The New York Jets haven’t made any massive splashes this offseason, making smaller, under-the-radar moves to solidify their roster and establish a culture under new head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey.
Things could change very quickly, especially as it pertains to Draft day.
On Friday, Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart will have a pre-draft visit with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“Mississippi’s Jaxson Dart, widely regarded as the No. 3 quarterback in this draft class, is interviewing again with Steelers brass, sources told the Post-Gazette. He had a formal interview with the Steelers at the NFL combine, and assistant general manager Andy Weidl attended the Ole Miss pro day last week.” Reported Fittipaldo.
According to NFL Mock Draft Database, Dart is the consensus No. 32 overall prospect in the class, and as Fittipaldo wrote, the consensus QB3.
In a shallow quarterback class, Dart could end up being drafted much higher than his consensus ranking. This year’s QB class is considered by most to be a massive drop off after Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders, with Dart being the top rated man of “the rest”.
The Jets own the No. 7 pick, and are among the teams who could consider taking a quarterback, with their current plan at quarterback being Justin Fields, who the team inked to a two-year, $40 million contract.
The Jets have had previous links to Dart as a potential first-round landing spot. Conversely, the Steelers have emerged as a prime contender for Dart in recent weeks, resulting in their Friday visit with the 21-year-old gunslinger.
Pittsburgh is currently nestled in at the No. 21 slot of the first round, with a quarterback room that is occupied by career backups Mason Rudolph and Skylar Thompson. If the Steelers wanted the third-best quarterback in the draft, they may have to jump up the board, especially to overtake the New Orleans Saints at No. 9.
For the Jets, dropping 14 spots wouldn’t be insignificant, but it could be a good move to bolster their war chest of draft capital. Pittsburgh does not own a second-round selection in this year’s draft, so the Jets would likely covet picks in future years.