The New York Jets understand that if they want to be the team they're looking to be in the future, it'll require them to eventually hit on a quarterback. It remains uncertain if the Jets think they can find that in this upcoming draft, but there's reason to believe that if they were to develop a decent quarterback in this upcoming class, it's possible.
According to the latest from ESPN's Rich Cimini, Ty Simpson is someone the organization likes right now.
While Simpson is somewhat of a polarizing prospect due to playing decent football at times, but also struggling at others, the Jets seem to be a bit higher on him than most teams that need a quarterback.
“They had [Darren Mougey] and [Aaron Glenn] there [to scout Ty Simpson], of course,” Cimini said. “They brought [Bill Musgrave] and [Frank Reich]. So that to me is telling. They had dinner with him the night before. This was at the tail end of their scouting tour across America. ... They got in, they had dinner with him, they did some classroom work and from what I understand, no surprise here, he's very impressive on the board.
"On the whiteboard. He's a smart quarterback. The coaches loved him. But he's a coach's kind of quarterback, but is he a scout's kind of quarterback? There's a difference. The scouts are looking for the traits. The size, the arm strength, the speed. That's not where he checks the boxes. He checks it with his cerebral approach, the ability to get to the line of scrimmage and do the whole Peyton Manning thing. Move guys around, read the defense, read the MIKE linebacker. He's great at that stuff."
There were some interesting points brought up there, but to hear how smart Simpson is could actually go a long way for this organization.
The Jets have, unfortunately, had quarterbacks under center over the past decade-plus who simply don't do the right things when situations get tough. Simpson doesn't have the other stuff that a quarterback might need in the NFL to succeed at the highest level, but if he has the smarts to compete, that's sometimes half of the battle.
The question for the Jets now is whether they're going to trust their coaching staff to make a pick. If there's any thought about Aaron Glenn wanting him, it wouldn't be too surprising to see the organization go in that direction.
The Jets showed last year at the trade deadline that they're trying to do what they want to do, so Glenn might have a say.