Not unexpectedly, Mike Tannenbaum and Eric Mangini were pleased with the six players the Jets took in this year’s draft. Tannenbaum seemed particularly excited about getting Tennessee quarterback Erik Ainge in the fifth round.
“He had tremendous production under Coach [David] Cutcliffe, who also coached Eli Manning and Peyton Manning,” Tannenbaum said of Cutcliffe, a former Tennessee assistant and Ole Miss head coach now at Duke. “I’m not saying he’s necessarily going to be that good but he’s had very good pedigree from a coaching and development standpoint.”
“I think we did a lot of positive things in the draft,” Mangini said. “I like the things we’ve done defensively, I like the things we’ve done defensively, the things that we’ve done offensively. The thoroughness of the process, all the work that Joey (Clinkscales), Terry (Bradway) and Mike and all the scouts and coaches have done, we feel very good about the picks that we made.”
To review, it went like this:
1st Round (#6 overall pick): Vernon Gholston, OLB, Ohio State
1st Round (#30): Dustin Keller, TE, Purdue
4th Round (#113): Dwight Lowery, DB, San Jose State
5th Round (#162): Erik Ainge, QB, Tennessee
6th Round (#171): Marcus Henry, WR, Kansas
7th Round (#211): Nate Garner, OT, Arkansas
Overall grade on the draft? No thanks. Really, that’s like passing out grades without the students taking one test, quiz or exam. The only question that gets answered the day after the draft is this: did Team A, in this case the Jets, address the primary needs they had going into the draft? For the Jets, their biggest needs – in no particular order – were cornerback, pass rusher and wide receiver. In some form and at some point, they addressed all three. How well they addressed them doesn’t get answered until the fall, though we get a sneak peak this weekend with the rookie minicamp. More to come Monday.
Comments (9)
I will give my initial rating for this draft a "B" with a couple of moves i would of much preferred!
I just heard on SNY that the patriots tried to move up to KC spot to get vernon gholston. So I am glad we got him instead of having him sacking our QB for the next 5-10 years. I think the Bills did well with their first two picks Mckelvin and Hardy. They now have two great WR weapons in speedy lee evans and super tall fast James Hardy and added a great CB.
I would of changed a few picks for us,but will live with what we got.
Looking at who was available- I would of liked :
1) Vernon Gholston DE/OLB
1) Devin Thomas or James Hardy WR
4) Dwight Lowery CB/S
5) Carl Nicks OT 6'5" 340lbs. or Jonathan Goff ILB 6'2" 245lbs.
6) Andre Woodson, Colt Brennan QB - and who knows maybe Ainge would of still been there 9 picks later
7) Nate Garner- just read he is a great run blocker, but poor in the passing game
You never mentioned the signing up Danny Woodhead, about five minutes after the final selection was made. He went undrafted, and has some negatives, however I think Woodhead has a good chance to turn some heads and even work hard to get on the roster. Here’s why:
1.) Rookie Free Agents will fight like hell to take someone’s job, unlike the high round draftees who figure they’re solid.
2.) Although he was a D-2 star, look at his yards per carry and touchdowns, 6.9ypc and an average of 25 TDs per season over his 4 year career. These numbers are consistent with what is necessary of a 3rd and Short / Goal Line running back at the least.
3.) People see his height as a disadvantage, I think a reasonable argument can be made that with his skill, it could be an ADVANTAGE. Think about it, it will be extremely difficult for DBs and LBs to locate this guy when he’s behind the o-line. If he can learn to be elusive of hungry DTs, he’ll have an extra step almost everytime, and that extra step will lead to TDs, because he WILL be a 3rd down / redzone back.
4.) This guy looks like he’s still growing. Look at him, he looks very young for a 23 year old, probably has a growth spurt left.
5.) He will most definitely be a Mangini guy, he knows he’s too tiny and too undeveloped to open his mouth in a bad way.
All in all I can’t wait to see what he’s capable of, and I can’t wait to see defenses get crossed up when they lose sight of him.
Jets should have take Henne the Michigan QB in the 2nd round instead the fish got him!
Could this be a case of History repeating itself ie Dan Marino. They want to win now cause iI think they want license fees for the seats next year @ the new stadium.
The Jets get an incomplete grade. On a pass/fail grading system they get a fail.
Their first two picks mirror the long list of wasted first and second round picks who were selected because of rating athleticism over college performance.
Gholston has the biggest 'bust' potential of the first six draftees. For every ESPN Sportscenter highlight (see Bowling ball with butcher knives) he has long stretches where he disappears. In the two most critical games of his collegiate career, the two championship games Ohio State played in the previous two years, by all measurements he was the invisible man.
He is now projected as a part time role player OLB pass rusher in a position he didn't play in college. He was a DE.
The TE is projected to be a slot receiver (see Doug Jolley, can't block, great hands) who like Ghoston is projected to play a position he didn't play as a senior. If he was evaluated as a receiver instead of as a TE, he would be one of the slowest receivers in the draft.
These two 'Looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane" workout warriors add to the list of 1st and 2nd round busts like DeWayne Robertson, Justin Miller, Brian Thomas, D'Brickasha Ferguson, Jon MCGraw, Kellen Clemens. Bradway's influence over the inexperienced Tangini continues to destroy the Jets future.
The Jets get an incomplete grade. On a pass/fail grading system they get a fail.
Their first two picks mirror the long list of wasted first and second round picks who were selected because of rating athleticism over college performance.
Gholston has the biggest 'bust' potential of the first six draftees. For every ESPN Sportscenter highlight (see Bowling ball with butcher knives) he has long stretches where he disappears. In the two most critical games of his collegiate career, the two championship games Ohio State played in the previous two years, by all measurements he was the invisible man.
He is now projected as a part time role player OLB pass rusher in a position he didn't play in college. He was a DE.
The TE is projected to be a slot receiver (see Doug Jolley, can't block, great hands) who like Ghoston is projected to play a position he didn't play as a senior. If he was evaluated as a receiver instead of as a TE, he would be one of the slowest receivers in the draft.
These two 'Looks like Tarzan, plays like Jane" workout warriors add to the list of 1st and 2nd round busts like DeWayne Robertson, Justin Miller, Brian Thomas, D'Brickasha Ferguson, Jon MCGraw, Kellen Clemens. Bradway's influence over the inexperienced Tangini continues to destroy the Jets future.
HypaJet: New stadium opens in 2010.
They will get PSL's for the seats whether we're 15-1 or 1-15. There will be plenty of demand for seats, upper deck will be regular people and the lower decks will be for the rich and corporations.
As for the draft, they did fine. Everybody has positives and negatives coming out of college. And it really doesnt matter who the jets have drafted in the past. The success of this years picks doesnt depend on what our history is. Im confident in our FO and coaches to develop the players. I'll also wait to see what these guys do in our system rather than in college and in the weight room.
Chris Baker needs to stop crying! You signed a contract buddy, now stop being a baby and play football.
Jimmy Shnoogen: "4.) This guy looks like he’s still growing. Look at him, he looks very young for a 23 year old, probably has a growth spurt left."
You might like this guy, but seriously, he is NOT going to get any taller....
Hey Jason it's 2008. They will have an easyier sell if they are 8 & 8
rather then 4 & 12. Might even get more for hotdogs. Remember these are the guys who charged 5 bucks more for auxillary parking then the Giants. Gotta make up the pay for the figurheads salary (Jay Cross)