The New York Jets have drafted plenty of quarterbacks over the past few years, but they may end up releasing one of them before the 2017 season officially begins.
The Jets recently signed veteran Josh McCown, and it seems like he could be a one-year bridge option while New York grooms its younger players. And if the team decides to draft yet another QB this year, Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News speculates that 2015 fourth-round pick Bryce Petty could find himself on the chopping block.
I’d question the logic behind drafting a project quarterback with two project quarterbacks already on the roster. If Mike Maccagnan selects a quarterback in the first three rounds, that would likely signal the end for Bryce Petty (who was the 103rd overall pick in the 2015 draft, by the way). The Jets aren’t cutting former second-rounder Christian Hackenberg without seeing him play in a regular-season game. And they’re not keeping three young projects and recently signed veteran Josh McCown. Petty would be the odd man out.
This year’s draft class is not considered deep at quarterback, and there may not be a single player at the position who is ready to start at the NFL level. The Jets have the No. 6 and No. 39 overall picks, so they will likely be in a position to draft one of the top QBs if they choose to go that route. Mehta added that he would be “surprised” if New York picked former North Carolina star Mitch Trubisky — arguably the best QB in the draft — at No. 6.
The 2018 draft class is expected to be much deeper at QB, and the Jets have plenty of other needs. They are supposedly committed to giving one signal-caller on their roster a chance, so they could avoid the QB position in the draft this year.
