23. New York Jets (via Seattle Seahawks): Jaelan Phillips, EDGE, Miami
The New York Jets got their quarterback early on in this draft and they’re now back on the board at No. 23 with one of the first-round picks they acquired from the Seattle Seahawks in the Jamal Adams trade. New York did give up a big-time talent in Adams but it’s hard to say they lost this trade.
Seattle still had a disastrous defense in 2020 even after landing Adams. Sure, he made some big hits but their inability to cover anyone was hard for them to deal with. And now, they still have to pay the two first-rounders. Of course, the positive side could be that they have been bad at picking in Round 1 and great in every round after that. So maybe this will be good for them.
Back to the Jets, this is a spot where it seemed they could get some weapons for Zach Wilson but they did just sign Corey Davis in the offseason which at least gives them a No. 1 wideout. Across from him is Denzel Mims who should take a big step forward with Adam Gase gone — then again, the whole team should.
With all that being said, New York elects to go with an edge rusher here as they take Jaelan Phillips out of Miami. Pairing him with another new addition, Carl Lawson, gives the Jets a formidable pass-rushing duo.
There is a concern with Phillips though. He’s arguably the best pass rusher in this class but he actually stepped away from the game in 2018 after suffering several concussions with UCLA. He decided to come back and was healthy in 2020 for Miami but the medical concerns are still there and have to be taken into consideration when making this pick.