Many New York Jets weren't happy with their Week 10 win due to the affect it had on their draft position, but are they wrong?
The New York Jets defeated the Cleveland Browns by a score of 27-20 this past Sunday for their second straight victory, and while it certainly felt good for the Jets to get into the win column again, many New York fans were more concerned with the team blowing draft position.
And understandably so. The Jets were 0-7 to start the season and appeared on a fast track to the No. 1 overall pick in 2026, but suddenly, they are 2-7, and they are no longer even in the top three.
For a franchise that desperately needs a starting quarterback, falling several spots in the draft order could be devastating, but Ian O'Connor of The Athletic feels that it may not be as cataclysmic as Jets fans may believe.
"The Jets need to find their own Jaxson Dart in the draft," O'Connor wrote. "Along those lines, some of their fans might be worried sick that this newfound winning might hurt their chances of doing just that. They’ve apparently forgotten that taking a quarterback early — Sam Darnold, No. 3 overall, 2018 … Zach Wilson, No. 2 overall, 2021 — doesn’t guarantee a damn thing."
New York Jets coach Aaron Glenn. Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images.Dart was selected by the Giants with the 25th overall pick of the NFL Draft last April and appears to be in the process of establishing himself as Big Blue's franchise quarterback moving forward.
Here's the problem with that line of thinking, though: that's generally not how it works.
More often than not, the very best quarterbacks could at the top of the draft, and say what you want about Darnold, but look what he did in Minnesota last year, and look what he is currently doing in Seattle this season.
So maybe the Jets' inability to develop Darnold and Wilson says more about them than it does about the quarterbacks themselves?
Yes, Dart may actually end up being the best signal-caller of the 2025 draft class, but let's keep in mind how thin the quarterback crop was to begin with. Cam Ward was drafted No. 1 overall. Dart was the next quarterback chosen 24 picks later.
Will winning games down the stretch help the Jets' culture? Perhaps, but this is a franchise that has not made the playoffs in 15 years primarily because of the fact that it hasn't had a quarterback.
Being forward thinking is the key here. The wins may feel nice, but if it prevents New York from landing an elite quarterback, it won't feel that good in the end.