Mike Maccagnan – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Sam Darnold now Jets’ longest-tenured No. 1 pick

Sam Darnold is now the longest-tenured No. 1 draft pick on the Jets current roster following the Jamal Adams trade.

Sam Darnold, who was the Jets’ No. 1 pick in 2018, is now the longest-tenured first-rounder on New York’s roster. Seriously.

When the Jets shipped Jamal Adams to Seattle, they joined the Las Vegas Raiders as the only two teams that don’t have a single one of their first-round picks from 2011-17 on their rosters, according to ESPN’s Stats & Information. The Jets made eight selections in the first round over that span, while the Raiders have made just five.

While the Jets were able to net a massive haul for Adams, the deal highlighted the organization’s draft failures. New York’s drafting history, specifically in the first round, is a large reason why the team hasn’t played into late January since 2010, which was three head coaches and four general managers ago.

The Jets have been the worst team in the NFL when it comes to drafting over the past 10 years, according to a study done on drafting efficiency from 2010 to 2019 by Football Outsiders. That’s why it comes as no surprise that the team’s first-round picks from 2011-17 are no longer part of the franchise’s nucleus. With the recent departure of Adams, just 11 of New York’s 72 draft picks since 2010 remain on the active roster.

Four of those first-round selections (Muhammad Wilkerson, Quinton Coples, Calvin Pryor and Dee Milliner) are no longer in the league. Leonard Williams and Darron Lee never lived up to their draft slot, while Adams and Sheldon Richardson fractured their relationships with the organization.

The team’s consistent drafting struggles have put more of an emphasis on the team hitting on its first-round picks. That’s certainly a reason why the Jets’ power structure refused to take no as an answer from Joe Douglas. He was brought on board to take the stench out of the Jets war room and his drafting resume speaks for itself.

Whether it’s fair or not, the pressure is now on Darnold to shift the tide. He is now the face of the franchise and although he’s shown flashes of looking the part, he still has plenty to prove heading into year three.

Jordan Jenkins, Steve McLendon now the longest-tenured Jets

Following the departures of Quincy Enunwa and Brian Winters, Jordan Jenkins and Steve McLendon are now the Jets longest-tenured players.

Now that both Brian Winters and Quincy Enunwa are no longer with the organization, Jordan Jenkins and Steve McLendon are the Jets’ longest-tenured players.

Both defenders joined the Jets in 2016 when ex-Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan was calling the shots.

Winters and Enunwa were the last two players on New York’s roster who held ties to both John Idzik and Rex Ryan. They joined the Jets in 2013 and 2014, respectively.

Winters, a long-suspected cap casualty, was released on Sunday. A former third-round pick out of Kent State University, Winters had been with the Jets for the past seven seasons, starting 79 of 89 games in his career with Gang Green. In less than 24 hours, he was able to find a new home in Buffalo. His departure saved the Jets $7.28 million in cap space.

As for Enunwa, the Jets officially released the oft-injured wide receiver on Monday. Enunwa had already been ruled out for the 2020 season and was on the team’s reserve/PUP list. Enunwa showed flashes of promise but was never able to stay on the field due to multiple neck injuries and a spinal stenosis diagnosis. Enunwa missed the entire 2017 season with a neck injury but bounced back for a sound performance as the team’s No. 3 receiving option in 2018. Enunwa was then signed to a four-year, $36 million contract extension but wound up playing just one game on his new deal.

New York got no salary relief by releasing Enunwa.

Winters and Enunwa’s departures will leave a void in the locker room, but both Jenkins and McLendon have been leaders in their own rights.

Although McLendon is now 34 years old, the defensive tackle has shown no signs of slowing down. McLendon has become one of Maccagnan’s better and more underrated additions during his time in New York. He has severed as the heart and soul of Gang Green’s defense and has helped the Jets locker room navigate through tumultuous times. For example, with the Jets unable to workout at the team’s facilities in Florham Park back in May, McLendon opened up his gym in Georgia for his teammates to come train.

McLendon’s future with the organization beyond 2020 is currently up in the air, however.

