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Scott and John have already given their thoughts on the 2014 NFL Draft for the Jets, I thought I would thrown my opinion into the ring as we come down from the excitement high this weekend. If you haven't left your thoughts yet, please do in the comments below.
| Selection | Player | Position | Comments | Grade |
| Round 1, Selection 18 | Calvin Pryor | Safety | I don't think you can argue with this selection. If you read the reports, he is one of the hardest working players you are ever likely to meet. He hits like a ton of bricks, he can play sideline-to-sideline and he fills a position of need for the Jets. Most had him rated as their top safety on the board and he was taken where you would expect him to go. He'll likely come in and start from day one and he infuses some passion and talent to a depleted safety position. | A |
| Round 2, Selection 49 | Jace Amaro | Tight End | This selection represents excellent value. Whatever you think of Cumberland, when you have the opportunity to add a pass catcher with the athletic ability and production of Amaro in the 2nd round. You absolutely have to do it. 1352 yards and 7 touchdowns in his final year, he represents a big match-up problem. He doesn't have elite straight line speed, but he does have a lot of talent, some elusiveness and soft hands. You don't bring in over 100 catches in a season without having good to great hands. Good value, at another position we needed to infuse talent into. | A+ |
| Round 3, Selection 80 | Dexter McDougle | Cornerback | Now this is the selection that seems to have divided the fan-base. On one hand, I like what I hear and see, a good physical corner who tackles well and has decent speed. However you look at the height and the last of ideal strength. Does he only project inside? I don't know the answer to that. However I thought there were better corners left on the board like Desir. It's also a risk because he is coming off a serious shoulder injury. I'm willing to give him a shot and I hope he excels, but this selection did confuse me a little at the time. Lets hope he can improve his press coverage ability. | C |
| Round 4, Selection 104 | Jalen Saunders | Wide Receiver | A lot of people have a problem with this selection but I really don't. He's an elusive runner in space who plays with a physicality that surprises people due to his size. He caught 203 passes 3085 yards and 26 touchdowns in college and he also returned three punts for a touchdown. If you think it was a reach then that's fair enough. However if he can come in and field punts as well as contribute in the passing game from the slot, he's going to offer good value for a 4th round selection. I'm actually very happy to have him here. | B- |
| Round 4, Selection 115 | Shaq Evans | Wide Receiver | This is one of my favourite selections in the draft. Some are suggesting he was a reach but I disagree. CBS had him as a 3rd round prospect, when I was listening to an NFL podcast experts were picking him in the 3rd and 4th rounds. He was taken where he should have been and he offers a lot of untapped potential. Good hands, nice routes, good speed, good attitude and a tough physical nature. I think this may be the prospect to watch and I can't wait to see him in camp. | B+ |
| Round 4, Selection 137 | Dakota Dozier | Offensive Guard | This is another very solid selection. A left tackle who projects inside. He's a road-grader, a very tough football player who loves to run block. He's a small school guy who will need some work on his technique but as far as a late 4th round prospect, I don't think you can complain. He'll work with a good staff and if he can just refine his hand placement and technique, his natural strength in the run-blocking game will take him a long way. | B+ |
| Round 5, Selection 154 | Jeremiah George | Linebacker | This selection is an interesting one, because there is no disputing that George has a nose for the ball. He works through traffic well and he's been very productive in college. The problem is he is relatively small for the position. What do the Jets plan to do with him? I think he'll be an instant contributor on special teams and then eventually if he can add a little mass without losing any of his quickness, he could push the inside duo for a little bit of playing time. He's another Rex Ryan guy though, he leaves it all on the field and he comes down field in a hurry. He bench-pressed 225 lb's 28 times so he has a lot of strength in his upper body. I'm not surprised with the selection and although he may have been available a little later on, it's not a bad selection at all, it also gives us much needed depth inside at linebacker. | B- |
