Where should the Jets select a WR in the Draft?

[Sarge4Tide]

Jets WR corps in 2021 will have  Free Agent signees Corey Davis and Keelan Cole, returning contributors Jamison Crowder, Denzel Mims, and Braxton Barrios, and a number of others with potential, such as Josh Doctson and Lawrence Cager.  If the Jets do not sign another free agent WR, where would you like to see the Jets select a WR in the Upcoming NFL Draft?

2021 WR Corps

xx - Corey Davis 6'3" 209 Western Michigan (WR)  - Free Agent Signing from Titans
xx - Keelan Cole 6'1" 194 Kentucky Wesleyan (WR)  - Free Agent Signing from Jaguars
82 - Jamison Crowder 5'9" 177 Duke (WR)   
11 - Denzel Mims 6'3" 207 Baylor (WR) 
10 - Braxton Berrios  5'9" 190  Miami (FL) (WR/KR)  
17 - Vyncint Smith 6'3" 202 Limestone (WR)    
16 - Jeff Smith 6'0" 195  Boston College   (WR)    
18 - Josh Doctson 6'2" 205 TCU (WR)    
86 - Lawrence Cager 6'5" 215 UGA (WR)  
  1 - Jaleel Scott 6'5" 210 New Mexico State (WR) 
83 - Josh Malone 6'3" 208 Tennessee (WR)  
81  - DJ Montgomery 6'1" 201 Austin Peay (WR)   
xx  - Manasseh Bailey 6'1" 195 Morgan State (WR)  

[chirorob]

They have sooo many needs, if they went QB, O Line, Corner, and O Line again I couldn't argue with that.  Now sure, that's ignoring the WR, but all of those are huge needs as well.  

It also depends, what if they trade down in round 1 and draft Pitts?   Not technically a WR, but a huge need that would greatly help the passing game.

[nycdan]

What Chirorob said plus the unpredictability of the draft.  When Mims fell to #59 last year, it was a no-brainer.  Take an extreme example and say Waddle falls to #23.  I wouldn't normally think WR at that point, but then?  Maybe.  Or if Bateman or Toney falls to #66.  JD is a value guy.  He'll take a WR somewhere in the top 4 rounds but it's probably impossible to predict beyond 'not at #2' without a trade-down'.

[Edit] I actually think there are a group of really good 'tier 2' WRs that will be interesting to watch.  If one of Bateman, Moore, Toney, or Marshall drops a bit too far, I could dig a trade-up maybe into late round 2.  I don't think JD is that guy, but I could dig it. 

[Sammybighead]

If possible (and assuming no trade down/up) I like toney at 23. His skillset will complement what we already have in mims, cole and davis. He's and electric playmaker with the ball in his hands which is something I think this new offense will need and currently lacks. My assumption is we take Wilson #2 and the best remaining tackle/guard prospect at #34

[Mike135]

Assuming  the draft goes something like:

1a.  TE

1b.  OL

2.  OL

3a.  CB

3b.  CB/DE

Can't see them going WR before the 4th.

But Pitts basically is a WR.

[Jethead]

If at least 3 QBs go in the first 8 picks, the Jets can afford to trade back as far as 8 and be assured of either Chase, Waddle, Smith, Pitts or Sewell. If 4 QBs go in that range, the Jets will have a choice among 2 of those 5. As long as what we can get suitable value for the #2 pick this is by far my preferred strategy.

[K_O_Brien]

2. QB 

23. Edge or Corner 

34. OL 

50. Corner or Edge 

66. OL 

86. WR 

[Larz]

2

[the Claw]

I have doubts that JD will take a wr this year. With Davis, Mims, Crowder, and Cole as your top 4 and the Smith bros, Berrios, and Cager as depth, I can honestly see JD passing on drafting a wr. Jetnation will crumble.

If he drafts one I think it will be round 4+.
 

I think Pitts is a possibility if he trades down a few spots. 

[BklynJetsFan85]

Don't think they need a WR now. Should def be looking for multiple corners and IOL. Now you ask me about a TE? I think he grabs one somewhere in the first 3 rounds (by our 1st 3rd rounder)

[THE BARON]

If a QB is not selected with their 2nd over all it should be a WR.  DS or JC, obviously.

[QB1]

#2 BABY 

BUBBA SMITH HERE WE GO 

[Matt39]

At least 2 within the first 4 rounds. The Jets new philosophy should be to try to score touchdowns. 

[slimjasi]

Just now, Matt39 said:

At least 2 within the first 4 rounds. The Jets new philosophy should be to try to score touchdowns. 

What a concept!!!!

I'm honestly not sure if the Jets are ready for all that. 

[slats]

If they trade down from #2, WR will probably present too much value to pass up. I don’t see Joe Douglas as the type to gamble on the so called generational TE that early. 
 
If they don’t trade back, though, OL, Edge, CB, probably take precedent the next few picks. 