Jenkins has been one of New York’s rare mid-round draft picks that has panned out. Coming back to lead the unit after his free agent market didn’t take off, Jenkins has consistently been one of New York’s strongest pass-rushers. He could play himself into a contract extension this year if he keeps getting after the quarterback.

As of now, no current Jet has been with the organization for more than four seasons. Joe Douglas continues to rebuild the roster from the bottom up and with that, there has been plenty of turnover. Whether Jenkins or McLendon is part of the organization’s future remains to be seen,

With Jamal Adams gone, Marcus Maye is only Jet left from 2017 draft class

With Jamal Adams headed for Seattle, Marcus Maye is the only New York Jet left from Mike Maccagnan’s 2017 draft class.

Marcus Maye is the last man standing.

Now that Jamal Adams has been traded to Seattle, Maye is the only remaining member of the Jets’ 2017 draft class, which was run by former general manager Mike Maccagnan.

While there’s no question that Adams was a home run pick by Maccagnan, his drafts have left a lot to be desired. Adams joins ArDarius Stewart, Chad Hansen, Jordan Leggett, Dylan Donahue, Elijah McGuire, Jeremy Clark and Derrick Jones as 2017 picks who have since moved on from New York. Maye, meanwhile, is now one of just 12 players left from Maccagnan’s draft classes between 2015 and 2019.

The Jets’ 2015 draft class no longer has a footprint on the team’s roster, while Jordan Jenkins and Maye are the team’s lone representatives from 2016 and 2017 draft classes, respectively.

Adams was certainly one of Maccagnan’s better draft picks as the team’s general manager. New York attempted to fix its woes in the 2017 draft by taking Adams and Maye in back to back rounds. While the plan was sound and the Jets saw a resurgence in their secondary, they were never going to be able to pay both safeties down the road.

At one point, Maye appeared to be the odd man out of the Jets’ future plans, especially when the Jets took Ashtyn Davis in the 2020 draft. At the time of the draft, a new deal with Adams still seemed possible.

With Adams’ wish granted and the All-Pro safety headed to Seattle, there’s an opportunity for Maye to step up and be New York’s go-to guy in the secondary. If he does so, he could be the one who ends up getting an extension from Douglas.

Study shows Jets have worst drafting efficiency in NFL over last 10 years

According to a study done by FootballOutsiders.com, the Jets have been the 32nd best team in the NFL at drafting over a 10-year period.

The Jets’ drafting miscues have long been documented.

The team has struck out numerous times in recent years and it’s why, entering the 2020 NFL Draft, New York had the fewest homegrown players in the NFL.

So it should come as no surprise that the Jets have been the worst team in the NFL when it comes to drafting over the past 10 years, according to a study done on drafting efficiency from 2010 to 2019 by Football Outsiders.

Other than two drafts (2010 and 2011), when the Jets had a combined 10 picks across two separate drafts, New York hasn’t exactly lacked draft capital. As the study shows, the Jets have the worst return on capital in the NFL, which lines up with the team’s struggles.

For the past five seasons (this study doesn’t count 2020), under both Mike Maccagnan and John Idzik’s scouting departments, the Jets remained at the bottom in the league in terms of return on draft capital. According to the study, they haven’t even approached an average return.

Next, the study looks at draft return vs. draft capital. This percentage is utilized by dividing each team’s draft return by its draft capital in each year. A score of 100 percent, which by the study’s standards is league-average, would indicate that teams are getting the talent back, depending on the sheer amount of draft capital they had.

Over the last decade, the Jets have only had two above-average drafts, coming in 2011 and 2016. Besides that, New York has averaged 74 percent over a 10-year period, which is the worst in the NFL. Three of the Jets’ drafts (2010, 2014 and 2015) are in the bottom 10 percent. With that, New York has the worst return on capital in the NFL and its roster certainly reflects that.

