Jets need to avoid past mistakes at the NFL Scouting Combine that led to poor choices
This is one of the most important weeks of the NFL off season, but for the smarter teams, it is just another week in a long off season of gather information. The NFL combine is set to begin this week in Indianapolis. 321 football players will gather at Lucas Oil Stadium in hopes of impressing […]
This is one of the most important weeks of the NFL off season, but for the smarter teams, it is just another week in a long off season of gather information.
The NFL combine is set to begin this week in Indianapolis. 321 football players will gather at Lucas Oil Stadium in hopes of impressing the representatives of all 32 NFL teams in order to hear their name called on draft day in late April.
Players are broken up into position groups and worked out in a variety of drills wearing skintight body suits and no pads. They are weighed and measured and put through the ringer for a chance at improving their draft stock.
For the New York Jets, they need to avoid using this week as anything more than a chance to look at some medical documents and to have an initial meet and greet with potential draft prospects.
There is no bigger pitfall in draft evaluation than falling in love with a prospect at the combine. These players spend years putting their skills and abilities on tape on the football field, and certain guys skyrocket up draft boards for having good workouts.
GM’s who find themselves smitten after watching a player run in a straight line at the “Underwear Olympics” are usually searching for new jobs within a few seasons.
The Jets have been guilty of letting the combine grades make their decisions for them. One of the most infamous examples is when the Jets took workout warrior Vernon Gholston with the sixth pick in the 2008 draft.
He came out of Ohio State with all of the measurables that teams seek: size, speed, length, strength. But Gholston was raw and inexperienced. The 6-4, 258-pound physical specimen was impressive at the combine (4.67-second 40, 35½-inch vertical, 37 reps of 225 pounds on the bench), and the Jets fell in love, burning a top-10 selection on a player who would start just five games and record no sacks over three seasons.
A few seasons later the Jets were fooled again at the combine with Stephen Hill. Hill played in an option offense while at Georgia Tech so there wasn’t much tape to go on. Hill was raw and inexperienced as a passing game component. What Hill did possess was speed. He had 4.36-second speed in the 40, and the Jets hoped that would open up their aerial attack.
In his two seasons in New York, the team's offense ranked 30th and 25th in total yards. Hill combined for 594 yards and four touchdowns in those two seasons, and his career was over in 2016.
Most recently, you know who the star of the 2020 NFL combine was? Mekhi Becton.
You know how many times this season Becton's ability to run in straight line for 40 yards helped the team this season? Zero.
Becton had the Jets foaming at the mouth to take him 11th overall in the 2020 draft. The Jets, who were desperate for a tackle or a wide receiver, left Tristan Wirfs, Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb on the board in order to take Becton. Hindsight aside, the Jets made the wrong decision based on the wrong type of information.
In order to avoid falling into the same trap as 2020, the Jets need to focus on player interview and game tape in making their draft choices this year.
The Jets have a need at offensive tackle, and it shouldn’t matter to them which of the top guys run fastest in a straight line in a scuba suit.
Jets Offseason Road Map: Three players to target in the NFL Draft outside of round one
After another heartbreaking year and extending their North American sports leading playoff drought to 13 seasons, it’s time for the New York Jets to focus on the offseason. The Jets won’t be looking at any major changes to the coaching staff, so they will be focused solely on the draft and NFL free agency to […]
