Mel Kiper Grades NY Jets 2024 Draft ...

[jetsons]

https://jetswire.usatoday.com/2024/04/29/new-york-jets-draft-gets-b-from-espns-mel-kiper/

Billy Riccette 

 

April 29, 2024 1:13 pm ET

 

Draft grades are in full force now that the three-day extravaganza is in the books. That includes the legendary Mel Kiper of ESPN. Kiper was overall in favor of the Jets’ draft haul, handing out a B grade to the team for their seven-player class. Here’s what Kiper had to say about the Jets’ draft.

Round 1 was always going to be a delicate balance for Jets GM Joe Douglas, who had to balance his team’s short-term championship window alongside 40-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers with the long-term vision of building a sustainable contender. He needed to add a player who could be a star both now and later, someone who could make a significant contribution as a rookie. That’s why I thought offensive tackle might be a tough sell to Rodgers — and to fans — at No. 10. New York added Tyron Smith and Morgan Moses in March to man those spots in 2024, and a rookie might have to be the swing tackle or move inside to guard for a year.

Instead, Douglas stuck to his board and got his guy with Olu Fashanu (11), a prototypical left tackle who can be Smith’s replacement in 2025. It wasn’t the flashiest pick, but if Fashanu can hit his ceiling, he could be a stellar player at a premium position for a decade.

Malachi Corley (65) had 29 receiving touchdowns over the past three seasons and makes cornerbacks look silly after the catch. The Jets took two running backs in Braelon Allen (134) and Isaiah Davis (173), who will duke it out to be Breece Hall’s backup. Allen is my fifth-ranked back in the class, while Davis lands at No. 10.

Qwan’tez Stiggers (176) is one of the most fascinating picks in the entire draft. He became the third player in the common draft era (since 1967) to be selected without attending college and the first CFL player with no college experience to be drafted. And he can play, too. Quarterback Jordan Travis (171) was tremendously productive at Florida State. Could he be stashed as the Jets’ third QB behind Tyrod Taylor this season?

Douglas also executed several trades throughout the weekend, maneuvering up and down the board, including a deal for the Lions’ 2025 third-rounder. Corley might be the most important pick of this class in the short term, as I could see him having a role in 2024. Douglas did a nice job getting value throughout.

[Larz]

Would have been an A but they aren’t playing anyone this year 

[Bronx]

@hmhertz's reaction...

 

 

[JiFtheOracle]

14 minutes ago, jetsons said:

Corley might be the most important pick of this class in the short term, as I could see him having a role in 2024. 

[Larz]

Pauline took a shot at the cheaters lol

 

In choosing Ja’Lynn Polk with the 37th selection, New England bypassed almost a half-dozen receivers with more talent, though it did continue its tradition of overdrafting slow wideouts.

[Sperm Edwards]

The 2017 Jets draft class earned a B+ after that QB-less team had the only bust QB of the top 3 taken off the board before Maccagnan picked. If he'd totally screwed it up he'd have drafted a probowl QB who was ready right out of the gate as a rookie. He drafted a safety, in a class 4 rounds deep at the position, because the prior year he'd just taken a 2nd round QB who was - incredibly - much worse than Zach Wilson. 

38 year-old journeyman ideal teammate/mentor-type already on the payroll, perfect placeholder for easing in a Mahomes pick to sit & absorb what this willing teacher's doing, on a preseason non-contender so there's no pressure for a rookie to come in and win games right away, and he drafts a safety. 

Kiper even acknowledged the team really needed a QB and a tackle, took neither in any round, and gave them a B+ for taking two safeties, and 3 pass catchers who couldn't catch passes. And a WT crackhead who drove his car wasted on the wrong side of the road through the Lincoln Tunnel. That's a B+ Kiper class. 

By the way that draft class where they came out taking Darron Lee and Christian Hackenberg in their first two rounds? B- (still a solid passing grade).

Kiper and his stupid head of hair can EAD. 

[Jet Nut]

47 minutes ago, Larz said:

Would have been an A but they aren’t playing anyone this year 

Awe, Fudge 

[jvill 51]

30 minutes ago, Sperm Edwards said:

The 2017 Jets draft class earned a B+ after that QB-less team had the only bust QB of the top 3 taken off the board before they picked. If he'd totally screwed it up he'd have drafted a probowl QB who was ready right out of the gate as a rookie. He drafted a safety, in class 4 rounds deep at the position, because the prior year he'd just taken a 2nd round QB who was - incredibly - much worse than Zach Wilson. 

38 year-old journeyman ideal teammate/mentor-type already on the payroll, perfect placeholder for easing in a Mahomes pick to sit & absorb what this willing teacher's doing, on a preseason non-contender so there's no pressure for a rookie to come in and win games right away, and he drafts a safety. 

He even acknowledged the team really needed a QB and a tackle, took neither in any round, and gave them a B+ for taking two safeties, and 3 pass catchers who couldn't catch passes. And a WT crackhead who drove his car wasted on the wrong side of the road through the Lincoln Tunnel. That's a B+ Kiper class. 