This study excludes this past April’s draft, but looking at New York’s current roster construction, just 14 of New York’s 72 draft picks since 2010 remain on the active roster — this is with Quincy Enunwa’s season-ending prematurely and his carer in doubt. Those players include Brian Winters, Jordan Jenkins, Jamal Adams, Marcus Maye, Sam Darnold, Chris Herndon, Nathan Shepherd, Folorunso Fatukasi, Trenton Cannon, Quinenn Williams, Chuma Edoga, Trevon Wesco, Blake Cashman and Blessaun Austin.

Unfortunately for Gang Green, this study by Football Oustiders isn’t exactly a revelation. The Jets’ drafting woes have played a huge part in why the team hasn’t played into late January since 2010, which was two head coaches and three general managers ago.

With New York whiffing on its picks, it tried to offset misses in the draft by throwing big money at free agents like Darrelle Revis, Trumaine Johnson, C.J. Mosely and Le’Veon Bell. That strategy has yet to be successful and it’s why the Jets have given the keys to the franchise to Joe Douglas. It goes against Douglas’ upbringing to make splashes like that in free agency,. Rather, he was taught to build through the draft. With Douglas’ first draft behind him, the Jets are hoping that he can right the wrongs of the past and start hitting on picks.

If not, New York will be stuck in the same holding pattern its been in for the past decade.

Jamison Crowder will be Jets’ longest-tenured active WR in 2020

Jamison Crowder will be the Jets’ longest-tenured active wide receiver on the roster in 2020.

Jamison Crowder’s second season with the Jets hasn’t even begun and he’s already the team’s longest-tenured active receiver.

Crowder will have the most experience of any active wide receiver on the roster in 2020 now that Quincy Enunwa’s neck will force him to miss yet another season. Remember, it was just last offseason that Crowder signed with New York.

The slot receiver had a great first season with the Jets in 2019, recording 78 catches for 833 yards and six touchdowns. It was the second-best season of Crowder’s five-year career after four years in Washington.

Enunwa is technically the wide receiver who has been in New York longest, but he’s out for the season again and his career is in jeopardy. Prior to his departure for the Carolina Panthers, Robby Anderson would have taken this mantle.

Crowder’s status as the team’s longest-tenured active receiver speaks to some of New York’s instability at the position in recent years. The Jets have failed to draft talented wide receivers, with former general manager Mike Maccagnan whiffing on picks like Ardarius Stewart, Chad Hansen, Charone Peake and Devin Smith.

The hope is that current general manager Joe Douglas can change that narrative, starting with Denzel Mims. Mims was the highest-picked Jets wide receiver (59th overall) since they took Smith with the 37th overall pick in 2015.

The time is now to start building some stability at wide receiver. Sam Darnold needs someone who he can rely on year in and year out. The Jets can’t continue to rotate new wide receivers in every single year. Darnold has got to have a player he can build chemistry with.

He and Crowder showed plenty of that in 2019, but with a new year approaching, Darnold has plenty of new faces to get acquainted with again.

Jets WRs Quincy Enunwa, Josh Bellamy to miss 2020 season

Both Quincy Enunwa and Josh Bellamy are out for the year after being placed on the season-ending physically unable to perform list.

The injury bug that repeatedly bit the Jets in 2019 is still going strong in the new league year.

According to multiple reports, the Jets have placed wide receivers Quincy Enunwa (neck) and Josh Bellamy (shoulder) on the season-ending physically unable to perform list.

For Enunwa, this could be a career-ending neck injury. It’s his third neck issue since 2017. Enunwa was forced to miss that season. He came back healthy in 2018 and played in 11 games. However, in 2019, Enunwa once again suffered another season-ending neck injury in Week 1 against the Bills.

After the 2018 season, the Jets signed Enunwa to a four-year, $36 million extension while Mike Maccagnan was still in charge. Enunwa is fully guaranteed $6 million in 2020. In 2021, Enunwa has $4.1 million in injury guarantees.

Enunwa had a chance to become a real threat for the Jets, especially after his breakout 2016 season. He had 58 receptions for 857 yards and four touchdowns that year. With a knack for racking up yards after the catch, the Jets were hoping Eunwa could impact a limited receiver room in 2020, but concerns over his health lingered throughout the offseason.

