Bobby Mushkin, @bmushkincourant
The New York Jets are one of the most famous NFL franchises in the superbowl era, from Joe Namath to Darelle Revis, they have had some real studs play for their team in their storied history. But the Jets have been struggling as a franchise of late, with less than average quarterback play, and a struggling defense, the Jets have not made the playoffs in ten years.
Today, I am going to be going over, in short, a three step offseason plan that can help propel the Jets back into the limelight as a top NFL Franchise, or at least get them a few steps closer.
The Quarterback and this years draft
It all starts at the quarterback position. If you want to be a competitive team in today’s NFL, you need a great quarterback throwing the ball for you. Without that, your chances of winning are slim to none. The Jets finished the year at 2-14, slated to take the number 2 overall pick in this year’s draft. With that, the first thing the Jets need to do is pick Trevor Lawrence, if he is available, out of Clemson. Lawrence is seen as a generational talent at the quarterback position, and in his junior year at Clemson, he has been nothing short of fantastic.
The Jets need a franchise caliber player, and Lawrence is exactly that. If the Jaguars pass up on Lawrence and the Jets have the chance to draft Trevor Lawrence, they must do that. Lawrence is the type of player who can completely change the trajectory of a team, and he will have a shot at proving that if the Jets do draft him. If Lawrence is not available at number two, the Jets have a choice to make.
There is another stud young quarterback out of Ohio State named Justin Fields. Fields is coming off the game of his career, throwing for 385 yards and 6 touchdowns against Lawrence’s Clemson Tigers. He is a multi dimensional quarterback with great pocket mobility and a very accurate arm. If Lawrence is not on the board, I find it hard to believe that the Jets would want to miss out on Fields’ talent. But every great quarterback needs weapons on offense to be successful, which brings me to my next point.
Free agency frenzy
The Jets must pick up a number one receiver in this year’s free agency. Players like Allen Robinson and Kenny Golladay are set to be unrestricted free agents this next offseason, and the Jets must make a move to acquire one of them. Golladay is a stud young receiver with a very bright future ahead of him, and if the Jets are looking for young talent, Golladay is the right option.
But I think that bringing in Allen Robinson on a four year deal might be the best move for them. In his career, “A-Rob” has put up incredible numbers with less than average quarterback play. He has had Blake Bortles, Nick Foles, and Mitchell Trubisky throwing him the ball, and has still managed to be one of the league’s top receivers. Imagine what he can do with a young, strong armed, bonafide star throwing him the ball. If the Jets can pick up one of these receivers to go alongside Jamison Crowder, Brashard Perriman, and Denzel Mims, their passing attack will be a force to be reckoned with.
What to do with Darnold
Lastly, the Jets need to flip Sam Darnold in a trade for draft capital in order to build their defense and running game through the draft. The Sam Darnold experiment hasn’t exactly panned out in New York, but that doesn’t mean that Darnold has no future in the NFL. He has shown flashes, and I believe if he were placed in the right situation, he could thrive and revive a promising career. Many teams who have quarterbacks whose ages are getting up there would be interested in investing their draft picks into a young player with loads of potential. From there, with the acquired draft picks, the Jets can look to build a more stout defense and build a more threatening run game.
Options on top of options on top of options!
An alternate scenario for the Jets this offseason would be drafting Penei Sewell with the number two overall pick, the offensive tackle out of Oregon. The Jets bolstered their line in last years draft by picking Mekhi Becton out of Louisville, and if they were to draft Sewell, they would have two of the best up and coming tackles in the league. This would fix their biggest issue; protecting the quarterback, and could serve them well. However if they were to do this they would need to stick with Darnold at quarterback and therefore would lose out on the possible trade value he brings if they draft a QB like Lawrence or Fields.
Another scenario that is entirely possible would be if the Jets looked to draft a star wide receiver. Names like Jamarr Chase, Devonta Smith, and Jaylen Waddle stick out as possible candidates for the Jets to draft. If they were to do this, they wouldn’t need to seek out a number one receiver in free agency, and could instead focus their attention on bolstering their Offensive line with a guy like Trent Williams, or they could even go after big name free agent Dak Prescott. In the end, there are a lot of things the Jets can do this offseason to turn their team around, and by bringing in the right guys, they can propel themselves back into the hierarchy of the NFL.
Overall, the future can be bright in New York if they can make the right moves and allure some of the top talent to come to New York.
Bobby Mushkin
