You know more than me about a lot of these players. However I have to ask, has he not been a solid three year starter for Louisville? Could it be that he is not a fast riser but is getting the credit that he deserves for being a good player that has refined his game? You know as well as I do that many of these players are not on most people radars, there are just too many college players to keep track of. Honestly I don’t want this to turn into another Larry Tunsil situation. If the Jets feel he is worth it and it’s not a character issue, draft him. If it’s a big deal to them then I’ll be fine with that as well.
Becton may be come a very solid LT in the NFL. Becton was an all ACC player and had a Day 2 grade before the combine by most. He shot up due to his 40 time in Indy. Of the top 4 OTs, he needs the most "refinement" on his technique. I don't want people to think I hate Becton, I don't. I just want to express my thoughts on what I see from Becton, I'm just bringing up facts about the player. It's Joe Douglas' decision if the positives outweigh the negatives he might take him at #11. Do we settle for the 4th best OT, or take an elite player at another position (WR)? I don't consider any of these OTs elite. Lamb and Jeudy are elite, but I understand the need for a OT. Joe Douglas has a tough decision. If he's wrong and let's say the OT turns out to be a mere average player or worse it will haunt his career. JD has a lot of pressure to get this draft right and will be judged accordingly.
It's the Jets, if they take Becton he'll become the next Vlad Ducasse... but from what I've seen in Mocks he is the OL most likely to be there at 11 so I'll go with him. My choice isn't so much who I want rather than what position they take in round 2. They need a OL / WR combo with their first 2 picks and I really don't care which order so long as they take the best available for that position when it's their time to draft. Round 1 - OT Round 2 - WR Round 3(1) - Edge Round 3 (2) - WR or CB depending on availability
I think the answer is clear: 1A or 1B is Wirfs and Willis After that, it’s fair game for Jeudy, Lamb, Becton or Thomas as equals. Personally, I would love to get Cee Dee or Jeudy and for round 2, trade up if needed for a guy like Josh Jones, Ezra if they view them that highly. Or just take Prince/Austin Jackson or best tackle available in round 2
The bold is why if Wirfs or Wills are not there at 11, you take the sure thing in the best WR on the board. The last thing JD can do is screw this pick up. Get the safest player. We don't need another Vlad Ducasse type project on the OL with an early pick (this time a first rounder).
I think you'e right. If Douglas chooses wrong, it may define his career - in a very bad way. I'm not sure he understands that. He's armed with the protection of a 6 year contract and that may make him feel free to take a chance, but I hope he doesn't. I believe that taking an OT first is the best path because the WR pool is deeper than the OT pool, but that said, he can't just take an OT if he isn't certain that he'll become an immediate starter, even if it's at RT the first year. If the OT available at 11 is not that caliber of player he has to take Lamb, Jeudy, or Ruggs, and hope a good OT is there for his next pick, or trade back a few spots for another 2nd (or more), and take a second tier OT. This draft is finally going to tell us whether we have the GM of the future, or just another GM for the past.
The Jets cannot afford to burn draft picks by trading up. You guys need to get over that idea. Good GMs don't do that. Besides, both Jones and Ezra Cleveland will go in the bottom 10-15 picks of the first round. The Jets would have to trade up into the 1st round and that would cost them a lot more. They cannot have a 2 player draft or even a 4-5 player draft. They have 8 picks and they need to come away with at least 8 players, if not more.
I disagree. The Jets cannot leave this draft without a quality LT prospect. Normally, I'd agree with you, but unless Douglas plans to re-sign Beacham, sign Peters or trade for Trent Williams, he has to come out of this draft with a quality LT prospect. IMO there won't be any quality LT prospects left after the 1st round. Sam must be protected above all else. Fant might be good enough, but Douglas can't rely on "might" or "maybe."
I think that Douglas understand this better than we do. He knows the pressure is square on his shoulders and he can't afford the luxury of a miss. He has to protect Sams' blindside, but he also needs to get a very good, if not great player with his first pick. IMO any of the top 4 OTs will be a day one starter either at RT or LT. IMO the same cannot be said for Jones or Cleveland. They may not even be ready to start in their rookie season. That's why I think Douglas may not like it, but unless he's going to re-sign Beacham, sign Peters or trade for Trent Willams to protect Sam's blindside, I think he's going to have to take one of the top 4 OTs at #11 if one or more of them is there; otherwise, he's depending solely upon Fant, and that's risky at best. If Fant doesn't prove to be a reliable protector of Sam's backside, I think that would be a much bigger mistake than taking one of the OTs and his not being a topflight OT.
Maybe. Certainly he knows his first draft, and especially his first draft pick, will have enormous attention on it, and I hope you're right. But I'm not sure he understands the depth of NY Jets fan frustration and impatience after decades of failure and mediocrity. The doubt, or lack of belief, in fans born of years of disappointment, can become a self-fulfilling prophecy for teams, similarly, fans belief and expectation for success is often transferred to their team. If Douglas blows this, it will re-ignite the SOJs mentality of the fans, and that will carry over to the team.
