Borrowed from another website. Not my offseason view. Here is my vision for the NY Jets 2021 Offseason. First and foremost, on Monday December 28th, 2020 Joe Douglas will call Adam Gase into his office, thank him for his years of service to the Jets and for getting him the 2021 #1 overall pick, and hand him his walking papers. Jets fans everywhere rejoice!!! New coaching staff: After a month-long coaching search, the New York Jets name Matt Eberflus as their next head coach. Eberflus will bring a much-needed jolt of energy to the New York Jets that they haven’t had since Rex Ryan’s early days as head coach. The job Eberflus has done in Indianapolis shows that he is ready to take the next step and he beats out the usual cast of characters (Bienemy, Harbaugh, Roman, Campbell) due to his energetic personality and his desire to work for the win. To pair Eberflus’ enthusiasm and energy, the Jets hire Phil Longo as their new offensive coordinator and QB coach. Longo is a proponent of Mike Leach’s "Air Raid" offense, although he does like to run the ball as well. Longo is currently running the offense at UNC working for Mack Brown. In 2019, the Tar Heel offense ranked 12th overall with a freshman signal caller, Sam Howell (more on him later). While Eberflus will be hands-on with the defense, he brings in Kris Kocurek to be his defensive coordinator. This will be Kocurek’s first time as a defensive coordinator, but he is a highly respected defensive line coach who revitalized the 49ers defensive line after stops with the Lions and Dolphins. It will be Kocurek’s primary focus to get everything he can out of Quinnen Williams. Free Agency: To free up some more cap space, the Jets cut Henry Anderson (8.2 million savings), George Fant (7.4), Alex Lewis (5.4), and Ryan Griffin (1.7). This puts the Jets potential cap space at $105 Million due to their cap commitments and rollover from 2020. As their top priority, for the second straight year, Joe Douglas attacks the offensive line and signs Joe Thuney to a 4yr $62 (50 guaranteed) million contract, making him the highest paid Guard in the NFL. Sorry, but we will still need to overpay, and we need his stability on the interior OL. This is a huge upgrade over Alex Lewis and will hopefully get Connor McGovern back on track. As priority two, Joe Douglas fulfills his promise to Sam Darnold (more on him later) and provides him with a true #1 WR, Allen Robinson at 4yr $80 (50 guaranteed) million. The Jets give Robinson the identical numbers to what Keenan Allen received from the Chargers, making him the 3rd/4th highest paid WR in the NFL. Additional notable signings: Brian Poole 3 yrs – $16 (10 guaranteed) – he has proven himself (Extension) Jamison Crowder 3 yrs $24 (12 guaranteed) – lowering his 2021 salary to 8 Marcus Maye 5 yrs - $40.5 (18 guaranteed) – looked at Micah Hyde’s deal and upgraded a bit Jamaal Williams 2 yrs – $8.5 (4.5 guaranteed) – JD special 2 year deal only 1st guaranteed – prove it Vernon Hargreaves 2 yrs – $6.5 (3.5 guaranteed) – JD special 2 year deal only 1st guaranteed – prove it 2021 NFL Draft: Sorry for all of the TLaw fans out there, but this is a rebuild and the Jets need to do that through the draft. The #1 overall pick could be used to get 1 potentially great player, or another great player +++ and I am going with the +++. I used PFNs Mock Draft Simulator tool for this. With the #1 overall pick, the New York Jets have traded the pick to the Jacksonville Jaguars for the #2 overall pick, the #25 overall (Ram’s pick), their 2nd rounder #34, as well as their 2021 1st and 2nd rounders. 1st Round #2 overall: OT Penei Sewell, Oregon – Rationale – The Jets need to build a wall of protection around their QB. Sewell is an absolute beast and is said to be the next great NFL left tackle. He is another mountainous individual standing at 6’6" and weighing 331 lbs with freakish athletic gifts. In conjunction with this pick, the Jets will move Mekhi Becton over to the right tackle position where his dominant run blocking can be taken advantage of. Bookend tackles for the next decade…..Check. 