The next two years will define the general manager’s tenure here. The Jets will have five first-round picks in those two drafts. If he can’t get that right, he won’t make amends in future years. There will be a new general manager who will need the draft to fix the Jets.
Not only does Mougey have to get it right with the first-round picks, but it would be nice if he hit on some second- to third-rounders. It’s been a long time since the Jets had it right late in the draft, which explains their postseason drought at 15, the sole owner of the longest active playoff drought in North American sports after the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres qualified for the playoffs this season.
Big weekend for Darren Mougey (photo courtesy Newsday)
There hasn’t been much buzz about what the Jets will do in this draft. This year’s quarterback class doesn’t appeal to the Jets. If Oregon quarterback Dante Moore had entered the draft, he would have been the choice. He decided to stay in school rather than play for the Jets as the #2 draft pick. The Jets are likely going to wait until next year when there’s a better class of quarterbacks out there, such as Arch Manning, Trinidad Chambliss, Sam Leavitt, Jayden Malava, C.J. Carr, LaNorris Sellers, John Mateer and Moore.
The consensus says they are going to draft a pass rusher in either Texas Tech’s David Bailey or Ohio State’s Arvell Reese as the #2 overall pick. It will be interesting to see what the Jets do when they make their picks in the later rounds.
No one, and even Mougey, knows what’s going to happen. It will come down to always getting the best player in the late drafts. That is where scouting matters. The Jets’ front office had all year to discover those players in college. The time has come to put it into action.
Drafting solely based on immediate needs would be unwise in this situation. The Jets are not that good a team to get by on filling needs. They also need to find players who won’t be worn down by the stigma of the team’s losing culture and playing in New York. Too many times, we have seen players with good intentions leave the organization in bitterness.
Breece Hall and Joe Tippmann have done fine as second-rounders. Mason Taylor showed promise last year as a second-round pick. The Jets need more of those guys than Jace Amaro, Denzel Mims, Elijah Moore, and Devin Smith, who flopped.
It’s been a long time since the Jets developed a third-rounder or fourth-rounder. Third-round pick Azareye’h Thomas was Mougey’s choice last year, and he showed he can be serviceable. Malachi Corley has done okay. But guys such as Jeremy Ruckert, Ashtyn Davis, Jabari Zuniga, Jachai Polite, Chuma Edoga, Nathan Shepherd, ArDarius Stewart, and Jordan Jenkins, among others, flopped.
Graphic courtesy NFL
To say third-rounders rarely develop into stars is not correct. We have seen players like Travis Kelce, Tyler Lockett, Mark Andrews, Terry McLaurin, Cooper Kupp, and Joe Thune turn out to be one. Mougey and his staff will earn their money and prestige by getting it right. Glenn and his coaching staff need to figure out how to develop these late players into late bloomers.
It’s unrealistic for Mougey and his staff to have a perfect draft. Still, they need to find some late-round steals in the draft for this rebuild to accelerate. It can give them more credibility and capital with the fanbase and Jets owner Woody Johnson. Shoot, it can even prolong Glenn’s coaching tenure.
So far, Mougey has shown promise by finding quality players late in the draft. The list includes Malachi Moore, Thomas, and Taylor from last season, which should be encouraging heading into this weekend.
Most of the draft picks must flourish over the next couple of years for the Jets to avoid this postseason drought lasting two decades.
