It was a night of expectation and astonishment for both teams on the opening day of the day.
Overall, the Jets and Giants had a good night
The Jets did as expected and handed their keys over to BYU quarterback Zack Wilson, who will now take his turn to become the team’s next franchise quarterback.
In the past few weeks, there was little doubt that Wilson would be their choice with the second overall pick. He has all the tools and the temperament, but the real question is how will Wilson handle the pressures if he stumbles out of the gate.
He’ll likely have a longer leash to hear the boos rather than the Mets’ $341 million-dollar man Francisco Lindor. Jets’ GM Joe Douglas already has surrounded Wilson wil weapons and an up-beat and respected new head coach with Robert Saleh.
The Jets real coup in the opening part of the draft was their move up from the 23rd overall pick and numbers 66 and 86 to acquire Minnesota’s pick at 14 to draft USC guard Alijah Vera-Tucker.
The 66th and 86th picks were acquired in last year’s Jamal Adams trade.
However, Vera-Tucker certainly can start at guard for the Jets, replacing Alex Lewis, whose stack has dropped drastically, and had a $6.8 cap hit this coming season.
Two starters and two huge voids filled. Nice job, Joe Douglas..so far.
Giants’ GM Dave Gettleman also shocked the league and those in Giantsland when he traded the team’s 11th overall pick to Chicago for their pick at number 20 and also acquired the Bears’ fifth-round pick, and their number one overall pick and fourth-round pick in 2022.
In turn, the Giants drafted Florida’s wide receiver Kadarius Toney, whose pick turned many heads and dropped some jaws. Alabama wide receivers Jaylen Waddle and DeVonta Smith and cornerback Jaycee Horn were all gone, and Toney was a low-profile pick.
Toney is the type of player Waddle and Smith are, and his versatility as a gadget player and punt returner will be utilized by head coach Joe Judge. He was in that type of role in Florida, and Gettleman and Judge apparently are looking for the same contribution.
The Giants’ real coup is the first-round pick from the Bears. Chicago will be in transition with top pick Justin Fields, and veterans Andy Dalton and Nick Foles battling for time at quarterback albeit Foles is the subject of trade rumor (Jets, take note as a backup to Wilson)
Remember when the majority of Giants’ fans wanted to personally drive Gettleman out of the Meadowlands (We’ll be kind here.)
It was one captivating and promising night on the New York football scene. Drafts do take a long time before they can be properly evaluated.
Yes, there are many ahead before September, but both the Jets and Giants have taken a monumental first step toward the fall.