1st Round #21 overall (Seahawks pick): WR Jaylen Waddle, Alabama – Rationale – The Jets need more firepower for their QB. Waddle has slipped due to his season ending (maybe) ankle injury. He had been thought of at or near the level of Chase and Bateman, so the Jets are happy to see him at this spot. Waddle slots in as the #2 WR behind FA acquisition Robinson and ahead of last year’s 2nd rounder in Mims. A top 4 of Robinson, Waddle, Mims and Crowder is a giant leap forward from the 2020 WR group. 1st Round #25 overall (Ram’s pick): TE Pat Freiermuth, Penn State – Rationale – Unfortunately, Kyle Pitts was off the board already, but Freiermuth is an instant starter for the Jets at TE. Baby Gronk is considered by many draft analysts to be the best TE in the 2021 draft. While not as explosive as Pitts, Freiermuth is considered the more complete TE who can catch and block. 2nd Round #33 overall: DE\Edge Carlos Basham Jr., Wake Forest – Rationale – The Jets have neglected the outside pass rush for a long time, not anymore. Basham Jr. is the cousin of current Jet Tarell Basham who had 11 sacks in his redshirt junior season. At 6’5" and 284 lbs, he will slot in as the weakside DE in the Jets 4-3 defense under Eberflus. 2nd Round #34 (Jaguar’s pick) overall: CB Asante Samuel Jr., Florida State – Rationale – After neglecting the defense in round 1, the Jets pick two defenders at the top of round 2. Samuel Jr, son of 4-time pro bowler Asante Samuel is the top CB available at this point of the draft. He would slot in as the Jets’ #2 CB behind FA acquisition Vernon Hargreaves at the start of the season and hopefully grow into the #1 CB before the end of the season. This completes the 2021 portion of the Trevor Lawrence trade. In return for Lawrence, we get a starting LT, a starting TE, and a starting CB in addition to a 1st and 2nd rounder next year to build through the draft. 3rd Round #65 overall: S Paris Ford, Pitt – Rationale – BPA at this point in the draft and with the failure of Bradley McDougald, Ford will provide depth at both safety positions and could potentially start at some point over Ashtyn Davis as he is more polished than Davis was when coming out of college. 3rd Round #84 (Seahawk’s pick): TE Brevin Jordan, Miami – Rationale – Jordan had a 1st round grade until an injury this season dropped him down into the 3rd round. His receiving skills are the primary focus of his game and he will provide a nice complement to Freiermuth in two TE formations. The Jets’ TE room is atrocious and needed this double-up to make things competitive. 4th Round #96: CB Derion Kendrick, Clemson – Rationale – Solid depth corner, slots in at #3/4/5 on the depth chart with Hall and Austin. 5th Round #135 (Giant’s pick): OT Daniel Faalele, Minnesota – Rationale – There was way too much McDermott and Edoga playing in place of injured players like Becton and Fant in 2020. Faalele is another mountainous individual at 6’8" 400 lbs and moves well for his size. He becomes Becton’s immediate backup. 5th Round (Trade) Jets send #128 and #211 to Carolina for #136 and #167 and at #136 select: Edge\DE Shaka Toney, Penn State – Rationale BPA at a position that needs depth. Toney slots in behind the Basham cousins and into the mix with Zuniga as a situational pass rusher. He will need to make his mark on special teams. 6th Round #160: RB Chuba Hubbard, Oklahoma State – Rationale – A little surprised that Hubbard was still around, but he would have a chance to compete for carries in the Jets backfield with LaMical Perrine and Ty Johnson. 6th Round #167 (Panther’s Pick): IOL Michael Saffell, Cal – Rationale – Injuries have somewhat derailed what looked to be a promising college career. Saffell could make the 2 deep at either Guard or Center with a solid training camp. 2021 Depth Chart: QB: Sam Darnold, James Morgan RB: Jamaal Williams, LaMical Perrine, Chuba Hubbard, Ty Johnson WR1: Allen Robinson, Denzel Mims WR2: Jaylen Waddle, Jeff Smith WR3: Jamison Crowder, Braxton Berrios (KR\PR) TE: Pat Freiermuth, Brevin Jordan, Chris Herndon LT: Penei Sewell, Chuma Edoga LG: Joe Thuney, Michael Saffell C: Connor McGovern, Josh Andrews RG: Greg Van Roten, Andrews\Saffell RT: