It's been a foregone conclusion that the Las Vegas Raiders are taking Fernando Mendoza with the 1st overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft for quite some time. For months, the draft has truly "begun" with the New York Jets in the 2nd overall slot.
And adding to the intrigue, the Jets have two picks in the 1st round (2nd, 16th). But that 2nd overall pick has pretty commonly been between a couple of different players when it comes to mock draft predictions: Ohio State linebacker Arvell Reese and Texas Tech EDGE David Bailey.
The pendulum has been swinging back and forth as far as which guy the media perceives to be the Jets' favorite in that spot, but ESPN's Peter Schrager seems to have enough intel (or a strong enough gut feeling) to call his shot from a couple of days out.
Peter Schrager thinks New York Jets are taking David Bailey over Arvell Reese with 2nd pick
"Jets fans you'll like hearing this..."@PSchrags is unsure the Jets take LB Arvell Reese at No. 2 👀 pic.twitter.com/u4SmW6FQgh
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) April 21, 2026
According to Schrager, the Jets are keeping their plans pretty tight-lipped at this point. Schrager says that "the rest of the league" doesn't buy the consensus that Arvell Reese is going to the Jets. They apparently feel David Bailey is "very much in play" with that 2nd pick.
Schrager said he's putting Bailey to the Jets in his final mock draft on Wednesday morning, but if you follow the money right now, everything is leaning heavily toward Arvell Reese.
Regardless, the discourse that follows Schrager's comments here is fascinating. Michael Wilbon wonders if it's possible that Reese is the better "prospect" and Bailey is the better "player" as the potential justification for the Jets taking him in that spot, and Schrager said he put it perfectly.
Bailey is a couple of years older than Reese at this point, and is obviously a bit more refined in his skill set. Not only that, but there are some questions about what position Reese is going to play at the next level, and if he's truly in the mold of another Micah Parsons/Von Miller type as a lighter EDGE or if he's an off-ball linebacker who can moonlight as a pass rusher.
With Bailey, there are no such questions, and he has a more NFL-ready skill set to get after the quarterback opposite of Will McDonald IV. But there are no guarantees that he's the right pick between the two, and this draft doesn't feature a Parsons, a Miller, or a Will Anderson Jr. type of no-brainer.
This is a tough decision for the Jets, but with wins and progression likely the expectation, they might be under a bit of pressure to take the more NFL-ready prospect.
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