Draft Preview: New York Jets

The New York Jets landed one of the top free agents in the 2019 season as they signed running back Le’veon Bell to a 4-year $52 million contract. With other off-season acquisitions such as linebacker C.J Mosley and offensive tackle Kelechi Osemele, Jets fans believed they had built the foundation to a winning team.

The Jets 2019 season hopes of making a playoff push were shattered due to the number of injuries the team suffered throughout the season. The most notable was starting quarterback Sam Darnold missing 3 games as he was diagnosed with Mononucleosis after week 1.

The Jets finished the 2019 season with a record of 7-9 missing the playoffs for the 9th consecutive year; they now have 8 overall picks in the upcoming draft. Here are some positions the Jets could look to address in the draft.

Wide Receiver

One of the Jets top receiver last season was Robby Anderson who finished his season with 779 receiving yards and 5 touchdowns. Anderson is now a free agent and is looking for a contract that gives him an annual salary of $10 million and with no reports of Anderson and the Jets involved in contract talks, it looks like he will be joining another franchise.

The Jets now have a receiving core led by Jamison Crowder who is an underrated receiver with high potential. If New York can have another top receiver lineup opposite of Crowder they can have a top receiving duo for the future.

A prospect to look out for is wideout Jerry Jeudy who is considered to be the top receiver in the draft. Jeudy finished off his final collegiate season with 1,163 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns being the go-to receiver for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. After the catch is where Jeudy shows out as he is one of the fastest players in the draft and with his elusiveness makes him a huge threat in the open field. If the Jets pick Judy up with the 11th overall pick they can pair him up with Crowder they will have one of the best duos in the future.

Offensive Tackle

The Jets really struggled with their offensive line this past season and with the Kelechi Osemele drama, it didn’t help the team. Guard Osemele was one of the Jet’s top off-season acquisitions as they hoped he would improve their o-line, but Osemele would end up getting hurt by week 3. Osemele would then get into a whole argument telling the Jets medical staff his shoulder injury required surgery the Jets medical staff disagreed, Osemele underwent surgery that would keep him out of action for the rest of the season resulting in the Jets releasing the 2x pro bowler.

The Jets also lost Center Ryan Kalil who struggled then was placed on Injury Reserve with a knee injury and right guard Brian Winters who suffered a re-dislocated shoulder. Offensive tackle Brandon Shell was named a starter before the season but lost his spot to rookie Chuma Edoga who would end up suffering a knee injury week 8 vs the Jacksonville Jaguars that would keep him out for the season.

A prospect to look out for is Prince Tega Wanogho, a 6’5 307lbs offensive tackle out of Auburn who had a decent season. Wanogho did show great potential in many games but some scouts still feel like he needs a little more development to take him to that next level. Without a doubt, Wanogho has a great skill set with his size and somewhat quick feet with some help from NFL veterans he can really help the Jets o-line problems.

Defensive End

The Jets finished with the 10th fewest sacks in the 2019 season with 35 after finishing the previous season with 39 which was tied for 16th most by a defense. New York traded away starting defensive linemen Leonard Williams before the trade deadline to the team they share a stadium with the New York Jets for a 2020 3rd-round pick and 2021 5th- round pick.

The Jets sack leader was strong safety Jamal Adams who had 6.5 sacks and the runner up was linebacker Neville Hewitt who finished with 3 sacks. New York’s most sacks by a d-line position player was nose tackle Steve McLendon who finished with 2.5 sacks for the season just missing to tie his career-high by 1 sack.

A prospect to look out for is defensive end Marlon Davidson who is coming off a good season at Auburn. Davidson finished the season with 7.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles which is quite impressive considering he was also lined up with Derrick Brown and Nick Coe who are also great players. Davison doesn’t have the best skill set but he always finds a way to contribute to the defense with his high IQ of the game makes him unique from other defensive players in the draft. Davidson can also play defensive tackle which makes him an ideal pick for the Jets since he is such a versatile player.