The 2024 NFL Draft kicks off Thursday night in downtown Detroit, and the 10th overall pick will surely be under a microscope as one of the most scrutinized teams of 2023 looks to make amends for a lost season. The New York Jets have been a hot topic ever since Aaron Rodgers left his home of 18 years in Green Bay to make the move to The Big Apple. With him back fully healthy, New York is looking to go all in to win a Super Bowl and the Jets’ draft targets at 10th overall should reflect this.
Boasting an elite defense and stars at the RB1 and WR1 position, the Jets appear to be contenders again this season, and no other team in the NFL should be feeling the pressure to be in “win now” mode more than the Jets. Below, we will examine three Jets draft targets at No. 10 in the upcoming draft to finally put this team over the top and ready to win a Super Bowl.
New York Jets Draft Targets at No. 10
Brock Bowers, TE, Georgia
Brock Bowers is a pro-ready tight end who has wowed scouts with his athleticism and prowess for big plays for a long time now. It’s no secret he’s a surefire top-10 pick, as he’s the most hyped tight end prospect since Kyle Pitts was selected by the Atlanta Falcons at pick No. 4 in the 2021 NFL Draft. He can run a full route tree and has good acceleration after the catch. His versatility makes him appear as more of an overall receiving weapon rather than lumped in with the mold of ordinary tight ends. While his traits reflect he is strongest as a playmaker and scoring threat, he is also a good blocker who can contribute to helping the Jets’ run game.
To me, Bowers appears to be more of a slot receiver, akin to the style that Travis Kelce has brought to the position. For the Jets, this is a no-brainer as what they are truly lacking is a threat at the slot receiver position. While they still have Tyler Conklin as a reliable pass-catcher as a traditional tight end, adding Bowers at the 10th pick would allow the team to experiment with different formations and address their weakness by adding an immediate contributor who could move all around the field in different formations.
After bringing in Mike Williams to pair with superstar Garrett Wilson on the outside, drafting Bowers would allow the Jets to essentially punt on the WR3 position and give Bowers the role in the process. Behind Williams and Wilson, the Jets don’t have a clear-cut WR3 after the Rodgers-recruited Allen Lazard failed to live up to expectations last year. With Bowers as the jack of all trades, the Jets could use a committee approach and still get solid yet unspectacular production out of the trio of Lazard and second-year receivers Xavier Gipson and Jason Brownlee. In a nutshell, it adds a strength by covering up a weakness.
Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State
The Jets will be a great team, if everyone stays healthy. The debate on this roster as constructed is that if it’s built to win now, the offensive tackle position as currently stands should be enough to achieve its goals. Drafting a tackle would represent long-term upside, but not as much as the impact Bowers could give in his rookie year. There are differing opinions on this, as obviously, the Jets will go nowhere if Rodgers isn’t protected and gets injured again, a theory clearly proven by last year’s debacle of a season. However, the Jets brought in capable starters at tackle in former Tyron Smith and Morgan Moses. With a revolving door at tackle last year, featuring the oft-injured Mekhi Becton and a washed-up Duane Brown, the Jets believe they have addressed this need by swapping them out with Smith and Moses. Will they stay healthy? If not, will the depth behind them be enough to keep them afloat if they pass on a tackle at pick No. 10 and take Bowers instead?
If the answer to that question is no, then Olu Fashanu will end up looking like a brilliant Jets draft target. After Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt, the clear-cut No.1 player at the position, Fashanu looks like a likely candidate to be the next best one. While you could make an argument for Alabama’s JC Latham, Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga or Washington’s Troy Fautanu, Penn State’s Fashanu would be a great choice to protect Rodgers. He might be the best pass-protector in this draft after not allowing a single sack in 646 pass-blocking attempts over his two seasons as Penn State’s starting left tackle. Perhaps intrigued by this truly remarkable feat, if the Jets are worried about their durability at the position in an attempt to keep Rodgers healthy all year, Fashanu would give great insurance and depth, while also pushing the free-agent acquisitions as a potential day 1 starter.
Some may view it as a wasted investment to put them over the top right away. Either way, if he ends up as the starting left tackle, the Jets should feel confident that Rodgers will always have his blind side covered.
Any of the “Big Three” Receivers That Fall
We know the NFL Draft is wacky and unpredictable, and although it seems unlikely, is it possible that one of Marvin Harrison Jr, Malik Nabers or Rome Odunze falls to the Jets at pick 10? If so, it would send the Jets sprinting up to the podium to turn in their draft card for any of the remaining three. While they might have their preference of the bunch, any one of them would be a godsend and a foreshadowing of potentially great things to come in New York City. If the Jets can walk away from the draft with a top three receiver group in Wilson, Williams and any of the three players above, they would instantly boast one of the best skill position groups in the league.
While it’s definitely possible, the Jets would have to hope that no one trades up to overtake them. Also, Chicago owns the ninth pick, and if any of these wideouts remain, they would most likely want to scoop them up even after bringing in Keenan Allen to pair with DJ Moore this offseason. Even if they don’t, a trade-down would make sense for the Bears, and the Jets cannot afford to be players in that game to move up considering they don’t own a second-round pick in this draft.
It would take extremely favorable luck for this situation to play out, but if it does, the Jets would be more than ecstatic to add one of the top-tier rookie receivers. They could also trade down from the 10th pick to recoup that second-rounder, but I think they stay put and still get one of these players who surely have to be at the top of their board.
