There is wide agreement here about the Jets needing to add a TE, possibly two, in the offseason. At least one should come from the draft. There are many to choose from. Below are some(ok many) of them. Jaylen Wydermyer Isiah Likely Charlie Kolar Trey McBride Jahleel Billingsly Jeremy Ruckert Cade Otton Sam LaPorta Will Mallory Which one is the best fit for the offense? Is there someone not mentioned who should be given a look?
LaPorta/Kolar/McBride in no particular order. Billingsy had issues with Saban and had trouble getting on the field because of it. I like Isaiah Likely but he’s small and will be a developmental prospect given the small program he comes from. I think he’s way too high on these draft boards for that reason. He’s going to get manhandled blocking his first year or so.
I like McBride and Otton a lot. I’m very intrigued by Wydermyer, he’s not the best blocker so I’m not sure if he’s the perfect scheme fit but he’s an absolute matchup nightmare so I’d like to see how LaFleur would use him.
Brant Kuithe, undersized TE from Utah, late pick prospect. This would work for me if a trade back happened for extra late picks, 2 TEs. Wydermyer early (big bodied with good hands) if he drops to the 2nd and this guy late for the versatility pick. Kuithe can move around the field for audibles, into a second TE alignment, into the slot and into FB and is an aggressive blocker. Also aggressive in the open field with the ball. Thanks to King Roach for turning me into this guy.
Thanks for posting this. I noticed him in the Utah-OSU bowl game and wondered about him. I wonder how good of a blocker he is and if the Jets might want someone with his versatility even if he isn't much of a blocker. 6'3" and 230 lbs. isn't ideal for a TE, either, but I could see him being a very good weapon in the NFL.
The Jets TE room has been a black hole since Keller destroyed his knee. Throw the bag at Dalton Schultz and draft Trey McBride.
I love the idea of Schultz on the Jets though still debating if he'd be worth the money he'll probably get on the market. $12.5-14m has been the APY for TE contracts in 21'. NE signed each of their TEs last year for 12.5/yr and Goedert and Mark Andrews each got about $14m/yr. Dallas has a lousy cap situation so I do think there's a chance he'll be available though. Regardless, I like the idea of doubling up at TE and looks like a lot of prospects that can be considered on Day 2 or 3. Appreciate the prospect lists and breakdowns.
I understand that the Jets will have to overpay to get Schultz, as will anytime in FA, but in my mind it's 100% worth it. Adding a security blanket and extremely talented tight end for Wilson will be huge for his development. Plus, the position has been so bad for so long that it's worth the bag.
I don't understand the love for Trey McBride. He's as big as an OL, but isn't very fast, smooth, nimble and goes down on first contact. Granted, I need to watch move film of him as I've only watched a highlight tape so far, but a highlight tape should make him look great, and imo he doesn't. I think Cade Otton looks better in his highlight tape than McBride does. What am I missing? Based on what I've seen from posters here, I expected McBride to be very athletic and maybe a Mark Bavaro clone. He is nowhere near being either imo.
Here's a highlight tape that's pretty short (little over 3 mins) that does a good job of showcasing what he can do as a pass catcher. A lot of his value is as a blocker though and while he's not an elite blocker, he's very willing and has good fundamentals. I think TE 1 is a toss up between McBride and Wydermyer and it really just depends on what you want from your TE. I really hope we can land 1 of McBride, Wydermyer, or Otton. I'd probably wait until the 3rd to draft a TE though (unless we gain an extra 2 in a trade down scenario) which means we'd probably be looking at Otton or Ruckert.
I want Wydermyer. He has the size, speed, and athleticism. I would prefer that he is a good blocker, but from what I've read so far, he isn't. Still, we need a receiving TE most of all. Hopefully, we sign a FA TE like Shultz, Njoku, or Mo Alie-Cox. I like what I've seen from Otton and Kuithe as well. That is the highlight tape I viewed. He appears to have great hands and great focus, but his balance doesn't look to be good at all, he went down a couple of times on his own when making a catch and there's no reason he should have. I saw him break two tackles. Someone that big should be breaking a lot of tackles at the collegiate level. Almost always, he goes down on the first hit by a DB. Sorry, but I just don't see it. In addition, if the Jets aren't drafting a TE until the 3rd round they won't sniff Wydermyer and maybe no McBride, either. TE is one of the biggest needs we have. We don't have a single quality TE on the roster. Hopefully, Yeboah can develop into one, but that's not a given. The only reason we shouldn't be taking a TE in round 1 is that there isn't one of Pitts stature. I think we absolutely must use one of ourt two 2nd rounders on a TE, especially if we don't sign one of Shultz, Mo-Alie Cox, or Njoku.
McBride runs like Gronk. Which is great, except he's also going to get hurt a lot like Gronk. Getting teed off on by safeties and LBs takes its toll.
I gotta watch Otton. Washington was unbearable to watch this year so I didn’t catch many games. Dude’s got soft hands like Gronk as well and is awesome at catching the ball on pop passes up the seam. Smart kid whose played a ton of football too.
I agree with a lot of what you’re saying and unfortunately there’s no Kyle Pitts-esque prospect in this class. That’s the main reason I think JD will be very active in the FA TE market. Hopefully we’re going into the draft with Schultz/Njoku/Tonyan/etc., Kroft, and Wesco already set at TE. That would give us a little more flexibility on how to address the position in the draft. However, if we’ve got something like that we could wait until the 3rd and still get a very solid TE prospect like Otton, Ruckert, or Likely to pair with what we already have.
Yeah I'm not kicking him out or anything but you need a stable of TEs with a guy like that. Like the Cowboys have had for like 2 decades.
Hopefully the Jets are smart enough to recognize that it’s OK to have a decent tightend, let alone a couple. I’m not really sold on Dalton Schultz as a big money target either for this team. Seems like a good player but he’s had a lot of room to operate.
