The injury to Aaron Rodgers derailed the New York Jets’ 2023 NFL season before it even started and now the pressure is on to build a legitimate contender in the 2024 NFL Draft. Did they maximize their draft capital in Detroit?
The Jets’ draft grades explain how New York’s 2024 NFL Draft unfolded.
New York Jets NFL Draft Grades
Round 1, Pick 10: Olu Fashanu, OT, Penn State
In a 2024 NFL Draft class where they held seven picks, no fifth-rounder, and multiple needs to fill coming in, the Jets traded down one spot to gain some extra capital and still landed the player they would have selected with the 10th overall pick. It’s shrewd business that helps power this draft grade.
To the pick itself, anyone who watched the Jets last year knows how critical upgrading their offensive line was this season. They made some moves in free agency, but landing a young, talented offensive tackle of the caliber of Olu Fashanu is an A-grade move.
Olu Fashanu has one of the most complete sets of physical tools among offensive linemen in this draft class. 😤#WeAre | #TakeFlight pic.twitter.com/g24aZtSuFr
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) April 26, 2024
The Penn State product would have been the OT1 of the 2023 NFL Draft class, and despite a quiet pre-draft process lacking in hype, he proved his worth once again in his final campaign.
Big, strong, athletic, intelligent, and with room to develop beyond his already impressive technical floor, Rodgers was cheering this pick from whatever remote retreat he watched the draft from.
Grade: A
Round 3, Pick 65: Malachi Corley, WR, Western Kentucky
Having protected Rodgers in the first round, the Jets traded up to the top of the third to add a game-changing wide receiver weapon that helps add offensive excitement for the green side of New York.
They call Malachi Corley the “YAC King,” and with justification. There are few players in the 2024 NFL Draft that are able to add yardage after the catch in the same explosive manner as the former Western Kentucky Hilltopper.
He’s a top-tier athlete with strong, reliable hands who will terrorize NFL defenses out of the slot for years to come.
Grade: A
Round 4, Pick 134: Braelon Allen, RB, Wisconsin
Braelon Allen is a fierce downhill rusher who is set to be the latest professional off the Wisconsin Badgers running back production line. He’ll give the Jets a weapon that can grind out short-down yardage and be a dangerous goal-line threat.
MORE: 2024 NFL Draft Grades For All 32 Teams
He’s also a young prospect with developmental potential. That said, there were highly-ranked prospects at positions of need still available and that impacts the grade here.
Grade: C+
Round 5, Pick 171: Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State
Rodgers isn’t going to last forever, and the Jets traded away the player who was meant to be their long-term future at the QB position in Zach Wilson.
Adding a new passer in the 2024 NFL Draft was always in the cards, and they land a player whose talent far outstrips his draft position. Jordan Travis has the arm talent and creative athleticism to become a bona fide quarterback in the NFL.
If it weren’t for an injury sustained late in the season, he’d have come off the board a long time ago. If you want to understand how important Travis can be for a team, witness how the CFB Playoff committee denied FSU a place in the playoff based solely on his lack of availability.
Grade: A
Round 5, Pick 173: Isaiah Davis, RB, South Dakota State
Do you think the Jets want to establish the ground game in 2024? Having drafted Braelon Allen earlier, they add Isaiah Davis to a running back room that already has Breece Hall and Israel Abanikanda at its lead.
While the roster construction direction impacts this grade, I will say this: Isaiah Davis is something of a steal here in my book. The South Dakota State rusher is a more complete back than his former teammate Pierre Strong — and that isn’t a knock on Strong.
Davis has enough juice to outrun defenses, has the agility to steal souls and break bones, and also has an element of physicality to him that often made him look like a man playing amongst boys at the FCS level.
Great player, great value, but head-scratching direction given the earlier selections.
Grade: B
Round 5, Pick 176: Qwan’Tez Stiggers, CB, Toronto Argonauts
For sheer storytelling alone, Qwan’Tez Stiggers’ journey to New York is a blockbuster move. He’s as far removed from a conventional college football player as you can find, but don’t sleep on the impact he can have in the NFL.
The former Toronto Argonaut is scheme versatile, has an alluring athletic profile, and given his lack of traditional football experience, is a naturally talented playmaker with eye-opening ball skills.
He gets to learn from one of the top young CBs in the league in “Sauce” Gardner, another exciting element to add to the storyline of this selection.
Grade: A-
Round 7, Pick 257: Jaylen Key, S, Alabama
Former UAB Blazer turned Alabama Crimson Tide safety Jaylen Key is your Mr. Irrelevant for the 2024 NFL Draft.
Safety was one of the team’s needs coming into the event, and Key has the size and strength to be an enforcer at the position. However, he heads to the NFL with questionable fluidity, and some other holes in his athletic makeup, which could limit his role at the next level.
Grade: C+
New York Jets 2024 NFL Draft Summary
The New York Jets, like it or loathe it, will revolve around Aaron Rodgers in the short term, and their 2024 NFL Draft has a similar storyline.
The franchise did a great job of protecting their current signal-caller with the selection of Olu Fashanu — a move made better by dropping a spot in a trade with Minnesota.
KEEP READING: Jets UDFA Signings and Rookie Camp Invites
Malachi Corley was good value in the third as a dangerous RAC weapon for Rodgers in the short term and then they found a potential long-term QB, Jordan Travis. Injury impacted his stock but Travis has the hallmarks of an NFL QB.
Overall Grade: A-