The Jets ’23-20 win over the Rams made General Manager Joe Douglas’ job a little more difficult off-season. Drafting Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence with the No. 1 overall pick would have been an easy decision. If the Jets end with the No. 2 pick, Douglas faces a number of choices. Here’s a rundown of some of its options if the Jets pick second:
- Line up the best quarterback available and trade Sam Darnold. Ohio State’s Justin Fields and BYU’s Zach Wilson both plan to be the best quarterback after Lawrence. Neither is considered the unmissable prospect that Lawrence is, but they are both highly regarded in NFL circles and you could really show up in the preliminary draft. If the Jets share Darnold, they can probably get a second round pick plus a late round pick.
- Trade in the pickaxe and keep Darnold. If Douglas isn’t sold on any of the quarterback prospects in this draft, he could hold Darnold, who is under contract for another year, and try to bring in a huge package of picks. In 2016, the Eagles traded two first-round tips, a second-round pick, a third-round pick, and a fourth rounder to the Browns to move to No. 2 and take Carson Wentz. Such a package would speed up the rebuilding of the Douglas roster.
- Take the best non-quarterback available and keep Darnold. The Jets need help everywhere in their squad. Landing an elite player here isn’t the worst option. Oregon tackle Penei Sewell is the best non-quarterback in this draft. Would the Jets take tackles in the first round in back-to-back years? It would be unusual to set up such a high tackle, but the Jets could have bookends with Sewell and Mekhi Becton. Other options here include Alabama WR DeVonta Smith, LSU WR Ja’Marr Chase, and Penn State LB Micah Parsons.
- Draw an experienced quarterback and trade the pick or use it on a non-quarterback. Not many great veteran options are expected to hit the market, so this is unlikely. Would Douglas trade for Wentz, whom he knows from his time with the Eagles? It seems unlikely that he would now want to trade any draft picks and enter into that contract. Andy Dalton, Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Jameis Winston, and Mitch Trubisky could all be available.