Jets Draft Preview: WRs

[SoFlaJets]

By BRIAN COSTELLO

In the days leading up to the NFL Draft on April 25, we will examine the draft position-by-position through the eyes of the Jets. Today we take a look at wide receivers. Coming tomorrow: tight ends.

Losses from last year:

Laveranues Coles - The veteran wide receiver left the Jets for a second time this winter, going to the Bengals as a free agent. Coles was the team's No. 1 receiver and the clear leader of that group. Replacing him won't be easy.

Who's on the roster:

Jerricho Cotchery - The sixth-year receiver now moves into the top spot vacated by Coles. It's not that much of a leap for him since the gap between those two had closed in the last few years. He had 71 catches for 858 yards and five touchdowns last year.

David Clowney- Has there ever been as much talk about a guy with one catch? This speedster seems to be the favorite of the fans and the media to make a big leap this year. He had one catch last year (a spectacular one-handed grab against Buffalo) but will have every opportunity to earn a bigger role this season.

Chansi Stuckey - The forgotten man of this receiver competition. Stuckey had 32 catches last year but became less of an option for Brett Favre late in the season. He scored touchdowns in each of the team's first three games but not one after that.

Brad Smith - It's time for the Jets to really see what they have in Smith. This will be his fourth year with the team. Eric Mangini seemed to fall in and out of love with using the former college quarterback as a gimmick player. He lined up in the Jets' version of the "Wildcat" formation last year. It will be interesting to see if Rex Ryan tries to use him more as a conventional receiver.

Wallace Wright - The Jets' best special teams player not named Leon now has a shot at becoming a bigger part of the offense. A former walk-on at North Carolina, Wright knows about fighting long odds.

Marcus Henry - The 2008 sixth-round pick did not see any action last year.

Paul Raymond - Spent training camp with the Jets last year then bounced around the practice squads of the Jets, Lions and Giants.

Huey Whittaker - This is an interesting signing the team made this winter. Whittaker had a huge season in the Arena League last year, catching 126 passes for 1,541 yards and scoring 40 touchdowns for the Utah Blaze.

Best in the draft:

Michael Crabtree - The Texas Tech receiver is clearly the most talented receiver in the Draft but he'll be long gone by the time the Jets pick at 17. He's sure to be off the board in the top 10 picks.

Jeremy Maclin - Another top-flight receiver that will be gone by the time the Jets pick. He won't get past the Raiders with the eighth pick.

Percy Harvin - The Florida speedster will likely be sitting there when the Jets go on the clock. There are questions about his size and his durability that may scare teams off. Gators receivers also have a terrible track record in the NFL.

Late round sleepers:

Austin Collie - This guy isn't going to blow away those holding stopwatches but he put up big numbers at BYU. He had 1,538 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Cougars and he could be available in the sixth round.

Mike Thomas - Has a lot of speed and skill but at 5-foot-7 he is going to drop to the middle rounds. Was durable in college at Arizona and returned kicks.

The Post Plan:

This is the most glaring hole on the Jets roster. It's bigger than quarterback or pass rusher. Brett Favre took a beating for the team's problems at the end of last season but part of the problem was the lack of a playmaking receiver.

The problem for the Jets is picking at 17 the elite receivers will be off the board. Harvin scares me because of his size and how Florida used him. I'm not sold on Darrius Heyward-Bey either. He only had 608 receiving yards last year.

Mike Tannenbaum should see if he can trade down to later in the first round and grab Hakeem Nicks out of North Carolina plus pick up an extra draft pick. Nicks isn't the fastest receiver but he produced in college, something that gets lost this time of year.

If the Jets have a receiving tandem of Cotchery and Nicks and use Clowney in the slot, the passing game should be fine.