Aaron Rodgers suffered an injury just four plays into his first game with the New York Jets, which led to the rapid termination of the team’s season. Despite having a defense that was capable of winning a championship, the Jets finished the season with seven victories, with quarterback play that was the worst in the league. As a result, they were eliminated from the playoff picture for the thirteenth consecutive season.
On the bright side, Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall are both in their early 20s and are considered to be two of the best playmakers at skill positions in the entire sport of football. To offer supporters optimism, Rodgers made it plain that he intends to play in 2024 and flirted with the idea of making a comeback throughout the whole 2023 season. However, for him to remain healthy throughout the entire season, their offensive line needs to be improved.
In the NFL Draft of 2024, what picks do the Jets have available to them? What kind of player might the Jets select with their first-round pick? Let’s take a shot at it.
What Draft Picks Do The New York Jets Own?
During the summer, the National Football League will issue 32 compensatory picks to the Jets, and the Jets have five draft picks. The tenth overall choice in the first round is used by New York. There are four of their picks that are selected within the first 120 picks throughout the first two days of the draft.
In the first and third rounds, New York has a pick, in the fourth round, they have two picks, and in the sixth round, they have one pick. Within the context of the Rodgers transaction, their second-round pick was transferred to the Packers. Additionally, they traded Chuck Clark to the Jets for their seventh-round pick this year, and they acquired Jacob Martin from Denver with a fourth-round pick. However, as a result of that trade, they lost their fifth-round pick. Additionally, they exchanged Chuck Clark with the Jets.
With five players leaving and them signing just Mecole Hardman Jr. and Allen Lazard, the Jets are in a position to get three compensatory picks. Both are likely to be Day 3 picks in the sixth and seventh rounds.
Who Could The New York Jets Draft in The First Round?
In the year 2023, the offensive line of New York was a big contributor to the team’s problems, and very few quarterbacks would be able to produce in that situation. Mekhi Becton, a left tackle who was selected in the first round in the past, is expected to become an unrestricted free agent this year due to his bad performance in the previous year. The Jets will almost certainly try to acquire an offensive tackle to complement Alijah Vera-Tucker and assist in strengthening their pass protection. This is a highly probable scenario.
The Jets are in luck since this draft is loaded with tremendous talent on the offensive line, and they should be able to select either the first or second offensive lineman available. The most likely candidates are Joe Alt from Notre Dame, Olumuyiwa Fashanu from Penn State, Taliese Fuaga from Oregon State, and JC Latham from Alabama. All of these individuals are from different schools. When Fashanu and Alt were in college, they both played on the left side of the field. This was done with the intention of preserving their natural place among the players.
In the event that a player with the stature of Malik Nabers or Brock Bowers falls to 10, the Jets might consider drafting another playmaker to complement Aaron Rodgers. In spite of this, it appears that the Jets should devote their offseason to investing in rebuilding the offensive line. This appears to be the most critical step for the Jets to do in order to advance to the playoffs in 2024.