Mekhi Becton, Daniel Faalele SDE: John Franklin-Meyers, Jabari Zuniga DT: Quinnen Williams, Nathan Shepherd DT: Folorunso Fatukasi, WDE: Carlos Basham Jr., Shaka Toney OLB: Tarell Basham, Bryce Huff MLB: CJ Mosely, Blake Cashman OLB: Neville Hewitt, Harvey Langi CB1: Vernon Hargreaves, Bless Austin, Derion Kendrick CB2: Asante Samuel Jr., Bryce Hall Slot: Brian Poole SS: Marcus Maye, Paris Ford FS: Ashtyn Davis, Matthias Farley PK: Sergio Castillo P: Braden Mann LS: Thomas Hennessey Summary: While many are hoping for Trevor Lawrence to be the franchise savior, I firmly believe that we have too many holes to fill to be blinded by the bright shiny object. I am giving Sam Darnold one more shot to see if, with a better supporting cast of OL and WRs\TEs, he can live up to his potential. I believe this team, with some solid play from the QB position can challenge for a playoff position having filled quite a few of the existing holes and bringing in some competent coaching. If Sam Darnold fails with this cast, just remember the Phil Longo\Sam Howell connection that I mentioned earlier. In this event, the Jets could have two top 10 picks (Jets and Jaguars) in 2022 plus a 3rd first-rounder (Seahawks) to move up and get Howell if they need to.
To move up 1 spot ,why would the jags give up so much?,it leaves them with no body to build around for 2 yrs You are saying 3 number 1s , 2 of which will be top 5. Plus 2 picks in the low 30s . No gm is that dumb to move one pick
Sorry, but imo this is absolutely wrong and awful, from the CS, FA, and through the draft, even though some of the players you added in the draft are good and I'd like the Jets to add. Passing on Lawrence would be calamitous, and probably only topped by your CS..
Learned a new word today. Thanks lol Also yeah nice read booz, but it's a Randy jackson no from me. Give me Trevor.
Yesterday cemented that Darnold is no more than a future journeyman backup. I wish him well, but, give me TL!
I liked moving Davis to FS. Adding Joe Thuney and Sowell to the oline along with Becton will make ANY QB look like the 2nd coming of Namath! Don't know much about the coaching staff, but the team you built would get us deep into the POs the first year. It'd be nice if after trading with Jacksonville, we could trade down again with a team that wants Fields at #2, if we could still get Sowell. That'd be SWEET.
Well this was certainly an interesting read. I appreciate the research and effort you put into this. I like reading everybody’s “ off season plan “.....and it’s good to see a different take every now and then. That being said - I can’t comment on the coaching staff since I really don’t know anything about these specific coaches - but I don’t see JD passing on Trevor Lawrence under any circumstance. With the #1 pick and one of the best QB prospects in several years sitting there he has to make the move. Now is his chance. Even if JD decides to keep Darnold as insurance while Lawrence takes his lumps in training camp.
Kudos for the effort! But while I might see a trade back possibility, I don't see the Jags giving up all that to move up 1 spot. That said, they would likely give up a substantial amount so swapping picks with them could be attractive. If I did do that though I would be taking a QB with that #2 pick, either Fields, or at this point I'm leaning towards Zach Wilson. In any case, I would not be going forward counting on Darnold as the FQB...maybe as a back up, or to play a half season while my new QB sits and learns, but there is no way Darnold can be counted on to be the FQB. After that first pick, I would be looking at the best option between the BPA for pass rusher, OL, WR, and proceed accordingly form there for the next few picks. after the 4th pick I'd be looking for a RB or CB if possible, but if no good ones of either position are there, I'd look to take another WR or OL. As for your HC selection, I don't know anything about him or the assistants so I won't comment, except to say I'd probably look at somebody like Fitzgerald, or Harbaugh, or maybe one of the "hot" coordinators. Anyway, again, thanks for the food for thought.
