The New York Jets are still debating internally which high-profile quarterback they want to select with the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
When the New York Jets traded up to get the third overall pick, it was done to ensure that they would get one of the four highly touted quarterbacks that are available in the draft. However, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News says that the team has yet to decide which quarterback they want.
“Make no mistake: The Jets are currently divided on which quarterback to take at No. 3. Oh, sure. The team will invariably try to sell us that (INSERT DRAFTED QB HERE) was the top choice all along, but I’ve heard enough varying opinions about these four quarterbacks from inside the organization to know better.”
This is not unsurprising, as all four quarterbacks—Josh Allen, Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold, and Baker Mayfield—come with concerns.
Mayfield produced excellent stats at Oklahoma, but concerns about his height (6-foot-1) and maturity have dropped him down some draft boards, although Todd Bowles compared his cockiness to that of Joe Namath. There are also some mild footwork concerns, although Mehta notes that the Jets are less concerned with that than others are.
Rosen is a talented quarterback and has all the tools, but he has a reputation for getting easily frustrated with teammates and isn’t thought of as a leader. However, he is only 21 and it’s a little ridiculous to think he’s fully matured.
Allen has incredible arm strength, which has coaches intrigued. However, his accuracy is a concern, as he completed just 56.2 percent of his passes at Wyoming. That low number, combined with the weaker competition he faced in college, has some turned off to him.
The main concern with Darnold is his turnover rate in college, as he threw 22 interceptions in 27 career games, with 20 coming over his final 20 games. Turnovers bite you in the NFL, and if you turn it over once per game, a good number of them will be turned into points by the other team.
Whoever the Jets pick, they will need to work around or through their given issues. That said, the team didn’t move up to not select a quarterback, and getting this right will set them up nicely for the next decade.
