Something tells me we won't be in a position to take a blue chip WR prospect in 2021. Taking Jeudy in round 1 doesn't mean we can't get a good OT in round 2 and C in round 3.
You guys are entitled to your opinion but the smart move to is draft OL and get that settled first. Darnold already has a sprained thumb and a toe injury and is also running for his life. Andrew Thomas or Tristan Wirfs would be the smart pick. Of course it doesn’t matter what we think anyway. But according to what JD has said ( opposite of Mac ) championship teams are built in the trenches. I can’t see the first round pick not being OL.
Kurt and warrior: I have a draft scenario - let’s pretend the Jets have the #3 pick or even #4 and Chase Young, Jeudy, and of course Thomas are still on the board. Do you think JD takes the highest player he has ranked or trades down a couple of slots and takes whoever of the three is left ( assuming Thomas is the top ranked LT )?
I don't think that JD will be a slave to BPA, nor do I think he'll be the type to fall in love with a player. I think that he'll go with whomever he thinks could best help the Jets, which position he thinks is the highest priority or need, balanced with importance of the position and scheme fit. I think the OL will be his top priority in the draft. It could all depend upon which LT he likes best. Even if Thomas is the top-rated LT, Douglas might not like him best or think him the best fit for the Jets. I think there's a very good chance he will go into the draft hoping to trade down and get more picks, so if he gets a good trade offer, I wouldn't be surprised if he takes it, passes on all three and trades down. I think value is going to a big priority for him. He won't want to overdraft a player. He may move down to take a lower-rated player who offers better value, and to pick up some extra picks. I hope that he will be much smarter than Mac in running the draft, and won't let value prevent him from filling a position of need. Let's say in your example that the Jets have the #3 pick and he sees Thomas' value as being around 8 in the draft. If he can't trade down a spot or two, I hope that he'll go ahead and take Thomas rather than risk losing him. Teams always trade up and reach a little for players. Get the position filled and worry about value later. If he's a great prospect there isn't that much difference between the #3 and #8 pick, at least not enough to risk losing a player. He may be a gambler or have balls of steel, however, trade down and hope a player he wants is still there. If he isn't able to trade down, I think he'd be more likely to take Thomas or at least Jeudy rather than Young, simply to help Sam, but I could be wrong. If Young is rated head and shoulders above those two players and is still there, he could take Young, thinking he can get an LT in the 2nd round, but that would be very risky, and he could wind up with no LT, so I hope that he doesn't do that. I'd rather nail down that key piece to the OL to protect Sam first. I've wanted a stud edge rusher for years and hate to pass on Young, but it's more important to keep Sam safe. Assuming that there are that many prospects at each position he'd be happy with, I think he will identify 2-3 LTs he'd be happy with in the draft, 2-3 WRs, 2-3 edge rushers and maybe 2-3 centers, although I've heard that this might not be a great draft for centers. Since we need more picks, not fewer, I can't see him trading up either this year or next, unless he does trade Adams prior to the draft, and then he could possibly trade down in round one, and maybe move up in round 3 or 4 to get a C prospect he likes (or something like that). It's going to be scary, but interesting and exciting.
As of right now...I think he'd try to trade down...BUT...if this Adams thing doesnt go away & he gets traded for multiple picks..he'd likely stay put. And to the earlier points, for me it isn't prioritizing WR or Edge over OL...OL is clearly the biggest need on the team. But if we're picking top 5 right now I just don't see any OL worth the pick. I know everyone is running w. the talking head consensus that Andrew Thomas is a foolproof franchise LT but I'm not so certain about that. I've watched multiple games of him from this season as well as last & I have concerns about his ability to handle elite pass rushers as well as his mental toughness. When he gets beat it isn't pretty. He has very good mirroring skills in pass pro...but he's slightly stiff out in space. He gets beat once & suddenly he lacks blocking coordination(Feet & hands go dead) on subsequent plays. That's a bad bad sign,especially for a top 5 Tackle & even MORESO w. a QB like Darnold where pass sets will be off schedule/extended on alot of occasions. If he goes bad we're talking Erick Flowers bad. If we cant move the pick & no other OT steps up into elite status...I jdont see or think taking Thomas is the right way to go. Especially with great value on OL on day 2 AND the alternative players available to select in the top 5 who are not only superior talents but also fill glaring holes at impactful positions. If it's do or die OL in round 1...the answer has to be trading down.
If what you say about Thomas is accurate (and I have no reason to doubt you), and he can't trade down, or traded Adams and so decides not to since he has some extra picks, do you think he'd take Jeudy or Young?
Watch the Texas game from earlier this year..late 2nd Qtr onward...All the warts im referring to with Thomas are all too apparent. I still think he is a damn good OL prospect..I just dont think he's a top 5 pick bc of his floor. If his stock takes a fall I wouldn't be surprised to see teams talking about kicking him inside to guard where his weaknesses are minimized & frankly strengths are maximized. Your question is a great one..and one I keep going back & fourth on. Both Edge AND WR typically have short supply in terms of elite level prospects on a year to year basis.. so there's no tie breaker within positional rarity/scarcity. JD would prefer to build through the trenches so that's a check in Young's column but JD has also talked at length about protecting Sam, not just with OL but also providing him "Dynamic playmakers". Head to head I like Jeudy a bit more than Young just in terms of pure talent. So that'd likely be my guess. If OL is better served on day 2 JD will help Sam on day 1 by providing him arguably the best WR prospect since Calvin Johnson & Dez Bryant.I think at the end of the day going defense on day 1 sends the wrong message. Hell or high water it's gotta be offense.
Thoughtful answer.....I’d have to agree in terms of offense but I’ve heard in certain circles Chase Young is the top prospect overall. I’ve also heard Jeudy is one of the top WR prospects in recent years. It’s also a shame the Jets are in this position where they’re at the top of the draft and need so much. Just think we only have 6 more months of this kind of debate ...
