The Jets wrapped up their draft by taking defensive end Michael Clemons with the 12th pick of the fourth round and the team’s work over the last three days has resulted in a lot of good reviews from around the football world.
They took cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson in the top 10 and then traded back into the first round to take edge rusher Jermaine Johnson. Another trade up landed them running back Breece Hall in the second round and they added tight end Jeremy Ruckert and tackle Max Mitchell before taking Clemons.
It’s a needed infusion of talent for the Jets, but head coach Robert Saleh referenced negative reviews of a transformative Seahawks draft to illustrate why he’s not listening to those who are patting the team on the back right now.
“That’s for you guys,” Saleh said, via the team’s website. “I’ve also been in places where we’ve been universally mocked. I think we took Bruce Irvin, Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson in the first three rounds and got a D-grade. . . . It doesn’t matter. We’ve got to help them, we’ve got to put them in the best position possible. We’ll know in three years.”
Saleh’s right about the time frame needed to truly evaluate the results of a draft, but immediate signs of improvement would be a step in the right direction for a team that last made the playoffs after the 2010 season.