Apr 28, 2017; Florham Park, NJ, USA; New York Jets first round draft pick Jamal Adams during a press conference at the Atlantic Health Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Noah K. Murray-USA TODAY Sports
The New York Jets had nine picks in the 2017 NFL Draft. Now that the dust has settled, here are four takeaways from their draft.
The 2017 NFL Draft is in the books and the New York Jets are accessing how much they improved their roster. General manager Mike Maccagnan was quite busy – Trader Mike made six trades during the draft and New York ended up with nine selections in all, including four in the sixth round.
For a team with so many holes, stockpiling picks is a good idea but did Maccagnan get good value by trading down and acquiring more picks? Time will certainly tell but the Jets did pick up an extra fifth round selection in 2018 from the Dallas Cowboys in exchange for the 191st overall pick. Maccagnan continues to build for the future and that makes sense considering the Jets are in full rebuilding mode. Not much is expected of them in 2017 and that's fine – for now. Jet fans will only be patient for so long.
Here are four takeaways from Gang Green's 2017 draft:
Dec 31, 2016; Orlando , FL, USA; LSU Tigers safety Jamal Adams (33) against the Louisville Cardinals during the first half at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
1. Safety overload?
The Jets used their first two picks on safeties — Jamal Adams of LSU with the sixth overall selection and Florida's Marcus Maye in the second round (39th overall). At first glance, you might think this is excessive, going with back-to-back safeties. But when you think about it more deeply it makes a great deal of sense.
More from NFL Spin Zone
Jets fans can become nauseous recalling how bad their secondary play was in 2016. New York allowed 30 touchdown passes and an opposing quarterback rating of 98.5, which ranked 30th in the NFL. That is totally unacceptable. Starting safeties Calvin Pryor and Marcus Gilchrist had very poor seasons so it was time to reload. Immediately.
Adams is considered one of the best players in the entire draft. Not only is he strong in pass coverage, but he is a superior tackler, can play both safety positions and best of all, Adams is a tremendous leader. He has a non-stop motor and could be a Pro Bowl player right away. He's that good.
Maye (6-0, 210 pounds) can play both free and strong safety and is another strong tackler (210 in his three seasons with the Gators). He added seven forced fumbles and five interceptions at Florida and is known as a ball hawk with good range in tracking the football. Maye broke his left arm and missed the final four games of his senior season but he has been medically cleared and should be ready to participate in training camp.
The Jets had to do something big to improve the back end of their secondary. They did just that with the selections of Adams and Maye, two players that can be stalwarts for many years to come.
Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
2. Waiting on a Cornerback
Speaking of the secondary, the Jets waited too long to draft a cornerback, a real area of need. They waited until their second pick in the sixth round (197th overall) to tab Michigan's Jeremy Clark. Clark (6-3, 220 pounds) has nice size and some upside, but he tore his left ACL in Michigan's fourth game last year and was lost for the season. He is recovering, but might not be ready for training camp.
New York would have been well served by drafting a corner in the fifth round — better prospects like Elder Corn and Nate Hairston were available at the time — and then wait to draft a tight end later in that same round. Jordan Leggett, who the Jets drafted in Round 5, or Bucky Hodges of Virginia Tech would have still been available.
With their final selection, Gang Green picked another cornerback, Derrick Jones of Mississippi late in the sixth round. Jones is a developmental project at best and might not even make the opening game roster unless he can be a top-notch special teams player. Waiting so long to draft a quality cornerback might really come back to haunt the Jets.
Jan 1, 2017; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Jets quarterback Christian Hackenberg (5) watches from the sidelines during the fourth quarter against the Buffalo Bills at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
3. No quarterback selection in this draft
For the first time in five years, the Jets did not draft a quarterback and that was probably a good thing. By all accounts, this was not a strong quarterback class and if New York is going to be as bad as a lot of people think in 2017, then they will have a shot at drafting USC signal-caller Sam Darnold next year. Darnold is being highly touted as a can't miss franchise quarterback in the NFL.
Although I would not have minded if the Jets selected Deshaun Watson in the first round (he was drafted by the Houston Texans with the 12th overall pick), if New York selected Watson that meant they would not have gotten Adams. There is more of a chance that Adams is a franchise type of talent on the defense than Watson would've been at quarterback. Though the positions are of varying importance, that level of guarantee at No. 6 is crucial.
Since 2017 promises to be a rebuilding year anyway, better to have Josh McCown, Christian Hackenberg and Bryce Petty battle it out for the starting quarterback job in training camp. Hopefully the Jets will give Hackenberg, a second-round pick in 2016, a real opportunity behind center because it's time to see what he can do on the NFL level.
Jan 9, 2017; Tampa, FL, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver ArDarius Stewart (13) prior to the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
4. West Coast O Wide Receivers
John Morton is the new offensive coordinator of the Jets and he runs the West Coast offensive system so he has to be happy that Maccagnan drafted a pair of wide receivers that should fit his system well: Ardarius Stewart of Alabama (third round) and Chad Hansen of the University of California (fourth round).
Both receivers excel in a very important aspect of the West Coast Offense, yards after catch (YAC). Stewart has already been compared to Anquan Boldin, who Morton used to coach. Stewart had 54 receptions for 864 yards and eight touchdowns for the Crimson Tide last year. He does not have blazing speed — he ran a 4.49 in the 40-yard dash — but he has good hands and is an intense, physical runner with the football. In fact, 70 percent of the yards he gained came after the catch.
Hansen is another player that has fine YAC ability. He had a big season for the Golden Bears in 2016 with 92 catches for 1,249 yards and 11 touchdowns. Hansen has a strong combination of size (6-2, 202 pounds) and speed (4.53-second 40) and is very effective on bubble screens and vertical routes. He needs to expand his route tree though and break away better from press corners. Hansen was projected to go in the third round so the Jets got excellent value with this pick.
Drafting Stewart and Hansen could signal the end of Eric Decker's Jets career (we'll see what happens regarding the 30-year-old veteran in due time). Adding Stewart and Hansen to their roster along with an up-and-coming Quincy Enunwa give the Jets a young trio of upside wide receivers they can flourish in New York for years to come.