As for Bellamy, the special teams ace was placed on injured reserve in November after only playing seven games. He made two catches for the Jets for a total of 20 yards.

Bellamy is owed $2.25 million in 2020.

While both moves were expected, it’s certainly not the way the Jets wanted to start their 2020 season. Now it may be time to find another wide receiver or two.

Jets roster serving as a stable for ex-Colts

The Jets have 11 former Colts players on their roster.

You might as well call the Jets the New York Colts with the amount of former Indianapolis players on the roster.

The Jets have 11 former Colts players under contract. That includes Thomas Hennessy, Matthias Farley, Nate Hairston, Arthur Maulet, Quincy Wilson, Ross Travis, Henry Anderson, Tarell Basham, Pierre Desir, Jonotthan Harrison and Josh Andrews.

Of these 11 players, six of them were acquired under Joe Douglas and five under Mike Maccagnan. Farley, Hairston, Wilson, Travis, Desir and Andrews are Douglas guys while Hennessy, Maulet, Anderson, Basham and Harrison are Maccagnan’s doing.

Not many of the former Colts have made a huge impact with the Jets. Hennessy has been the most consistent player as the Jets’ long snapper for the past few years. Anderson had a good first season with the Jets with seven sacks but followed that up with a lousy 2019 season. Basham started to come on last season.

Harrison, meanwhile, has been in and out as a starter on the offensive line. Hairston was a major disappointment last year and Farley barely stepped foot on the field. Maulet was a solid depth piece at cornerback and made some good plays on special teams. Desir, Wilson, Andrews and Travis have yet to put on a Jets uniform.

New York seems to have a good relationship with the folks over in Indianapolis. Not only did the two teams pull off a couple of trades this past season, but Maccagnan traded with the Colts before the 2018 draft to move up to the third overall pick. That pick, of course, turned into Sam Darnold.

Joe Douglas and the Jets can’t afford to mess up the 2020 draft

Jets Wire breaks down why Joe Douglas and company cannot afford to mess up this year’s draft.

To say the Jets have a lot riding on the 2020 NFL Draft would be an understatement.

Joe Douglas did a nice job filling holes and addressing needs in free agency, but there is still plenty of work to be done in order for the Jets to rise to contender status as soon as next season. Numerous positions still have gaping holes, while others are in need of depth.

Fortunately for Douglas and the Jets, this year’s draft class is loaded. It’s not a class that is top-heavy, either. From the first round to the seventh round, there will be talent available for the taking. That should be music to New York’s ears considering the need for an influx of youth.

All the Jets have to do is avoid messing up and picking the wrong players — something they cannot afford to do. That easier said than done, of course, and is rarely accomplished when it comes to Gang Green and the draft.

In 1983, the Jets selected Ken O’Brien over Dan Marino. In 1987, they decided it was a good idea to select a fullback in the first round. Three years later, they spent the second overall pick on Blair Thomas, who rushed for only 2,000 yards and five touchdowns in four seasons with the team. In 1995, New York selected tight end Kyle Brady over future Hall of Fame defensive lineman Warren Sapp.

The list of Jets’ draft blunders goes on and on. In fact, there is an entire YouTube video dedicated to the subject. The NFL draft has forever been an imperfect science, but to the Jets, it has been more like rocket science.

One of the main reasons Mike Maccagnan is no longer New York’s general manager is because of his inability to find quality players in the draft. He did well to land Jamal Adams and Sam Darnold, but those two basically fell into his lap. Maccagnan struggled mightily in the middle rounds, with almost all of his selections on days two and three no longer with the Jets.

In his first draft calling the shots as a general manager, Douglas is not only tasked with landing talent to build a winning roster, but also with dispelling the notion that the Jets cannot hire a general manager who understands what the NFL draft is all about. It will take a couple of years to determine the true success of Douglas’ first draft class with the Jets, but if he makes head-scratching decisions right off the bat, people will expect the worst.

The Jets are closer to winning than they might seem. With players like Adams, Darnold, Le’Veon Bell and C.J. Mosley in the mix, New York has its fair share of talented pieces in place. The negatives of the roster simply outweigh the positives at this point in time.