Great post! Yes judging by the other day JD is going to be working the phones draft day. That is the most likely outcome I think - trading down. It would be great if one of the QBs happens to slide down.
It’s looking like at this point the mid to end of 1st rd will be hot spot for OL. With that being the case trading Jamal before draft is becoming more and more enticing. If we can come out of the first rd with a Jeudy/ Lamb type of WR prospects and a quality OL prospect that would be a hell f a start to rebuilding this O. Then we’d still have multiple picks on day two to continue building the OL as well as CB and maybe edge. As much as I really hate the idea of trading Jamal, Damien Woody hit the nail on the head yesterday and Jamal really is a luxury on the Jets right now.
I forgot about Hanson. And honestly he'd be a good start in the second. And then we can draft some his line mates like Shane Lemeiux later in the draft at least for depth. They pretty much run the entire run game through that left side. Joe D might really go overkill on offensive line and I'm honestly find with that.
If Adams gets traded for a 1st rounder in 2020, trading down might not be necessary. We can land a good OL and WR in round 1 or get 2 good OL prospects.
As I expected and mrjet80 affirms, great, thoughtful post. Thanks. I think your last two sentences are the key. While some fans obviously will want Young and be upset if Douglas doesn't take him, I think the overwhelming majority of the fanbase is sick and tired of our #1 picks always going to the D, and will be royally pissed or disappointed even if they like Young and think he's a great player. I definitely agree that it also sends a wrong message to the team. He has to show that his #1 priority is fixing the offense and making it at least an above average NFL quality offense, if not an elite one. Williams won't like it if he's back, but screw him. If the Jets stay put and both Jeudy and Young are the choices, I think he either has to take Jeudy or trade down and take an LT. What's so frustrating to me is where we could be right now with a better GM over the last 5 years. We've had the opportunity to pick an amazing amount of talent and passed on ALL of it, and picked trash instead! It's like the Jets were intentionally trying to lose and be the worst they could be. I know, I cherry-picked the names of a bunch of great players that at the time were unknowns, and we could have picked some of the other players who are lesser players in the NFL or out of the NFL entirely, but one would think that by dumb luck if nothing else, we would have added at least 1-2 of the players I list below. Starting in 2014, in the 1st round the Jets could have taken Brandin Cooks or even Dee Ford or Teddy Bridgewater instead of Calvin Pryor, then in the 2nd round taken one of Davante Adams, Allen Robinson, Jarvis Landry or even Jimmy Garoppolo instead of the colossal stiff bust, Jace Amaro. In the 3rd round, the Jets could have taken Gabe Jackson or Trai Turner instead of Dexter McDougle. Forget the rest of that draft, different picks in those 3 rounds alone would have dramatically changed the future of this team. In 2015, instead of taking Leonard Williams in the 1st round, the Jets could have taken one of Todd Gurley, Trae Waynes, Andrus Peat, Kevin Johnson, or Marcus Peters instead. In the 2nd round, instead of Devin Smith, we could have taken one of Preston Smith, Benardrick McKinney, Eric Kendricks, Mitch Morse, or Ronald Darby. In the 3rd round, we could have taken one of Jamon Brown, Tevin Coleman, Eli Harold or Jordan Hicks instead of Lorenzo Mauldin. Even forgetting the 2016 draft, if the Jets hadn't taken either Garoppolo or Bridgewater, they could have taken Mahomes or Watson, not traded all the 2nd round picks to move up to get Sam, and we could be kicking NE's ass with regularity now.
It might not be necessary, but it would help speed up the rebuild to have more picks. Instead of a potential stud WR and very good LT, we might have a very WR, very good LT, and then with the additional 2nd and 3rd round picks, also have very good RT, edge rusher, CB, and C.
Depending upon where Thomas is ranked or if Douglas believes he is a great LT prospect or a good scheme fit, it's possible that the Jets could trade Adams for a 1st, trade down garnering another 2nd and 3rd this year and a 1st and 2nd next year, and when coupled with the 3rd from the Giants and our own picks, have a two 1sts, two 2nds, three 3rds and a 4th and 5th round pick in this draft. Douglas could take a WR and LT in the 1st round, and then add an Edge Rusher, CB, C, RT, 2nd WR, OG, and another CB or OL with our other picks. That might be getting greedy, but who knows? After this season, we deserve some luck. Getting that many picks would sure go a long way towards turning the talent level on the roster around, and should help solidify the OL, offense and defense. Even knowing that all of them wouldn't start initially or ever, that's OK, it would upgrade depth and help our building for the future.
I would imagine a trade down is going to be looked at strongly but I can't imagine he ends up being too interested in it if it means he'll potentially miss out on Thomas, Little or Wirfs (depending on which they deem to grade out the best). Trade downs make sense. And I'm always in favor of them. Last year was the ideal time to do so if we weren't interested in Allen at 3. As much as I always like to see them, we really need a franchise left tackle to get this moving in the right direction. If we pickup two picks for Adams, I'm good with staying at 3-4 and taking one of them if they're there.
Addressing all of those positions would be a dream come true for sure. I'd be thrilled if we got 2 OL, 1 WR, and 1 CB or Edge from this draft. I still haven't gotten over not taking Allen in round 1 this year.
Easily the best way to get this team to be competitive in 2020. Dominate in the trenches and you'll be able to do whatever the hell you want on offense.
This is a good game (Florida vs. Georgia) to watch Thomas. Florida has a couple of good future NFL pass rushers. Thomas Is a very big man and Georgia has produced some biiiig offensive lineman. Isaiah Wynn comes to mind as of recent. Years ago Max Jean-Gilles. It'll be interesting to see how he fairs.
