New York Jets: Mike Maccagnan’s legacy all comes down to this year
Mike Maccagnan’s legacy with the New York Jets all comes down to one pick in the upcoming draft.
Mike Maccagnan has not been wholly unsuccessful with his New York Jets draft picks. Leonard Williams has been very good, and Deon Simon has been part of the defensive line rotation. Lac Edwards, Juston Burris, Brandon Shell, Jordan Jenkins are just a few examples of players that have made the team after being selected by Macc. Don’t forget the potential Pro Bowl duo of Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye.
Despite the back to back 5-11 years, Maccagnan hasn’t been terrible in the NFL draft. Many of the players he has selected are still on the team. However, it really doesn’t matter, does it? Three years of drafting will be forgotten when Roger Goodell steps to the microphone to announce the Jets number three pick of the 2018 NFL draft. It is an unfortunate state of affairs, but it is true nonetheless.
The place he has struck out is at the quarterback position. Bryce Petty came first. Even the most optimistic Petty fan knows that he has flashed but not shown much in terms of potential to be the guy. Then, there is Christian Hackenberg. First of all he was chosen too early. Second, he’s not very good. This is not news that anyone hasn’t been aware of. It feels like the Jets have been looking for a quarterback since man invented the wheel.
Now, the Jets are in prime position to get a franchise quarterback in a deep quarterback class. Not only are they in prime position, but they have made a trade to get into even more of a prime position. The use of aggression shows that Maccagnan has a plan. You don’t trade away all of your second round picks without a plan. The plan has to be the right one. No matter who he chooses, it has to be the correct move because not only will it set the team moving in the right direction, it will cement, or ruin Maccagnan’s legacy.
The Jets have been aggressive like this before. Granted, it wasn’t Mike Maccagnan, it was Mike Tannenbaum. It still happened, but the result was Mark Sanchez. Everybody saw how he turned out although it wasn’t all Sanchez’s doing. Mike Maccagnan doesn’t have the liberty to make that type of mistake.
If he does, he will likely be given his walking papers at the end of the season, and his head coach could very well be following him out the door.