New York Jets: Reflecting on the disappointing 2014 NFL Draft class
The 2014 NFL Draft was loaded with talent, but has turned out to be a disappointing class for the New York Jets.
Most NFL experts and scouts say that it usually takes three years to fully analyze how well a team did in the NFL Draft. With training camp still several weeks away, I thought it would be a good time to reflect back on the 2014 NFL Draft class of the New York Jets.
Get ready to cover your eyes. It is not pretty.
General Manager: John Idzik
Head Coach: Rex Ryan
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Calvin Pryor | S | Louisville | |
| 2 | 49 | Jace Amaro | TE | Texas Tech | |
| 3 | 80 | Dexter McDougle | CB | Maryland | |
| 4 | 104 | Jalen Saunders | WR | Oklahoma | Pick from TB |
| 4 | 115 | Shaquelle Evans | WR | UCLA | |
| 4 | 137 | Dakota Dozier | OT | Furman | Compensatory |
| 5 | 154 | Jeremiah George | LB | Iowa St | |
| 6 | 195 | Brandon Dixon | CB | Northwest Missouri St | |
| 6 | 209 | Quincy Enunwa | WR | Nebraska | Compensatory |
| 6 | 210 | Ikemefuna Enemkpali | DE | Louisiana Tech | Compensatory |
| 6 | 213 | Tajh Boyd | QB | Clemson | Compensatory |
| 7 | 233 | Trevor Reilly | LB | Utah |
Yikes. That’s the first thing that comes to mind when you see those selections. Idzik was in over his head and did not know what he was doing, and it really showed here. He had no experience as a talent evaluator — he was a salary cap expert.
Anyway, let’s take a look at how each player has fared so far.
Calvin Pryor
A major disappointment. The Louisville product was supposed to be a hard-hitting free safety that could deliver a jarring hit and provide solid pass coverage over the top but he was either injured or ineffective during most of his three-year stint in New York. In 44 games, Pryor recorded just 129 tackles, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. The Jets finally got tired of his under-achieving ways and traded him to Cleveland on June 1 for linebacker Demario Davis. Thank goodness.
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Jace Amaro
I liked the former All-American tight end (2013) coming out of college. Boy, was I wrong about this pick. Amaro was expected to be the best receiving tight end for the Jets since Dustin Keller, but he had just 38 receptions and two touchdowns in his one campaign (2014) in New York. He missed the entire 2015 season with a torn labrum and was waived on Sept. 3, 2016. Another huge bust. Oh by the way, he was a horrible blocker as well.
Dexter McDougle
The former Maryland Terrapin tore his ACL during a training camp practice in 2014 and was placed on injured reserve. He played very sparingly in 2015 and recorded only one tackle and one pass defended. McDougle is still with the team (why?), but is buried on the team’s defensive backfield depth chart. Yet another bust (that’s 3-for-3 so far). Not good.
Jalen Saunders
The Stockton, CA native never caught a pass with Gang Green and played in just three contests, all on special teams, during the 2014 season (six punt returns for 26 yards). Saunders is currently looking for a job as a NFL free agent after bouncing around with five other teams.
Shaquelle Evans
Evans was a star receiver for UCLA but never caught a pass for the Jets. He suffered a shoulder injury during practice in his rookie year and was placed on injured reserve in August 2014. Evans was waived just before the start of the 2015 season. He is another free agent looking for work.
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Dakota Dozier
The 6-4, 313-pounder has played in 17 games for Gang Green (starting in two) and currently sits behind James Carpenter at left guard on New York’s offensive line depth chart. Both of his starts came last year, so we should see more of Dozier during the 2017 campaign.
Jeremiah George
The former Iowa State linebacker never played a down for New York. He was signed to the team’s practice squad on Sept. 2, 2014 and was released three weeks later. George has suited up for the Jaguars, Bucs, Cowboys and Colts, his present team.
Brandon Dixon
Another draftee that never performed in a regular season contest for the Jets. The 5-11, 203-pound cornerback was released at the end of training camp in 2014. Dixon is still trying to keep the dream alive — he is now with the Pittsburgh Steelers, his seventh team in just three years.
Quincy Enunwa
The best selection of the entire draft. The Nebraska product had a breakout campaign in 2016 with a career-high 58 receptions for 857 yards and four touchdowns. Enunwa was the No. 3 receiver behind Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker, but now Marshall is with the Giants and Decker plays for the Titans, so he has been thrust into the No. 1 role moving forward. Enunwa showed a lot of promise last year, but how he handles being New York’s top pass-catcher will be one of the most interesting storylines of the upcoming season.
Ikemefuna Enemkpali
“IK” will forever be remembered in Jets lore as the player that broke Geno Smith’s jaw in August 2015 over $600 that Smith allegedly owed him. New York released Enemkpali a few days later and that paved the way for Ryan Fitzpatrick to take over for Smith as the starting quarterback. Enemkpali appeared in only six games for the Jets in 2014 and registered three tackles. What an embarrassing draft pick.
Tajh Boyd
The Hampton, VA native preceded Deshaun Watson at Clemson and had an excellent career with the Tigers, but never played a regular season down with Gang Green. He was released on Aug. 30, 2014 and last played for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League in 2016.
Trevor Reilly
As the 233rd pick in the draft, not much is expected from any player selected that late. However, Reilly played in 29 games for the Jets and recorded 10 tackles, one sack and one forced fumble. He was a member of New England’s practice squad in 2015 and joined the Miami Dolphins last year.
Next: NFL 2017: Each team's biggest question before training camp
Overall, this was a very poor draft. A team really needs to hit on their early draft picks and Idzik failed miserably in that regard. If not for the Enunwa selection, which was a very good pick, this draft would have been a complete disaster.
Grade: D-