[Sammybighead]

2 minutes ago, Matt39 said:

At least 2 within the first 4 rounds. The Jets new philosophy should be to try to score touchdowns. 

I have no recollection of this "touchdown" you speak of. Can we just try to win games 3-0 instead?

[PepPep]

2 hours ago, K_O_Brien said:

2. QB 

23. Edge or Corner 

34. OL 

50. Corner or Edge 

66. OL 

86. WR 

This is kind of how I'm looking at it. Although. I think Saleh believes he can find value later in the draft for a quality CB that fits his system so I doubt he'd be pounding the table for a CB in Rd. 1. Edge or LB/Edge makes the most sense. I would not be AT ALL surprised if we end up taking Z.Collins at 23 (assuming he is there of course). He fills a need, he fits the system, he is versatile and dynamic. Just checks a lot of boxes and makes a ton of sense given the personnel. 

OL at 34 makes a ton of sense. Either a OT that can play some guard like Mayfield or just a straight up plug and play OG like W.Davis. Again, system and future plans will  have an impact. JD has shown that he drafts for the future. We may see him draft an OT that's not really suited to play Guard despite having Fant on the roster just in case he moves on from Fant in the coming years. But at 34 I think the Jets can get one of the top O-linemen just because there is some nice depth at the position. 

Rd. 3 is where its going to get interesting. CB makes a ton of sense. I don't know if I would go Edge again given all the other team needs. TE is a possibility. WR, especially if an electric slot guy slides early to Rd. 3 (Crowder is on his way out- if not this year then next). ILB is definitely a need (BTW- I believe we signed Jarrad Davis to play OLB NOT ILB) with Mosley injury prone and carrying a burdensome contract. There's a ton of options and I think we could see JD go with best value, especially at that early 3rd round pick. Double dipping at O-line is obviously an option but I expect JD to do that after Rd. 3. RB is an option but again, I think that is a position JD prefers to address later on after taking Perine in Rd. 4th last year.  

[Scotty Wooty Doo Doo]

2. QB 

23. OL- Corner

34. OL 

50. Corner or Edge 

66. WR

86. RB

[PepPep]

8 minutes ago, slats said:

If they trade down from #2, WR will probably present too much value to pass up. I don’t see Joe Douglas as the type to gamble on the so called generational TE that early. 
 
If they don’t trade back, though, OL, Edge, CB, probably take precedent the next few picks. 

IMO the point is moot because I am convinced we are taking a QB and most likely Wilson, so get on board Jets fans! But I think it just depends on who is there. I think you take Chase over Pitts but you think twice about taking Smith or Waddle over Pitts and you pretty much can't pass up Sewell over Pitts, LT or not. And I'm a huge fan of Pitts, the Jets are just not in a position to pass up a 'generational' OT prospect or a true #1 WR prospect.

If they don't trade back it's QB at #2. Then it all depends on how they view the roster and how Saleh, LaFleur and Ulbrich believe they can utilize the personnel they already have. Us fans might see O-line as a huge need but JD might feel like he has targeted some 2nd, 3rd round talent at G that will be really successful in LaFleurs system and/or the o-line will be drastically better with the new coaching staff. I agree that Edge is still a need and it only makes sense that Saleh will want to get as many impact pass rushers for his scheme as possible. So I would not be surprised if the Jets take a pass rusher early. As far as CB, I think thats another position Saleh/Ulbrich might view as having some talent that they can work with and/or can target in the middle rounds. 

What I would be curious to see is- will the Jets take a TE much earlier than we think. Friermuth or Tremble? Or maybe more of a receiving TE like Brevin Jordan. I think JD would have to use a 3rd rounder at least to get one of those guys. Are they going to draft a RB earlier than we think? I doubt it but we know they will be running the ball a whole lot. Could we see Etienne as a value pick if he slides to Rd. 2?      

[peekskill68]

Everyone knows  the road to the Superbowl runs through the strong safety position...

[Peace Frog]

3 hours ago, Sammybighead said:

If possible (and assuming no trade down/up) I like toney at 23.

My assumption is we take Wilson #2 and the best remaining tackle/guard prospect at #34

This.  Exactly.  

[slats]

21 minutes ago, PepPep said:

IMO the point is moot because I am convinced we are taking a QB and most likely Wilson, so get on board Jets fans! But I think it just depends on who is there. I think you take Chase over Pitts but you think twice about taking Smith or Waddle over Pitts and you pretty much can't pass up Sewell over Pitts, LT or not. And I'm a huge fan of Pitts, the Jets are just not in a position to pass up a 'generational' OT prospect or a true #1 WR prospect.

