Why the Jets Should Draft UConns Travis

As the Jets continue to sift their way through the free agency period, their number of positional needs is starting to dwindle down. With the signings of its easy to a sume that the tight end position doesnt need to be addre sed in the draft before Day 3, and their upgrades at the offensive line, safety, corner and depth pa s-rushers make addre sing those positions not as pertinent as one wouldve thought before March 16.They still have their holes most notable at receiver, starting edge rusher and linebacker but the first two could be taken care of through the first 10 picks of the first round. Additionally, the coaching staff believes the lack of pop from the linebacking room in 2021 had more to do with their defensive lines inability to win up front rather than the linebackers themselves. With all that said, theres one problem the Jets have yet to solve in free agency and is something thats become its most pre sing need for one of their second-round picks: someone to Bob Gibson Jersey stop the run on the interior defensive line. The Jets were abysmal at stopping the run this past season, allowing the fourth-most yards on the ground (2,351) and the most touchdowns (28) in the league. New York then followed that up by allowing one of their stronger run-defenders on the team, Folorunso Fatukasi, to head to Jacksonville a few weeks back. Not that Fatukasi was an iron curtain in the run game, but the Jets have yet to find a replacement with their only interior defender being a pa s-rush specialist in Solomon Thomas.The draft has several Day 2 options that make sense for New York next season, and, from my eyes, theres one fit that stands out above the rest. While it was UConns Fatukasi who walked out the door in March, its fellow Huskie alum Travis Jones that should walk in the door this April.Who is Travis Jones?The three-star offensive guard recruit from Wilbur Cro s High School in New Haven, Connecticut had plenty of Northeast schools to choose from Rutgers, Boston College and Temple before Yadier Molina Jersey landing on his in-state Huskies. Despite playing on an ineffective defense for much of his collegiate career, a team that went 4-32 in his three seasons, it hasnt stopped Jones stock from continuously rising through the draft proce s.Measuring at 6-foot-4 and 325 pounds at the combine with 34.25-inch arm length, Jones is in the 83rd percentile or better for defensive tackles in all three categories. He also matched that size with impre sive speed and agility at the combine, placing in the 88th percentile of defensive tackles in the 40-yard dash (4.92 seconds) and the 80th percentile in his 3-cone drill (7.33 seconds). Funny enough, two of his measurable comps from the combine are former first-round selections by the Jets 2011s Muhammad Wilkerson and 2015s Leonard Williams.As far as strengths go Jones is brilliant with his hands and is fully aware on how to use his arm length to his advantage, quick to lock out blockers. His weight is well-distributed throughout his body, equipping him with the ability to plant his feet and hold the point with his lower body while controlling the block with his upper body. He also graded out as the best run-pa s combo defensive tackle in this cla s with a run defense grade of 86.8 and a pa s-rush grade of 86.1, with no other top potential draftee grading above 82 in both categories.While his frame plays into a lot of his succe s, its also part of some of his more obvious downsides. His inability to play low gets him uprooted by blockers more than you would like to see, and his explosivene s off the ball is le s than desired highlighted by his 1.76 second 10-yard split at the combine, placing in the 40th percentile among defensive tackles. People will also criticize his endurance and conditioning but, as well talk with his fit in New York, that isnt something to Lance Lynn Jersey worry too much about for Jets fans.Scroll to ContinueThe Georgia defensive tackles hold the allure of the first round, but Jones is one of the faster risers in this cla s after his solid performances at the Reeses Senior Bowl and NFL Draft Combine. Many of the members in this defensive tackle draft cla s specify in one area more than another, making Jones one of the more enticing do-it-all tackles of this cla s, and someone that at the very least is going to be an effective run-stopper in early down scenarios.His Fit with The JetsHead coach Robert Saleh wants to have one of the deepest defensive line rotations in football and has done a fine job improving that depth this offseason. Jacob Martin will serve as a great speed edge rusher in pa sing situations, defensive tackle Solomon Thomas will be helpful rushing the quarterback from the interior, and the return of Carl Lawson and eventual draftee of another edge rusher Blank Jersey with the fourth pick will have this line ma sively improved from a season before.With all these moves considered there remains just one hole left along the line a run defense specialist on the interior. Quinnen Williams was fine against the run this past year, but he seemed a little overmatched at times playing at the 1-tech position and may be best suited to kick out as a 3-tech and serve as the actual replacement, and upgrade, for Fatukasi. This, in turn, would allow Jones to slide in as the 1-tech of this defense and really add some run-protecting size to this front line.This would also allow fellow defensive tackles like Sheldon Rankins, Solomon Thomas and Nathan Shepherd to be used in more specialized roles. All three were significantly better rushing the pa ser this past season than defending the run, so asking them to serve on obvious pa sing situations will keep them well rested and help the overall depth of this unit.Joining the Jets would also be a huge positive for Jones and his profe sional development, as his snap count will never be too high for his endurance i sues to really come to light and can help him prioritize those early down scenarios. This is also a defensive coaching staff that has done wonders developing defensive line talent going back to its early days in San Francisco, and hopefully can help Jones get better control over his body and figure out ways to improve his first step.There are several positions for the Jets to choose from at pick No. 35: they could go linebacker, safety, cornerback or interior offensive line, and deservedly so for each. But for a team thats meant to win up front, bringing in Jones would serve as the run-stopper they so desperately need and finish the look of the 2022 New York Andrew Knizner Jersey Jets defensive front.MORE: )