Jet GM is good on draft, but QB call now crucial
The Jets and general manager Joe Douglas had a big night on Thursday.
Gang Green’s first two picks of the 2022 NFL Draft, cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson, were named NFL Defensive and Offensive Rookies of the Year at the NFL Honors award ceremony in Phoenix. It marks only the third time in NFL history a team had players sweep the rookie categories.
But before he was the general manager of the Jets, Douglas helped shape the Eagles roster as their vice president of player personnel from 2016-19.
During his time with the Eagles, Douglas — along with general manager Howie Roseman — put together a roster that made back-to-back playoff appearances, including winning
Super Bowl LII over the New England Patriots following the 2017 season.
Now, five years later, Philadelphia is back in the Super Bowl, this time against Kansas City.
Although Douglas hasn’t been with the Eagles organization since 2019, he helped scout key players during the 2018 draft. The Eagles drafted both tight end Dallas Goedert and defensive end Josh Sweat in the second and fourth round, respectively. And each is still having a significant impact on the roster for the NFC champions.
This season, Goedert caught 55 passes for 702 yards and three touchdowns as he helped the Eagles finish third in total offense. Sweat was one of the key cogs for a Philadelphia defensive line that ended the year with 70 sacks. He recorded a career-high 11 sacks while also having 48 tackles.
Also, before leaving for the Jets during the summer of 2019, Douglas and Roseman drafted running back Miles Sanders, who rushed for 1,269 yards and 11 touchdowns and was named to his first Pro Bowl this season.
This should give Jets fans optimism for the future as the team did an incredible job in last year’s draft. Douglas drafted Gardner and Wilson, but also took Jermaine Johnson late in the first round, who could potentially play a more significant role in 2023.
Also, running back Breece Hall, who was drafted in the second round, was arguably the favorite to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year until an ACL injury knocked him out for the rest of the season. In seven games, Hall rushed for 463 yards and four touchdowns. A year before that, Douglas selected guard Alijah Vera-Tucker at No. 14 overall, who played multiple positions on the offensive line during the 2022 season before suffering a season-ending triceps injury.
Naysayers will say Douglas did miss on the most critical position in all of sports, and there’s no denying that. The Jets had their choice of taking Justin Fields, Trey Lance or Mac Jones, but they chose Zach Wilson in the 2021 NFL Draft at second overall and he has been a massive disappointment during his first two seasons.
And it hasn’t just been injuries that have been in Wilson’s way, it’s his poor play that has Jets fans and coaches scratching their heads. In 22 games, Wilson has thrown for 4,022 yards, 15 TDs to 18 interceptions while completing just 55.2% of his passes.
Because of their misstep of selecting Wilson, Douglas and head coach Robert Saleh understand they have to get the veteran quarterback choice right this offseason. The Jets have been linked to Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo.
“The weakness was with the quarterback position,” Jets owner Woody Johnson told ESPN on Thursday night. “Whether it was management or whatever, everybody kind of regressed a little bit.
“What we are going to do is we are going to look for an experienced quarterback to come in and help us and help develop these other young players further. There’s a number of them out there that look pretty good.”
Douglas’ hits with either the Eagles or the Jets are enough to be hopeful about Gang Green’s future. However, everything comes back to the quarterback position and if the Jets can finally get that right this offseason, playoffs and possibly beyond could undoubtedly be in their future.