If they don't trade back it's QB at #2. Then it all depends on how they view the roster and how Saleh, LaFleur and Ulbrich believe they can utilize the personnel they already have. Us fans might see O-line as a huge need but JD might feel like he has targeted some 2nd, 3rd round talent at G that will be really successful in LaFleurs system and/or the o-line will be drastically better with the new coaching staff. I agree that Edge is still a need and it only makes sense that Saleh will want to get as many impact pass rushers for his scheme as possible. So I would not be surprised if the Jets take a pass rusher early. As far as CB, I think thats another position Saleh/Ulbrich might view as having some talent that they can work with and/or can target in the middle rounds. 

What I would be curious to see is- will the Jets take a TE much earlier than we think. Friermuth or Tremble? Or maybe more of a receiving TE like Brevin Jordan. I think JD would have to use a 3rd rounder at least to get one of those guys. Are they going to draft a RB earlier than we think? I doubt it but we know they will be running the ball a whole lot. Could we see Etienne as a value pick if he slides to Rd. 2?      

We’re very much in agreement, except that I keep going back and forth on the QB vs. trading down. I’m never much more than 60/40 in either direction. 
 
I understand the Pitts love, but taking one in the top ten is such a risky proposition that I can’t imagine JD going that route. He’d really need to be a game changer at the position, getting WR type production right off the bat, to make that pick worthwhile. I just think taking the WR there is the more pragmatic move. 
 
For the same reason, I don’t see a RB high. I think people hoping for one by #34 are going to be disappointed. The system they’re installing has regularly made late picks and UDFAs into stars. Have to believe they’d trust their program to create a running game, and not overdraft a devalued position. It also would not surprise me if Herndon has a breakout season in this offense. I joke about Wesco, too, but it would be fun to see him excel in the FB/H-back role. I wouldn’t expect a TE before the fourth or fifth rounds. If JD doesn’t trade out of #2, the next two picks probably go right onto the trade market. Definitely expect more picks being made than what he currently holds. 

[K_O_Brien]

1 hour ago, PepPep said:

This is kind of how I'm looking at it. Although. I think Saleh believes he can find value later in the draft for a quality CB that fits his system so I doubt he'd be pounding the table for a CB in Rd. 1. Edge or LB/Edge makes the most sense. I would not be AT ALL surprised if we end up taking Z.Collins at 23 (assuming he is there of course). He fills a need, he fits the system, he is versatile and dynamic. Just checks a lot of boxes and makes a ton of sense given the personnel. 

OL at 34 makes a ton of sense. Either a OT that can play some guard like Mayfield or just a straight up plug and play OG like W.Davis. Again, system and future plans will  have an impact. JD has shown that he drafts for the future. We may see him draft an OT that's not really suited to play Guard despite having Fant on the roster just in case he moves on from Fant in the coming years. But at 34 I think the Jets can get one of the top O-linemen just because there is some nice depth at the position. 

Rd. 3 is where its going to get interesting. CB makes a ton of sense. I don't know if I would go Edge again given all the other team needs. TE is a possibility. WR, especially if an electric slot guy slides early to Rd. 3 (Crowder is on his way out- if not this year then next). ILB is definitely a need (BTW- I believe we signed Jarrad Davis to play OLB NOT ILB) with Mosley injury prone and carrying a burdensome contract. There's a ton of options and I think we could see JD go with best value, especially at that early 3rd round pick. Double dipping at O-line is obviously an option but I expect JD to do that after Rd. 3. RB is an option but again, I think that is a position JD prefers to address later on after taking Perine in Rd. 4th last year.  

Good post. The selection at 23 will obviously create a domino effect. Linebacker is the position I missed, but you'd assume there is an acceptance within the Jets FO that we can't fill every need this year in the draft. 

Zaven Collins is interesting. Apparently we've already spoken to him via Zoom calls so the interest is there. I think a lot will obviously depend on who is available when we pick at 23. If the choice comes down to Jaycee Horn, Alijah Vera-Tucker or Zaven Collins (Owusu-Koromoah even) then that's an incredibly tough call to make. 

Agreed that JD will look at future plans when making his selections. So someone like Teven Jenkins could even be the pick at 23, play him at guard for a year or two and switch him to RT. 

I'm not worrying about TE, RB for now. Some positions will have to wait until 2022 in terms of attracting top-end talent. 

[Lupz27]

There is 3 WR studs in this draft trade back to 6 and grab one of them. 

[peebag]

1 hour ago, peekskill68 said:

Everyone knows  the road to the Superbowl runs through the strong safety position...

According to Pete Carroll that is...

[varjet]

My vote would be to take the best OL at 23, filling a guaranteed hole. Hopefully someone who can play G this year and RT next. 

Then at 34 and below you take the best WR or CB.

That of course is assuming that JD is taking a QB at 2, likely Wilson but could be Fields.

I think JD tries to get cute with it though, and waits until later to find OL.  

In 2022 McGovern can get upgraded and Cole and Crowder are not here, so the Jets can draft practically any position.  

I do think they can get by with the WR and CBs they have.  They cannot get by with the OL they have, and next year will only get worse.  

[derp]

Wherever Rondale Moore gets picked.