I just checked the site where I place my sports bets at and they have the lowest odds for us to take anyone of the three WRs, followed by all top four OTs. I have no idea how they calculate these but I thought it was interesting enough to share this with you guys.
I don't think he should worried about what the fans think, and I don't think that any GM worth a darn would worry or care about what the fans or media think. He has to do the job the best he can as he sees fit. We're all opinionated, but none of us even remotely knows as much as Douglas. We don't know his plan or specifically whom the team likes and doesn't like. We only have broad generalities of knowledge if his plan and the types of players he wants. He has to do what he thinks is right, and if Woody and Chris are worth a damn at all, they will support and back him, and not try to tell how to do his job.
Totally agree with this. IMO, there is a time and place for moving up, usually done by contenders that are one or two players away, might have picks to spare, your roster has very,very few holes and you are targeting the player, most always a QB, or elite pass rusher, a talent that can put you over the top. A roster like ours that has too many holes to be competitive begs for more and more draft choices, not less. The right play is always a trade down where you fill two positions of need instead of one, not trading up, where you fill one position of need instead of three. The biggest benefit to the Jets is not moving up, but having a GM that knows how to draft, a problem a problem that has plague us for 15 years. For once we have renewed hope on a GM that seems to really know his craft, he is under a microscope to fix a legacy of mediocre drafts and trades, and he needs to make all his draft picks count. To me, this team can hardly afford any misses in rounds 1-3, even 4, and the more in that range we have the better. He can sit tight at 11 and get a premier player, or he can move down a bit and get two immediate contributors via an extra 2nd or 3rd. Why in God's name would he risk that ammunition to trade up for an OL that while good, or very good, is not necessarily a cant miss LT. He would be better served to have Beachum in the wings for a back up role, and draft an OL later in the second round with high potential and breath, albeit not a day one starter. When we become fortunate enough to be one stud away from stardom, then by all means trade up for the guy, but please JD, don't start your career as a GM in desperate need of multiple positions by trading up. It would be a huge disappointment if you do. My two cents.
Agreed, he can't worry about what the fans think...up to a point. That is, he can't think "OH! The fans really want me to take an OT so I'd better". OTOH, he also needs to be aware that any risks he's thinking of taking might blow up much bigger than he imagined and hurt his ability to maintain fan belief and support going forward. What I'm trying to say is that if he's faced with a choice between choosing a risk and a much more certain thing, I'd advise choosing the latter until he's proven himself as a good evaluator of talent. IOW, Ozzie Smith can afford to take a chance on a player and not have it affect his reputation, but Joe Douglas is just now at the beginning of creating his. As the saying goes: "First impressions are everything".
I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree on this point because I don't think any NFL GM worries about fan support or should worry about that. As long as his boss (the owners or Team President) is happy, the CS is happy, and the team is winning or improving, he'll have all the support he needs. If the owner isn't happy, it won't matter what the fans think. As long as the team is improving and winning, the fans will be happy. No GM is perfect. They're gonna miss on draft picks/prospects. I don't think there is or should be any more pressure on Douglas because of what Mac did or didn't do, or because this will be his first draft on his own. I'm sure that his expectations of himself, and the pressure he is putting on himself far outweighs any pressure fans might exert. If fans are ready to criticize or not trust Douglas because he misses on his first pick with the situation he is in having a desperate need to fix the OL and to add weapons for Sam as well as fix the CB position and get an Edge rusher, then the problem is the fan base, not the GM. It's gonna take a lot more than just missing on his first pick when he's trying to protect our QB so he has a chance to develop into a FQB to turn on him. Douglas would have to use the first 4-5 picks on defense in this draft to make me turn on him. I wouldn't like it if he took a CB or Edge with our #1 pick, but I could understand it, and as long as that player turned out to be a very good or great player, I couldn't complain too much, although I would have thought it wiser to give some love to the offense. Now if he ignores the offense, that's an offense worthy of torches and pitchforks! LOL
I basically agree. If Thomas was the OT available at 11 I’d be happy as well. I think Thomas could probably reach the ceiling of a D’Brick ( Though I don’t expect him to play every snap for 10 years ) - Becton with his size has a higher ceiling but admittedly higher bust potential. I just happen to be of the opinion Becton will turn out to be the former. Yes I can see them drafting 2 WRs and a CB will be added high also. I see something similar to you : Round 1: OT Round 2: WR or CB Round 3: CB or WR Round 3: WR 2 or C/IOL Round 4: C/OIL or WR 2 or EDGE Round 5: RB or EDGE Round 6: any position/ value picks but I personally wouldn’t mind another OT ( who knows - maybe future RT ), another young QB to grow into a dependable back up, maybe even a K.
I think JD will do very well in the draft although one thing all of us have to remember is a lot of us will not like some of the picks - especially the mid rounds because there is a player still on the board who we happen to like. JD has been doing this for a while now with some successful organizations. Let him make his picks and as we see them play and how they fit into the Jets scheme we’ll be able to understand why JD drafted those said players.... In other words JD has a plan where Mac really didn’t ..
I agree. My comment of warning was really for the first pick because it may be such a pivotal, perhaps franchise-altering one. But at this point I do trust JD and his long experience in great organizations.