By the way that draft class where they came out taking Darron Lee and Christian Hackenberg in their first two rounds? B- (still a solid passing grade).

Kiper and his stupid head of hair can EAD. 

[slats]

1 hour ago, Sperm Edwards said:

He even acknowledged the team really needed a QB and a tackle, took neither in any round, and gave them a B+ for taking two safeties, and 3 pass catchers who couldn't catch passes. And a WT crackhead who drove his car wasted on the wrong side of the road through the Lincoln Tunnel. That's a B+ Kiper class. 

What’s the lowest grade he gave out? It seems like every year, the lowest grade handed out at this time is like a C, unless they really hate one draft that they give a D+. The rest are all a couple in the C+ range then Bs and As. It’s a joke. Then they come back in three years and give half the league a failing grade. 

[peekskill68]

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep up this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

[FidelioJet]

18 minutes ago, peekskill68 said:

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep us this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

He has an impossible task.  He does a nice job with it. 

He's clearly knowledgable but having to make projections about every player in the draft and grade every team it's an absurd ask for him to be on target.

I like Mel and honestly think he does a great job.

[T0mShane]

23 minutes ago, peekskill68 said:

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep us this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

That‘s not fair. Dude created an entire homebrew industry. It’s not his fault that the industry be created is now largely populated by Matt Miller teens

[peekskill68]

2 hours ago, FidelioJet said:

He has an impossible task.  He does a nice job with it. 

He's clearly knowledgable but having to make projections about every player in the draft and grade every team it's an absurd ask for him to be on target.

I like Mel and honestly think he does a great job.

The only difference between Kiper and any stock picker that goes on CNBC, or any clairvoyant that speaks to dead people, is his hair...

[jetsons]

3 hours ago, JustInFudge said:

reading comp ...  Here’s what Kiper had to say about the Jets’ draft. 

[JiFtheOracle]

1 hour ago, FidelioJet said:

He has an impossible task.  He does a nice job with it. 

He's clearly knowledgable but having to make projections about every player in the draft and grade every team it's an absurd ask for him to be on target.

I like Mel and honestly think he does a great job.

Off the rip, he knows intimately about 150 prospects, whether right or wrong, the fact he's audible ready to speak on that many prospect, is insanely impressive. 

[LAD_Brooklyn]

Mel Kiper is still at it!

 

[Vader]

3 hours ago, Larz said:

Pauline took a shot at the cheaters lol

 

In choosing Ja’Lynn Polk with the 37th selection, New England bypassed almost a half-dozen receivers with more talent, though it did continue its tradition of overdrafting slow wideouts.

Keon Coleman was the guy to get in that range and they just missed him.

[Paradis]

This is 100x better evaluation in terms of college player insight, 

https://www.fantasypros.com/2024/04/afc-draft-grades-2024-nfl-draft/

if you're just looking for Jets related content

Quote

It’s obvious that the Jets liked OT Olumuyiwa Fashanu more than I did. And that’s fine – I understand the appeal. I also understand that the Jets only have short-term fixes at OT and felt they needed to grab a long-term solution. Philosophically, I also understand that.

My issue is… why is a win-now team using a premium pick on a prospect who may be OT3 in 2023? The Jets came into the draft with only two legitimate aerial weapons for Aaron Rodgers – WRs Garrett Wilson and Mike Williams.

Why was there not a more legitimate push to trade up to beat the Bears to the punch for WR Rome Odunze? If bumbling Falcons GM Terry Fontenot could not be saved from himself, would Tennessee at least have considered it?

Outside of that, I think the Jets will come to regret passing on TE Brock Bowers, who would have helped to address both the slot/TE needs… Bowers is not a TE, he’s a yard-gainer you can line up as either a slot or a TE (or basically anywhere else).

I’m not a fan of Corley. I believe he’s a RB playing slot WR (he began his career at WKU as an RB after initially signing as a CB). Yes, he was tank after the catch in college football’s worst FBS conference, leading this class with 40 broken tackles in 2022.

Corley doesn’t really run routes. WKU manufactured most of his touches for him. Over the past two seasons, Corley had 89 catches behind the line of scrimmage – he led the nation in screen yards both times. Conversely, he caught just 15 balls 20-plus yards downfield. Corley had a troubling 23.5% contested catch rate last year despite a 5.5 aDOT that ranked No. 495 in the FBS.

He doesn’t show much nuance or tactical footwork when asked to go downfield, instead blurring a straight line with an unconvincing deke as the gain-a-step gambit. This area of his game needs to be built from the ground up if he is to become more than a gadget guy.

I comped Corley to Amari Rodgers, another hyped manufactured-touch RB-in-WR clothing who I argued against during the draft process. We’re about to find out if fate has a sense of humor, or if Aaron Rodgers has become more amenable to shuttling pre-delineated behind-the-line layup looks to a Day 2 rookie that management says is supposed to be the new starting slot.

 

[JetsfaninNorthHollywood]

5 hours ago, peekskill68 said:

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep up this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

He has the photos and knows where the bodies are buried at ESPN. 

