After the New York Jets traded what ended up being their second-round pick in this year’s NFL Draft, many draft pundits have wondered if Joe Douglas would be looking for a way to recoup the selection.
This 2024 draft class is considered very deep for quarterback, wide receiver, and offensive line. All three are positions of need for the Jets. An extra selection in the top 100 would be ideal for a team looking to strengthen positions that need some reinforcements.
But that would also depend on the cost for an extra player. Are two pretty good players better than one potential superstar? That may be the decision Joe Douglas needs to make on draft day.
There is one draft day trade that many are pointing to as a logical move for the Jets and that is a swap with Cincinnati Bengals. The Bengals currently hold the number 18 overall pick in the first round and are in need of a starting tackle to protect Joe Burrow who is returning from injury. If the Bengals stay with the 18th overall pick, top rookie tackles like Penn State's Olu Fashanu, Oregon State's Taliese Fuaga, and Notre Dame's Joe Alt will be off the board.
The Jets will be in a prime spot to take at least one, if not two of those three when they pick at 10, but may not be interested in drafting a player in the top 10 who will not have a starting spot on the team.
To make the deal even sweeter, the Bengals' first two draft picks (18th overall and 49th overall) are worth a combined 1,310 points according to Drafttek.com. Those points are equal to the Jets 1,300 points for their 10th overall selection. In other words, it is almost a completely fair trade according to the draft value.
The trade would give the Bengals the top offensive tackle they covet and give the Jets the ability to take a high-upside developmental project (like Alabama’s JC Latham) or a hybrid guard/tackle like Troy Fautanu who won’t have to start right away and grab a receiver in the second round, perhaps someone like Keon Coleman out of Florida State or Roman Wilson out of Michigan.
On paper, the trade appears to be a win-win. But any Jets fan who has seen them win offseason after offseason only to fold in the regular season will tell you, the game isn’t played on paper.
New York needs to win now. Not build for the future. The Jets should be looking to take the player that helps them immediately. That doesn’t mean trade back and develop players, because if we are being honest, the Jets don’t develop players very well. There are 100 reasons why they don’t and one day I will do a deep dive into that, but it is a fact.
Instead of getting two or three players who you can pat yourself on the back for if they develop into something, get a stud who will help you keep your jobs past January. Would I rather have Roman Wilson and Amarius Mims or Marvin Harrison Jr or Brock Bowers or Rome Odunze or Taliese Fuaga? The answer is the latter.
Get the player who can help you now. Because if you miss the playoffs again, you won’t get to see the others develop.
More must-reads: