For anyone who dislikes Mock Drafts, and I know there are a lot of you. I’m settling back into draft mode today. First we’re looking at Mel Kiper Jr’s Mock 2.0, and later this evening I’ll be posting my first mock draft of the season. It will be a full first round mock, rather than a Jets 7 round mock which Matt is looking after.
So straight into the Mel Kiper mock. As I’ve mentioned around 100 times now, Leonard Fournette is a very popular pick for the jets at number 6. First lets have a look at the Mel Kiper logic, which is sound here:
"Wait -- what?" I can hear you. Let me explain. The Jets do have a quarterback problem to solve, but that seems more likely to come in free agency after they took a QB in Round 2 just last year. They could also draft a defender here, but the top cornerback is off the board. So why Fournette? For one, if they truly go with the best player available here, there's a real chance it's him, just as Ezekiel Elliott was for Dallas at No. 4 last year. Secondly, they know they can get a ton of reps from Fournette right now, and this is a team that needs to be better.
The Jets have shown a willingness to take BPA, just look back at Leonard Williams. As Mel Kiper suggested in his preamble, there is a good chance that you could get a decent RB on the 3rd day of this draft, but you’re not going to get a Fournette there. A guy who you can build around and establish an identity around. Although I’m not sure that I would make this pick (you’ll find out later), I can understand why people are mocking him to us. He’s a keystone player, someone who sets the foundation for you to build around.
What do you think? How would you feel if the Jets took Fournette with the 6th overall selection?