One of Joe Douglas’ first orders of business last offseason was finding a way to bolster the Jets’ pass rush. New York’s defense had lacked a dominant presence off the edge since the days of John Abraham and the unit suffered more often than not as a result.
Douglas shelled out the big bucks to land Carl Lawson in free agency, only for him to rupture his Achillies during a preseason joint practice with the Packers. Lawson missed his entire first season with the team. He will be back in 2022, but the need for a dynamic pass rusher remains.
And it is becoming crystal clear where Douglas is going to find one.
All indications are that the Jets are going to draft an edge rusher with the fourth pick in the 2022 NFL draft. Douglas didn’t fully reveal New York’s draft plans while speaking with reporters on Tuesday, but he offered comments that provided a clear look at his mindset with the draft now less than a month away.
Douglas and Robert Saleh are in lockstep with the idea that it all starts in the trenches. Good teams win up front and the Jets addressed their offensive line by signing Laken Tomlinson. Douglas also said New York is operating as if Mekhi Becton will be one of its two starting tackles. That leaves the defensive side of the line to address early in the draft.
“This game is about protecting your quarterback, giving him weapons, then affecting the other team’s quarterback,” Douglas said, per The Athletic’s Connor Hughes. “The best way to do that is with pass rush.
“Coach believes this, too. If you want to take a $30 million receiver off the field, you hit the quarterback. You hit him early and you hit him often. That’s always going to be our belief. Coach and I see it the same way.”
If there was ever a time for the Jets to land a potentially dominant pass rusher, April is it. Michigan’s Aidan Hutchinson will likely be off the board by the time New York picks at No. 4, but the likes of Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux, Georgia’s Travon Walker, Purdue’s George Karlaftis and Florida State’s Jermaine Johnson probably won’t be.
Thibodeaux was once the top prospect in this year’s draft class, but his stock has taken a bit of a hit due to an injury-riddled final season at Oregon and questions about his love for football. He should be around for the Jets’ taking. If he isn’t or Douglas wants to go in another direction, Walker is a worthy selection. So are Johnson and Karlaftis, but Douglas would be best suited to target them with his second first-round selection.
The name is still to be determined, but the position of choice seems clear. It would be a stunner if the Jets don’t go with a pass rusher at No. 4 after the way Douglas hinted at it. If Douglas hits with the pick, Saleh will reap the benefits and Jeff Ulbrich’s defense will be positioned to avoid the struggles that plagued it throughout 2021.
That’s the kind of difference a truly elite pass rusher can make.