That can all change beginning on Thursday night. As long as Douglas doesn’t mess things up like those before him, the Jets will be heading in the right direction.

Given his upbringing, don’t be surprised if Joe Douglas makes a draft-day deal

Jets general manager would be willing to move down in the 2020 NFL Draft in order to accumulate extra draft picks.

A Jets general manager hasn’t made a draft-day trade in the first round since 2009, but don’t be surprised if Joe Douglas snaps that streak this week.

According to ESPN’s Rich Cimini, Douglas is open to trading back in the first round of the 2020 draft to accumulate extra draft capital. That would still allow him to pick an offensive lineman or a wide receiver in the first round of the draft.

“Joe is going to do very well in the middle rounds of this draft,” NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “That’s where the sweet spot is. I would not be shocked if, either at 11 or 48, he traded down to get even more picks in that third- and fourth-round range, because then he can really upgrade the roster with this draft.”

Douglas’ NFL upbringing could influence his draft-day decisions, especially when it comes to wheeling and dealing. The two teams he previously worked for, the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens, have never had a problem making draft-day trades, so don’t count Douglas out from making a move.

The last time a Jets general manager executed a draft-day trade in round one was when Mike Tannenbaum traded up from No. 17 to No. 5 to draft USC quarterback Mark Sanchez. Former general manager Mike Maccagnan moved up from No. 6 to No. 3 in the 2018 NFL Draft to pick Sam Darnold, but that trade was completed with the Colts a month before the draft.

Douglas and the Jets own eight picks entering the draft (1st, 2nd, two 3rds, 4th, 5th, two 6ths). With the amount of holes on the roster, the Jets could benefit from having extra picks.

The question then becomes can Douglas hit on those draft picks? At the end of the day, that’s what it’s going to come down to. The Jets’ recent draft history has left much to be desired and Douglas needs to find a way to turn it around starting on Thursday night.

No team has fewer homegrown players than the Jets

The New York Jets have the least amount of homegrown players on their roster in the NFL, with just 22 players.

With the draft less than a week away, the Jets are looking to right their past selections gone wrong.

Currently, the Jets have the fewest homegrown players on their roster in the NFL. Of the players on New York’s roster, just 22 signed their first contract with the team, per OverTheCap.

The Browns and Panthers are the next closest with 26 each. Cleveland has had similar drafting woes as the Jets, while Carolina has experienced a mass roster exodus as it attempts to rebuild on the fly.

For comparison, the average amount of homegrown players on NFL rosters is 34.

Taking a glimpse at the Jets’ current roster, just 15 of New York’s 72 draft picks since 2010 remain. Those players include Brian Winters, Quincy Enunwa, Jordan Jenkins, Jamal Adams, Marcus Maye, Sam Darnold, Chris Herndon, Nathan Shepherd, Folorunso Fatukasi, Trenton Cannon, Quinenn Williams, Chuma Edoga, Trevon Wesco, Blake Cashman and Blessaun Austin.

The lack of homegrown talent the Jets have to offer is a poor reflection of past regimes, which cleared the way for someone with the drafting pedigree of Joe Douglas to take over. Mike Tannenbaum, John Idzik and Mike Maccagnan did not provide the Jets with ample talent via the draft, like most successful franchises; foundations rely upon. Stockpiling free agents to offset the lack of homegrown players hasn’t exactly been a recipe for success for Gang Green, either. The Jets have endured some miserable seasons after big-money free agents failed to make a difference.

Leading the pack in homegrown talent in the NFL are Green Bay and Cincinnati with 42 each. Minnesota, Dallas and the Los Angeles Rams each have 41. The common theme here? Each of these teams has been to the playoffs within the past five years, while the Jets’ haven’t played into late January since 2010. The Jets teams that went to back-to-back AFC Championship Games were benefitting from the draft picks that former head coach Eric Mangini made when he was in charge of the team’s personnel.

For the Jets to get back to the postseason — granted it will be easier with an expanded format — they’re going to need to hit on more of their picks, starting next week.

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