First off, I'm not going to bother with anyone guaranteed to go in the top 15. I mean, who cares how much I like Adam Carriker, he's not going to be a Jet. In addition, I should mention that this is Jet specific. I didn't include pure man-cover corners or pure 4-3 ends, for example, I looked for people that I think fit what I think we do. Further, I didn't bother with QBs and RBs because I don't think we need either. I also discounted WRs because I have absolutely no idea how to grade them. However, at the remaining positions, I've picked out players that should be available anywhere from pick 25 to 255 and beyond that I think can help us. I've ordered them in roughly their rank, but who's to say who is a sixth rounder and who's a free aagent. I'll mention generally what I looked for, but if anyone wantsw to discuss player specifics, I'd be happy to do that as well. Mostly, of course, I just want to be able to say I told you so in case any of these players end up as Jets. OL Justin Blalock - seems fitting to start with him as he IS my favorite player in the draft (after Adam Carriker) Ben Grubbs Josh Beekman Dan Santucci Mike Jones Mike Otto For the front line starters I looked for good feet, good intelligence, and assignment discipline, but as soon as you get past Beekman, what I looked ofr was versatility, toughness and intelligence. Are they scrappy players who can fill in at guard and center or center and tackle and who have the work ethic to be ready to do that even if not starters? I don't care if they are great athletes who test through the roof, particularly for backups, but they have to understand leverage and positioning. Some people feel they can mold atheletes into linemen and this DOES work, but I'm not interested in that. DL Ikaika ALama-Francis Ray mcDonald Ryan mcBean Paul Soliai Chase Pittman Jay Richardson Unlike the OL prospects, I look for the same things in starters and backups. I want guys with great explosion who can get into blocks before the OL, but they must ahve anchor strength. I don't care if they can slip blocks or if they run a great 40, but they have to be aware enough to read the play, have good hand use to keep people off them, can move laterally to keep the play in fron of them and can shed ad make the tackle. And of course, for Soliai, I just feel that among the NT prospects, he has the most upside, so I take him. OLB Anthony Spencer Lamarr Woodley Tim Crowder Victor Abiamiri Brian Robison Zak DeOssie (with reservations) This is a relatively top-heavy group, with the lowest player being a 3rd-4th, but i guess it just speaks to the growing prominence of the 3-4 as well as the multiple demands required of the position. Here, the primary characteristisc i look for is a good motor. Secondarily, you must also ahve high intelligence, as this position does require a lot. Athletic ability, ability to bend off the edge are all important, as well as an ability to move down the line. And of course: stacking and shedding. It's so hard to find college players who can do this. ILB David Harris Anthony Waters Desmond bishop Blair Phillips Here, the main attributes are size, smarts and ability to shed. Frankly, i don't think any of these guys, other than Harris, would be an improvement of Schlegel which isn't saying much (though I still have hope for Schlegel this year), but hey, he's the only thumper we've got, so we need more. All of these guys are pretty one dimensional, but you'd be surprised how many college ILBs are one-dimensional AND can't shed. Desmond Bishop is probably the best shedder - I actually noticed it when I saw him play - but he and Blair Phillips are probably strictly backup material as they don't ahve the versatility to do anything but move downhill. CB Marcus McCauley AJ Davis Tarrell Brown Usama Young Courtney brown Marcus hamilton Corey Graham Here, I wanted people who have great agility, first and foremost, simply because the division we play in has so many smaller, agile WRs. Then I want players who are alert to zones, and have a nice laate burst. I'm willing to sacrifice tackling a bit because we have such rangy safeties with good tackling ability, and I'm willing to sacrifice strength, size and man-to-man coverage ability because of the scheme and division we play in, but I can't abide players who try to get by on natural ability. I know there will be players like Chris Houston and Aaraon Ross available at 25, but I think the drop off to players all the way down to Usama Young is negligible and those players can be had two to three rounds later. S Eric Weddle Tanard Jackson John Wendling Kevin Payne Safeties in general, are later rounders, so I only have a few of them, but I like versatility. I like players who can come down and play the slot or drop back and play ahlves. Here, more than anywhere, I like smart players who can read the action in front of them and make plays on the ball. Actually, I kind of like smart players everywhere. But I like speed, athletic ability and good hands to amke the most of what they see. I couldn't care less about having an enforcer in the middle, or someone who's strictly an in-the-box safety.
