Sam Darnold QB jets. Mandatory credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports
What will the Jets do with their newly guaranteed second overall choice?
After consecutive wins against two potential playoff teams, the New York Jets effectively ensured that they would not be the first overall in the NFL’s 2021 Draft, winning the second overall selection. Such a result was truly a heartbreaker for his fan base, who hoped the Jets would be able to secure the theoretical perspective of quarterback Trevor Lawrence of Clemson. But all is not lost.
The New York Jets can still make major changes to its team in order to rebuild it towards a better future, including some important decisions that will undoubtedly be made in the coming weeks. Coach Adam Gase, for example, is due to be fired at the end of the season, pending a miraculous turnaround. His resignation would put the Jets in the running to get a new coach with the vision of building sustainable success.
The head coach would then need to work with general manager Joe Douglas to evaluate the squad, including what to do with the impending free agents, along with what to do with acting quarterback Sam Darnold, the third overall choice in the 2018 NFL Draft.
But his second general choice makes any theories about his off-season plans to be debatable. Anything can happen when a team prepares so well, and after seeing what the teams have been up to in the past few years, there are many directions that the Jets can take that can set the franchise for success in the future.