fant played well this year, but will he repeat? If he does, will he be here in 2023? And what will Becton look like when he comes back? The dumbest thing you can do in football is ignoring your OL, and that's something this franchise has done for the past decade. I don't know about you, but I'm tired of watching our QBs get chased all over the field, and then celebrating a moral victory cause they managed to score 20 points.
And if you spend #4 on another OL you may not need, will he come with a guarantee that he'll outperform those guys you already have and won't get hurt? It's okay to say if Becton is healthy, if Fant is extended, but it's not okay to think spending the fourth pick on a guy who might not get off the bench is not such a great idea?
You don't think Ikem and Neal would slot right into a starting role at #4 or #10? There is no way he rides the pine with this line.