Pass up on a once in a generation QB prospect to to take a tackle? Please. Lawrence is why any decent coach would want to come here. Fant hasn’t been that bad and with Becton, Thuney, McGovern, Van Roten and Fant this is an above average offensive line.
This so well thought out and definitely an A for effort. Eberflus Is an interesting pick. I must say it’s a bit out of left field but I like it and could work. I prefer Bienemy, Harbaugh, Riley and A Smith. Simply because we are taking Trevor Lawrence and building around him. My left field coach is Sean Payton. I got a feeling he might not want to rebuild with the Saints again as they are -94 mil over the cap. I like your FA moves I think they make sense. I personally like Juju better than ARob but that’s splitting hairs. Thuney would be welcomed and believe it’s viable. Sam Darnold is not a FQB and Trevor Lawrence is the best prospect in a very long time. There is zero compensation that gets you the privilege to draft a player that. He is a generational player and give our cap space and draft capital we have all the ammo to support a true FQB and build this thing the right way. No matter what the quarterback is by far the most important position in sports and supported by a offensive coach the unimaginable can happen. Boozer I respect your theory but just ask yourself this: Can Sam Darnold beat Patrick Mahomes in the next 10 years when it matters?
The "Jacksonville (or whoever) would not trade that much to move up one spot" logic is incorrect. With a "generational QB" its not a question of moving up 1 spot or 6 spots, etc. Its a trade for a specific player. In this case Trevor Lawrence. The question is how much is that player worth? The trade has nothing to do with only moving up X spots. If I see one more person insist it is smart for rebuilding teams to start rebuilding with a QB my head is going to explode. Its one of the brands of stupid that seems to be contagious on this site. If you disagree please name the rebuilding teams that have successfully done it.
The Jets are not just starting to rebuild though. It makes sense to draft Trevor Lawrence #1 overall. What makes far less sense would be Jacksonville trading their draft for Lawrence. Then they would be in a really bad spot. Neither team is in a position to package picks for a single player.
True, we have been rebuilding for 7 years. So far we have Becton and Williams as solids. Then we have Mims and a few players that show some promise. We have a long ways to go to build a champion. And were 0-11 right now. Also, this is not to you DK but in general, TL isn't a generational QB - which means there is only one a generation. He is a top prospect who has never played in the NFL. If TL is a generational QB then I guess Mahomes doesn't exist, or that he is not in TL's league talent wise? TL is a top prospect - a hot one - and thats it. We want TL to be greatly over rated. Half this board is acting with the frenzy that we want other GMs to get sucked into.
Yeah, and I think Joe Douglas thinks the way you think too, which means even if the Jets get the #1 pick they made trade it. He and his scouts are going to look at all the QB's and all the other positions as they should. Maybe the conclusion he will come up with is Lawrence is the best pick as many say, but maybe he won't. It will be a fascinating off-season. We just have to get to it first. 5 more games.........
You're wrong. It has nothing to do with logic, but rather FACTS and NFL history. The number of picks a team has to move up in the draft is always part of the formula that teams use to determine what's acceptable. Teams that only have to move up a pick or two have to give up a lot less than teams that have to move 5-10 spots, and those who want to move up from 15 spots or more, have to pay through the nose most of the time.
If Douglas passes on Lawrence and trades down, he should be fired immediately. Not only do you not pass on a QB prospect like Lawrence, but there's no way he'd be able re-sign them all in 4-5 years when their contracts are up. That would mean that just as the team is getting good and really contending, he'd have to start over with a large chunk of the team. That's if all the player he picked were good, but without a topnotch QB, chances are that they wouldn't even be that good. They' be 8-8 or 9-7, then have to start over unless he got really lucky and Morgan proved to be a solid starting QB or he was able to find a QB in a lower round.
I can rock with everything you did if you just replace #2 with Fields over Sewell and have us keep Fant. Nice job though. These take a lot of time and definitely appreciate the effort
