New York Jets mock draft: Best and worst-case scenarios for Robert Saleh in 2024 NFL Draft
Robert Saleh is heading into the 2024 NFL season under significant pressure with the New York Jets. Admittedly, injuries haven’t been kind to the former San Francisco 49ers’ defensive coordinator, with Aaron Rodgers playing just one snap for the team last year. However, there are suspicions in the Big Apple that Saleh just can’t adequately shake his focus on defense.
How Saleh performs in the draft may go a long way to influencing how many fans will feel going into the campaign, and it seems like the most sensible option is to surround Rodgers with targets and options.
Aaron Rodgers, whether you like his personal opinions or not, is the centerpiece of the New York Jets. When you pay a veteran QB the money they are paying Rodgers, you have to give them what they want. It doesn’t create a long window for success, but it creates a window and the Jets can’t afford to sleepwalk through another campaign.
Tampa Bay showed the best way to do this by recruiting players Tom Brady asked for. It brought a championship, even if it left their roster in a sorry state once Brady decided to hang up his cleats.
This is a risk the Jets have to be prepared to take. What have they got to lose? There simply hasn’t been any success for the team for too long, they have to do this and the fans will be with them... if they get it right.
Rodgers spent years in Green Bay dreading the NFL draft. If the Packers weren’t providing him additional offensive weapons, they were drafting his future replacement. This was, in part, eventually what led him to leave the team and sign with the Jets.
Saleh can’t let his defensive focus derail this draft. Whilst it may be too much to trade up to get a talent like Marvin Harrison Jr., he has to, to use a boxing term, let his hands go this draft.
Saleh will not be in New York in 2025 if the Jets don’t have a top-eight offense in 2024. The NFL draft is where they get the pieces to make that happen.
New York Jets 2024 NFL mock draft scenarios
Jets mock draft: Best-case scenario
The New York Jets can enjoy a fantastic draft according to Sportskeeda’s 7-round Mock Draft Simulator, with Saleh and company able to prioritize offensive strengthening to give Rodgers a chance to shine.
With the Jets’ first selection coming at #10, they are delighted to see the best tight end in the class still on the board in Brock Bowers. Teams are now constantly looking for the new Travis Kelce… just as they were looking for the next Gronk before that.
Bowers has power and can actually influence an entire offense with his skill set. He’s a reliable catcher and Rodgers loved having a big tight end in Green Bay to make small yardage plays to keep long drives ticking over.
Robert Tonyan and Ryan Finley both had productive QB/TE relationships with Rodgers in Green Bay, and his best offenses have had good tight ends.
Bowers can be that to him and more in 2024. This is a perfect pick here, and a defense having to worry about a tight end who is virtually a primary receiver makes an over-the-top play all the more likely.
Continuing this focus on offense, the Jets then make moves to protect Rodgers and give him receiving options. Xavier Legette is tall and long and can cover long distances, whilst Javon Foster is a physical presence on the offensive line, which is vital to keeping the QB off the turf and healthy.
Saleh is able to add to his defense later on in the draft by selecting Myles Murphy and Tyler Nubin out of North Carolina and Minnesota respectively. Murphy is so explosive that he could end up being a steal at that stage of the draft process.
Here’s how their draft class played out in full in this scenario:
- · Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
- · Xavier Legette, WR, South Carolina
- · Javon Foster, OT, Missouri
- · Tyler Nubin, S, Minnesota
- · Myles Murphy, DT, North Carolina
- · Hunter Nourzad, OC, Penn State,
- · Austin Reed, QB, Western Kentucky
Jets mock draft: Worst-case scenario
The worst-case scenario for the 2024 NFL Draft plays out thanks to Sportskeeda’s 7-round Mock Draft Simulator, with Jets fans having to watch in horror as Saleh simply can’t help himself.
Defense is the order of the day in this scenario as Saleh selects Kool-Aid McKinstry out of Alabama at the #10 slot. McKinstry actually has a lot of upside and can be a playmaker in any NFL defense, but when you have Sauce Gardner in your team, you don’t use the #10 pick on someone in his same position.
Creating two shutdown lanes on either side can be tempting, but it’s just not necessary when the Jets have such glaring holes in other areas.
Patrick Paul arrives out of Houston and is a good OT to protect Rodgers, but if the QB doesn’t have receivers he can rely on, then Paul is going to have to work overtime when Rodgers keeps hold of the ball too long. That is the recipe for disaster without additional help.
Again, Mehki Wingo is a talented prospect in his own right, but taking him with their third pick is problematic. It just isn’t needed.
When Saleh finally gets around to improving his offense, the level of player on the board isn’t at the level that can help the team. This is the exact sort of draft board that will lead Rodgers to tear his hair out.
Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint isn’t an NFL-ready stater at this point and getting Jaheim Bell when you could have had Brock Bowers would be simply maddening.
Here’s the list of players NY is projected to select in this eventuality:
- · Kool-Aid McKinstry, CB, Alabama
- · Patrick Paul, OT, Houston
- · Mehki Wingo, DT, LSU
- · Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, WR, Georgia
- · Jaheim Bell, TE, Florida State
- · Zion Tupuola-Fetui, EDGE, Washington
- · Jordan Magee, LB, Temple