The gap among teams in the AFC East could be tighter than usual during the 2020 season.
While the New England Patriots have dominated the division for much of the last two decades, the departure of quarterback Tom Brady (among others) have called the division into question. And that makes the 2020 NFL Draft all the more important.
So here’s how one of the Patriots’ AFC East rivals — the New York Jets — graded in the draft, according to five NFL analysts.
More NFL: How Did Patriots’ AFC East Rivals Fare In 2020 Draft?
Here are New York Jets selections:
Round 1: OT Mekhi Becton
Round 2: WR Denzel Mims
Round 3: S Ashtyn Davis, DE Jabari Zuniga
Round 4: RB La’Michal Perine, QB James Morgan, OT Cameron Clark
Round 5: CB Bryce Hall
Round 6: P Braden Mann
NFL.com’s Chad Reuter
New York completed its overhaul of the offensive line with Becton in the first round, found a second-round value at receiver in Mims and got solid picks on the edge and at safety.
Sports Illustrated’s Andy Benoit
By the end of last season, the Jets were playing with four backup offensive linemen, and that lineup actually played better than the starting unit had played. The point? They need more O-line talent. Mekhi Becton has that. He’s the largest man to enter the league since right tackle Trent Brown, who earned a $36.25 million guaranteed contract with the Raiders in 2019. … So should wideout Denzel Mims. On the rare snaps where Adam Gase’s scheme did not look to deliberately help its receivers through design, New York’s lack of perimeter talent and depth at this position was grossly exposed.
Pro Football Focus
Not only was Mekhi Becton not among the top five offensive tackles on PFF’s Big Board, but he wasn’t even a top-40 prospect in this draft class… We knew someone would take a chance on Becton early, and the New York Jets came out as the ones to take the high-risk, high-reward prospect.
Instead of going after a receiver like Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs or CeeDee Lamb in Round 1, the Jets got great value in Round 2 with Denzel Mims at pick No. 59… However, as PFF Lead Draft Analyst Mike Renner said, Mims is still very much a project — he needs to develop as a route-runner.
Sporting News’ Vinnie Iyer
The Jets did well for themselves early back to back with Becton and Mims, perfect fits for their offense. Their best picks after that were Zuniga and Hall, good values for defensive needs. Davis was a reach and Morgan was a wasted pick. Perine is someone to watch behind Le’Veon Bell.
The New York Post’s Ryan Dunleavy
Becton over surer thing Tristan Wirfs in an unexpected choice of tackles was a swing for the fences. Trading down and still landing Mims was shrewd. GM Joe Douglas had a sneaky strong Day 3.
Despite what seems like a good draft for the Jets, we still can’t imagine they’re going to be competing for the top spot in the AFC East.
