New York Jets Select Florida Safety Marcus Maye 39th In 2017 NFL Draft
The New York Jets selected Florida safety Marcus Maye with the 39th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
The New York Jets continue to bolster their defense, specifially the secondary, in the 2017 NFL Draft. With the seven pick of the second round, and 39th overall, the Jets selected Florida safety, Marcus Maye.
The Jets have revamped their safety position with their first two selections in the draft. In the first round, they selected LSU safety, Jamal Adams. They now have his safety partner, as Maye was their second selection. This will probably be the end of Marcus Gilchrist and Calvin Pryor as the Jets safety.
Like Adams, Maye is a versatile safety that can play either safety spot. He brings good size and excellent football instincts with him. He showcased that he is a capable pass defender with solid ball skills, breaking up 17 passes with eight interceptions. Maye also allowed only 54.8 percent of passes to be completed that were thrown into his coverage.
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There is work that needs to be done for him to reach his potential in pass coverage. He has some ball skills but has limitations trying to slow down the quicker slot receivers. The lack of speed will be something the Jets have to overcome when deploying him as he will not be able to keep up with opponents in the centerfield role
Where Maye excels is in stopping the run. He is very reliable against the run with good play recognition. He knows where his teammates should line up and where he needs to be to make plays. Maye can hold up as a box safety and is a sound tackler; he missed only one tackle last season as a reference.
Combined with Adams, Maye gives the Jets another versatile player that can help in a number of ways. They will be interchangeable moving parts in the secondary, something that Todd Bowles has lacked on his defense with the Jets.
Next: New York Jets Seven Round Mock Draft
The goal for the Jets coming into this draft looks to be clear. They wanted to shore up what was an embarrassing pass defense last season. While they could still use some help at cornerback, they have revamped their safety position and now have two building blocks there.