3 players Jets must avoid in 2024 NFL Draft

The Jets need all the help they can get to win now with Aaron Rodgers, but they should avoid these NFL draft prospects.

The New York Jets discovered new levels of pain in 2023, losing QB Aaron Rodgers to an Achilles injury after only a handful of snaps. Despite a valiant effort by the Jets’ defense, losing Rodgers was a fatal blow to the team’s season.

Rodgers is expected to be healthy for the start of the 2024 season and expectations will be sky-high. He will be entering his age 40 season this fall, which makes it an open question how long he can and will be the Jets signal caller. That makes this offseason, and especially the 2024 NFL Draft, incredibly important for Gang Green.

The Jets have attacked the offseason with a sense of urgency thus far. They added wide receiver Mike Williams and a couple of offensive linemen (John Simpson and Tyron Smith) in free agency. New York also acquired another offensive tackle in Morgan Moses and an edge rusher Haason Reddick via trades.

The 2024 NFL Draft is one more huge opportunity for New York to reinforce their roster for a Super Bowl run. The team has the 10th overall pick in the draft, as well as the 72nd overall pick and a handful of day three lottery tickets. The Jets don’t have a lot to work with, so it is crucial that they select the right players with each of their picks.

Here are three players who the New York Jets should avoid in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Marvin Harrison Jr., WR, Ohio State

Let’s start out by addressing the elephant in the room: it is hard to imagine a world where Marvin Harrison Jr. falls anywhere below the fifth overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. That being the case, the Jets would likely have to pay a price similar to that of trading up for a quarterback to move up the board and get Marvin Harrison Jr.

Realistically, New York would have to sacrifice some serious draft capital from next year’s draft to make a move for Marvin Harrison Jr. possible. That could put the team at risk of not having enough resources to reload again next offseason assuming Aaron Rodgers returns for another season. Is that risk worth taking to acquire Marvin Harrison Jr.?

Harrison Jr. isn’t the only option for New York. Sitting at 10th overall, the Jets could easily stay put and select another talented rookie receiver like Malik Nabers, Rome Odunze, or Brian Thomas Jr. Or perhaps they covet Brock Bowers, they freakiest tight end prospect to come out of college in a long time.

Instead of trading up for Marvin Harrison Jr., the Jets would be better served selecting either the best skill position player or offensive lineman available to them at 10.

Taliese Fuaga, T, Oregon State

Taliese Fuaga is one of several incredibly talented offensive linemen in this year’s draft. However, his strengths don’t mesh well with New York’s perceived need for an offensive lineman.

This is no knock on Fuaga, he is certainly a talented prospect. Fuaga is a monstrous run blocker who could use some more polish as a pass protector. The Jets’ season depends on keeping their 40-year-old quarterback clean, which makes pass protection the single most important trait in any offensive lineman they add in the draft.

There is a certain appeal to the idea of investing in a developmental quarterback in this draft class. Aaron Rodgers is clearly near the end of his career, so one could argue that the Jets should invest in a backup QB who could take the reins from him someday soon.

This 2024 QB class is also absolutely loaded, which makes it a distinct possibility that one of the second- or third-tier quarterbacks (Michael Penix Jr., Bo Nix, Spencer Rattler, etc.) could be available when the Jets pick at 72.

It may be tempting, but drafting a QB before day three would be a mistake for the 2024 New York Jets.

New York needs to go all in to try and win a championship in 2024. Their defense is already loaded with talent, so offensive players should be the focus for the Jets’ first few selections at least. Specifically, offensive players who can contribute in year one and help the team get over the hump.