| Round 6, Selection 195 | Brandon Dixon | Cornerback | I've done quite a lot of research on Dixon and the more I read, the more I like. This is one of the most physical corners I've seen and in his own words, he loves to get his hands on the receivers and re-route them. He ran a 4.41 at the combine which was good for 5th best among corner-backs, when you put that with his play-making ability (5 interceptions in 2012) you have a very interesting prospect that will contribute on specials immediately and potentially develop into a very nice addition. He's very quick footed off the line and he's the kind of defensive back Rex Ryan loves. So this pick makes so much sense, we do have a few corners but picking up a physical guy like Dixon makes a lot of sense. | B |
| Round 6, Selection 209 | Quincy Enunwa | Wide Receiver | This is the perfect example of a player that looks the part that needs some work. He's 6'2 and 225lb's with long arms and a muscular frame. He's also just 21, he was a 21 year old senior so he still has plenty of time to develop. He has a lot of strength and a lot of passion for the game. He will need to work on his route-running to make it as a starter, he rounds off his routes and doesn't sink his hips to explode out of cuts, may find it hard to get separation if this is not corrected. However he is the perfect guy to stash on the practise squad and develop over a period of 2-3 years. If he takes 2 years to get to the NFL standard, he'll still only be 23/24 years old, which isn't bad at all. He was expected to go in the 6th or 7th round, so it wasn't a reach at all. It was a logical selection with upside, which is exactly what you need to do in the 6th round. | B |
| Round 6, Selection 210 | Ik Enemkpali | Defensive End | We have a very strong defensive line, but IK may be better suited to playing as a 3-4 OLB anyway. He is a very strong man with an excellent punch to shock blockers, he's tough and physical and by most accounts a film hound. He doesn't possess the most athletic ability, working with more power than anything. He has a non-stop motor which leads to effort sacks. He's not very fluid and he is very tight. I don't think he'll work in space very well, and he may actually need to lose a little muscle as he is very stiff in his movement. I don't know how the Jets plan to use him, but one of the traits of this draft rests on high effort guys. I don't love this selection if I'm completely honest, but it's really hard to disagree with selections that are made as developmental ones in the 6th round. | C+ |
| Round 6, Selection 216 | Tajh Boyd | Quarterback | Now this is a selection I absolutely love. After the 2012 season many considered Boyd to be a 2nd round prospect if he came out. He stayed for the 2013 season and some below average performances really hurt his stock. When the game tape gets worse than expected and then you don't have the prototypical measurable statistics for the position, you start to drop.However he has one of the better arms in the draft, apparently he put on a clinic at his pro day. Add in his natural athletic ability and getting a player with this much talent in the 6th round of the draft represents unbelievable value if you ask me. He is a fantastic leader and competitor and I fully expect him to stick with the team. It's a pretty exciting selection in my opinion. | A |
| Round 7, Selection 233 | Trevor Reilly | Outside Linebacker | I think most of you know how much of a fan I am of Reilly. Before and during the draft, he was one of the guys I wanted. I had a 4th/5th round grade on him and it seems I wasn't alone. He will be a 26 year old rookie who had some problems with his knee, however that doesn't hide the fact he has a ton of talent rushing the passer, dropping into coverage and playing the run. I think he is going to be the surprise package of this draft and most grades for this selection reflect just how much value he represented. He will work his socks off and play with his heart on his sleeve. I love this selection. | A+ |
Overall Grade: B+
As mentioned in the first paragraph, you can't judge a draft properly until 2-3 years down the line. However when you grade a selection immediately it's based on perceived talent, value and how it fills a team need. I think we infused some real talent on both sides of the football. Some are suggesting we over reached at several selections, In my humble opinion the only reaches that I think anyone could consider bad reaches were McDougle and Saunders. However Kiper said Dexter has 2nd round talent and Saunders in the 4th isn't a massive reach. Reaches for me barely exist in the 4th-7th round. If you take a 3rd day talent on day one, then that's a reach. This has been one of my favourite drafts for some time. I'm willing to be proved wrong in the future, but for now, I'm happy.