I love the first 3 picks in the draft, the O line wil be solid next year and Clem might be our Qb of the future. But then we had a chance to draft some big name players. I am basing this on what I read, I am no draft expert. But according to Kipers draft board and NFL draft countdown there were some players which fit positions we needed help with. But it seems for the rest of the draft we opted for character guys, football guys, guys that in some cases don't have that much of an upside. Like I said I am basing this off of experts analysis. We could have taken Lendale, Gabe, Max gene gilles, etc <-- examples of big names we passed on. First 3 picks were great, the rest I am not sure about. The Pats are high on character but you saw their draft, they got some great players that will instantly make them a SB contender again, we made strides but we could have come away with a lot more than 2 starters.
Yes building in the Pats mold is absolutely horrible. God forbid if we build our team like proven SB winners have. We should of drafted hollywood types, druggies and thugs. We don't need hard workers and guys that want to play.
Too much in the Pat mold? The Patriots are Donald Trump's 'Apprentice'... The Jets are Martha Stewart's 'Apprentice'.
I liked the first two picks enough to give them the benefit of the doubt thereafter. Only Mangini and Tannenbaum know exactly what kind of team they want to build but we've been given some insight into the characteristics of that team. 1. Hard-driving. Spending a third round pick on Schlegel was a clear indicator that they want a swarming defense on first and second down and they want hitters over finesse players. Getting Schlegel at the point of attack means that Vilma will be able to go sideline to sideline in the 3-4 and create that swarm. 2. Character. I'm not a big character fan, however it's clear that the new Jet's FO/CS wants no surprises from the personal issues tangent. Pass on LenDale White, pass on Winston Justice, pass on Gabe Watson. 3 for 3 in terms of players whose skills are strong and character is suspect. Take Ferguson over Leinart, take Clemens over White, take Schlegel over Watson. 3 guys who are very strong on character in the first 3 rounds. Adding Mangold at 29 was a no-brainer but he is also seen as a very strong character guy. 3. Deep. Lots of moves down to get an extra pick. One move-up to get the guy they needed. An extra pick already in the 2007 draft. This is the way to recapture the quality depth that the Jets had in 1999 and that has been slowly deteriorating since then. 4. Flexible. Eric Smith, Brad Smith, Jason Pociask and Leon Washington are all tweener/special-teams type players. Eric Smith could be a nickel linebacker inside or a strong safety. Brad Smith could be a tailback, a wide receiver or even an option QB for the downs they want to mess with the defense's head. Think mini-Hines Ward with him. Jason Pociask could be an H-back, a fullback or even a tightend depending on how they view him. Leon Washington will probably return kicks and be a gunner on special teams although he's better than anybody but Curtis Martin out of the backfield also at the moment. This draft has been pure Patriots so far and I love it. The Jets still need to find a NT, but they've done an excellent job of putting the new regime's stamp on this team in their first draft.
Its amazing, a lot of people on this board have somehow convinced themselves that Tangini should be looked at in the same way, given the same benefit of the doubt as Belichek and the Pats. In that vein they've convinced themselves that when we take guys with absolutely no athletic upside who every source says has little chance of ever starting the in the NFL, that our FO somehow knows something about what it takes to build a team that no one else does. I hope you're all right.
There are some picks that have me scratching my head, especially with our needs and some of the players still out there. Then again, I don't do any scouting so I don't have enough knowledge. Like the Brad Smith and Leon Washington. Don't really care for Eric Smith, Jason Pociask, and the last pick. Even wiith their flexibility we could've gotten better players (from what I've read) that filled needs. TE was not a need, unless he can truly play fullback. First 3 picks, very good, rest are OK. What I can say is this "type" of player stuff is nothing new and something we heard from the past regime and from teams all across the league.
