Vinny Testaverde, Chad Pennington and Mark Sanchez. Those are the last three quarterbacks to lead the New York Jets to the playoffs. Two of them proved to be solid NFL starters, while the other ended up becoming a bust. Nearly six years after Sanchez’s last game, the Jets are finally primed to contend if they play their cards right.
They entered the 2018 offseason with nearly $100 million in salary cap money. However, the one position they need to fill the most is quarterback. The Jets have been searching for a franchise signal-caller for years, but it’s never panned out for them.
They drafted Pennington to develop into a franchise quarterback. but injuries got in his way. The Jets selected Sanchez believing he’d be their savior, but he couldn’t get out of his own way. Now, here they are playing in the No. 1 media market in the country, still sitting in the New York Giants’ shadow as they look for the next face of the franchise.
Their search for a franchise quarterback is exactly why the Jets had to make the move up the draft ladder. They traded the 6th, 37th and 46th overall picks of the 2018 NFL Draft, and an additional second rounder in 2019, to the Indianapolis Colts. In exchange, the Jets received the Colts’ No. 3 overall pick in 2018 NFL Draft.
The only way this deal makes sense is if the Jets take a quarterback with the third overall pick. Three second rounders and a top 10 pick could equal four starters. That’s what the Jets traded to move up three slots into the third pick. Only a quarterback is worth this trade.
It’s clear that’s what the Jets are shooting for here, and they are right to do it.
Ineffective history
The IndyStar’s Colts’ reporter Stephen Holder introduced his article on the trade by stating, “Hello, 911? I’d like to report a crime.” Even the Colts seemed to gloat on social media when they said “Pleasure doing business with you, @nyjets!”
However, if the Jets are ever going to challenge the New England Patriots for the AFC East title, they are going to need more than a sound defense. The Jets need the one thing they haven’t had for years: a QB to lead the entire organization.
Testaverde, Pennington, and Sanchez produced various levels of success, but they never led the team to the promised land. New York drafted Ken O’Brien with the 24th overall pick in the 1983 NFL Draft to be their star. Instead, he put up a couple good years and floundered throughout the rest of the year.
Even the Jets’ most well-known quarterback, Joe Namath, failed to keep the franchise above water for any significant amount of time. Namath led the Jets to only three winning seasons during his 12 years in New York. He threw for 170 touchdowns and 215 interceptions during his career.
The stats are skewed due to Namath’s era, but that touchdown to interception ratio shows how ineffective he was long-term.
Long-term ramifications
The truth is, the Jets have never really had a franchise quarterback, and their history shows the ramifications of that. Entering the 2018 season, New York’s all-time record sits at 397-479-8 with one Super Bowl title. The Jets have made the playoffs only 14 times in 57 years. They have 12 playoff wins to their name.
The lack of a franchise quarterback has clearly made an impact in the Jets’ history. Their crosstown rivals, the New York Giants, have won eight championships, including four Super Bowl titles.
Current quarterback Eli Manning has led the Giants to six playoff berths and two Super Bowl wins over the vaunted Patriots. There’s much more to each team’s success, but quarterbacks matter. The NFL is a QB-driven league, which is why the Jets needed to make their move for the No. 3 pick.
Back to the present
The Colts held the key spot in the draft. Holding the third overall pick of the draft ensures that a team can grab one of the big three quarterbacks available. The Cleveland Browns own both the first and fourth overall picks. The Giants have the second overall pick with a quarterback need of their own. Getting the third pick also locks out other quarterback-needy teams like the Buffalo Bills.
Indianapolis was sitting there as a sure-fire opportunity to get the franchise player the Jets need. If the Jets want to compete for the playoffs, they must develop a quarterback to lead the franchise.
The opportunities are there for the Jets. They gave plenty of teams problems last season with journeymen leading the team. New York still has plenty of cap space available.
Finding the player that can take them to the next level is worth the four draft picks they traded. The only question is whether or not they will make the right decision with the third pick in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Follow Us
Subscribe