[Untouchable]

5 hours ago, peekskill68 said:

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep up this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

Maybe

But he’s still got some sweet ass Count Chocula hair.

[Maxman]

6 hours ago, peekskill68 said:

How a grifter like Mel Kiper has been able to keep up this charade for 40 years is one of the most amazing feats in human history...

He is the Father of Mock Drafts though. So he has to get credit for inventing a new category.

[JetsfaninNorthHollywood]

8 hours ago, Maxman said:

He is the Father of Mock Drafts though. So he has to get credit for inventing a new category.

I didn't consider that. After all how many endless arguments have spawned over these?

[PFSIKH]

16 hours ago, Larz said:

Pauline took a shot at the cheaters lol

 

In choosing Ja’Lynn Polk with the 37th selection, New England bypassed almost a half-dozen receivers with more talent, though it did continue its tradition of overdrafting slow wideouts.

He is probably their best WR right now.  

Did they though?  He was a fringe Top 10 WR pick.  He was the 10th WR taken.

[usanyj]

13 hours ago, Paradis said:

This is 100x better evaluation in terms of college player insight, 

https://www.fantasypros.com/2024/04/afc-draft-grades-2024-nfl-draft/

if you're just looking for Jets related content

 

Comparing Stiggers to Dee Millinier.....woof.

This guy hated our draft....Really hated the patriot draft too.

[Dcat]

1 hour ago, usanyj said:

Comparing Stiggers to Dee Millinier.....woof.

This guy hated our draft....Really hated the patriot draft too.

If you read all his stuff, you can see what an ignoramus he truly is.  

[slimjasi]

15 hours ago, Paradis said:

This is 100x better evaluation in terms of college player insight, 

https://www.fantasypros.com/2024/04/afc-draft-grades-2024-nfl-draft/

if you're just looking for Jets related content

 

Bowers boys taking this one hard 

The odds of Fashanu playing meaningful snaps this year are quite high, so the “win now” point doesn’t really hit home. Add to that the fact that a 1st round tackle is generally a much better investment than a 1st round TE and I think it’s hard to see a big issue with what the jets did in the first. 

As for Corley, he had 8 catches for 88 yards and a TD against OSU, so I’m not sure how worried to be about the conference issue. There is a long history of great NFL WRs coming from smaller schools/weak conferences. Jerry Rice played at Mississippi state. Steve smith played at Utah. Etc.

I will say that Corley really is the key pick to this draft in the short term. I (and the jets) also liked Roman Wilson. Was taking Corley over Wilson advisable? That remains to be seen. 

[slimjasi]

1 hour ago, usanyj said:

Comparing Stiggers to Dee Millinier.....woof.

This guy hated our draft....Really hated the patriot draft too.

Incidentally, Milliner played quite well for us his rookie year. His career was derailed by injuries. 

[Paradis]

23 minutes ago, slimjasi said:

Bowers boys taking this one hard 

The odds of Fashanu playing meaningful snaps this year are quite high, so the “win now” point doesn’t really hit home. Add to that the fact that a 1st round tackle is generally a much better investment than a 1st round TE and I think it’s hard to see a big issue with what the jets did in the first. 

As for Corley, he had 8 catches for 88 yards and a TD against OSU, so I’m not sure how worried to be about the conference issue. There is a long history of great NFL WRs coming from smaller schools/weak conferences. Jerry Rice played at Mississippi state. Steve smith played at Utah. Etc.

I will say that Corley really is the key pick to this draft in the short term. I (and the jets) also liked Roman Wilson. Was taking Corley over Wilson advisable? That remains to be seen. 

don't care if he was a key pick, it was a key need. Bowers boys? take that sh*t somewhere else -- this is real discourse. The need to come away with a WR that could conceivable play now was just as pressing if not more than OT... we answered that call with the guy who's demonstrated the LEAST polish at his position. 

I too would have probably taken an OT over Bowers, though i may regretted it given who wound on the board in round 3. But i remain wildly skeptical, like Shenault levels, on this pick. Roman is 10x more prepared to help us now imo

[slimjasi]

 

9 minutes ago, Paradis said:

 Bowers boys? take that sh*t somewhere else -- this is real discourse.

Bowers boys stay mad!!!

 

10 minutes ago, Paradis said:

Roman is 10x more prepared to help us now imo

Could be. Not sure. Depends how they use/develop Corley. I will say that Rodgers likes getting the ball out of his hands quickly and there is an opportunity to use Corley in many of the same ways that they would have used Bowers. 

[The Crusher]

This he's a backup #3 tackle is absolutely Crap! Have they not watch this damn teams line over last few seasons? We had more offensive lineups than King Krimson has had band member lineups! Not a sexy pick but to act like he is some sort of luxury is about as dumb as it gets. 

[slats]

5 minutes ago, The Crusher said:

This he's a backup #3 tackle is absolutely Crap! Have they not watch this damn teams line over last few seasons? We had more offensive lineups than King Krimson has had band member lineups! Not a sexy pick but to act like he is some sort of luxury is about as dumb as it gets. 

Hopefully Olu is the Adrian Belew version of King Crimson. That’s my favorite.