NEW YORK JETS
Round 1 (No. 4 overall) – Ahmad “Sauce” Gardner, CB, Cincinnati :A franchise that’s been looking for Darrelle Revis’ successor for the past half-decade should benefit greatly from the 6-3, 190-pound Gardner, who never surrendered a TD pass for the Bearcats. He’s not going to sustain that kind of shutdown rep in a division now featuring WRs Tyreek Hill and Stefon Diggs, but he’d certainly upgrade the league’s worst defense, both in terms of points and yards allowed in 2021.
Round 1 (10, from Seahawks) – Garrett Wilson, WR, Ohio State: Wilson is widely considered as the top receiver in this draft, featuring 4.38 speed.
Round 1 (26, from Titans) – Jermaine Johnson II, DE/OLB, Florida State: New York gives up a second-rounder and a Round 5 choice to Tennessee, along with a flip of thirds, to secure Johnson for a pass rush that badly needs a player of his caliber. The 6-5, 262-pounder could form a nice bookend opposite Carl Lawson assuming the veteran recovers from the Achilles tear.
Round 2 (36, from Giants) – Breece Hall, RB, Iowa State: The Jets add another piece to help second-year QB Zach Wilson, teaming Hall with 2021 fourthrounder Michael Carter, who rushed for 639 yards as a rookie. Hall (6-1, 220) could become the lead option given his 4.39 speed could bust many games open.
Round 3 (101, special compensatory, from Saints through Eagles and Titans) – Jeremy Ruckert, TE, Ohio State: A 6-5, 250-pounder who will probably be more of a factor as a blocker than as a receiver. He caught 54 passes in four seasons.
Round 4 (111, from Panthers) – Max Mitchell, OT, Louisiana
Round 4 (117, from Vikings) – Michael Clemons, DE, Texas A&M
Grade: A+
GM Joe Douglas fully reaped the rewards this year of offloading S Jamal Adams and QB Sam Darnold. And it sure appeared Douglas leveraged it wisely. Gardner, Wilson and Hall were each arguably the best players at their respective positions. And by trading back into the first round for Johnson, Douglas
might have scored a great value pick.