Bronxville Jets Fan

I think it’s long overdue. The top picks in the draft have gotten to be astronomically valuable — some seasons more so then others — and teams are now deliberately tanking to secure those picks (Bucs in 2014 season, Browns in 2016 and 2017, Dolphins in 2019). Think how close the Jets came to getting a top two or three pick in recent years only to get slightly “beat” out by teams that are either intentionally tanking (Bucs and Browns), suffered injuries to key players (Colts in 2017) or are just grossly incompetent franchises (think Raiders from Al Groh’s last years). I was mad as hell those years because I felt the Jets deserved a fairer shot at the top pick. Were the Jets really a better team then the Colts in 2017? Somehow we won one more game and, as a result, had to cough up three premium draft picks to trade picks with them in order to get our QB. That shows how valuable one or two extra losses can be in terms of draft capital. It’s time for the NFL to start doing more to discourage tanking and stop rewarding ineptitude and the lottery system is the way to do it.

Throughout my eight years covering the NFLdraft for Bleacher Report, I've had many debates over which player was the best. Jared Goff or Carson Wentz? I picked Goff. Andrew Luck or Robert Griffin III? I picked Luck. The terrible 2013 debate over Eric Fisher or Luke Joeckel—in which I picked wrong and took Joeckel. Why the history lesson? Because I'm flipping my pick for the top player in the 2019 NFL draft class. Welcome to No. 1, Quinnen Williams. A change this late in the process deserves an explanation. It's not as simple as a handful of general managers telling me I'm wrong—in fact, many I talked to said the opposite about my original pick—but more about going with what the evaluation says. What makes Williams the better prospect? It boiled down to two factors: 1. Nick Bosa has incurred two injuries in four years. A core muscle injury suffered in Week 3 shut Bosa down for the rest of the 2018 college football season. And while many will point to the belief he could have returned to the Buckeyes had they made the College Football Playoff, it's still a season-ending setback that must be evaluated. Bosa, as a senior in high school, also injured his knee and had surgery to repair a partially torn ACL. Nick Bosa's still an elite, No. 1-worthy talent, but his durability is a concern.Jamie Sabau/Getty Images Injured players have a way of staying injured. It's the same reason D.K. Metcalf and Marquise Brown take hits on my big board. Two fairly major injuries in four seasons is enough to bump Bosa just enough to let Williams overtake him. 2. Quinnen Williams hasn't reached his potential. A first-year starter as a redshirt sophomore, Williams played well enough that he should have received serious Heisman Trophy consideration in 2018. His eight sacks and 19.5 tackles for a loss showed his dominance, and at only 21 years old as of December 21, Williams is still growing and developing as a player. It's easy to look at Bosa and see a grown man who is already at his physical peak thanks to years of training with his brother, Joey (No. 3 overall pick, 2016 draft), and father, John (No. 16 overall pick, 1987 draft). Bosa hit the genetic lottery and comes from a long line of football players. We have a good idea of who Nick can be thanks to Joey, who has also suffered injuries. With Williams, there is no known ceiling. He has the athleticism, work ethic and strength to continue to improve. You hear the term "maxed out" in scouting. Bosa is maxed out. Williams is just getting started.

Picking my daughter from basketball practice at 8 o'clock and driving home as fast as possible! Probably going to a local bar to watch with other Jets fans in my town.

I think we have a consensus!

But in this scenario they could still do that . . . 2 to 3 and 3 to wherever. The QB would still be there at 3.

I'm wondering lately if the 49ers would take the Jets first third rounder to swap first rounders . . . and if MacCagnan likes Bosa enough to part with another 2019 draft pick. I haven't seen this scenario mentioned before so throwing it out there for discussion purposes. Seems like a long shot to me since the Jets only have six picks this year, but I also wouldn't be terribly shocked to see it happen.

They seem mutually exclusive to me. If we are being offered a boatload of draft picks, it's because another team is trying to trade up for Haskins; if Nick Bosa is available at 3 it is because the 49ers have traded their pick to another team that wants Haskins.

Was wondering the same. If we get two 1s, I’m seeing us go for pass rusher (Burns) and OL (Bradberry or Jonah Williams). CB would be another possibility, but no way would we go ILB.

Yup . . . see my post above about Miami. The worst!

I didn't realize how true this was until I moved to Miami for a couple years. I couldn't get over how big of homers there beat reporters were (Salguero, Jeff Darlington). You could tell how much it pained them that their team sucks and been irrelevant for twenty years -- it's like they felt it was holding their careers back. And they all openly criticize the Jets in an overly biased way, likely because they want to rile up the Jets fan base down there to drum up readers, clicks or radio listeners.

Completely agree. People ride him about his negativity, but you his institutional and historical knowledge are unrivaled by his peers.

Exactly what I was thinking . . .

Completely agree. Will be fun to revisit this after FA starts and we get someone like Barr or Fowler.

After seeing every mock draft this week (McShay, Jeremiah, Casserly, etc) pick Williams for the Jets because he has a higher grade than Allen, I'm starting to think he's the pick. We know that McCagnan is a BPA guy through and through.

Jordan Jenkins also plays that position and is under contract for next season.