New York Jets: Garrett Bradbury would be a good fit along the line

After watching him perform at the NFL Combine, the New York Jets should give some thought to drafting Garrett Bradbury as he would be a great fit.

The New York Jets and the rest of the leagued ended their time at the NFL Combine yesterday. Now the process moves ahead with pro days, private meetings, visits and finally the NFL draft.

Every year there are players that stand out. Many have talked about D.K. Metcalf who had a stellar weekend. We need to pump the brakes on him, which we talked about yesterday. But he wasn’t the only player that performed well at a position of need.

The offensive line has to get better. We cannot say that enough times. It doesn’t matter who the weapons are. If this offensive line doesn’t improve Sam Darnold doesn’t have a shot. The five guys up front must change.

They won’t all change but there must be a significant difference here.

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There has been a great deal of talk about the tackle position. Jonah Williams is a name that is often discussed for this team.

But let’s not discount the center position. Everyone watched how bad Spencer Long was, and Jonotthan Harrison was not much better.

He’s a roster filler and nothing more. The Jets need to upgrade at center. They went from Kevin Mawae to Nick Mangold. They need the next guy.

What about Garrett Bradbury? He looked very good during the Combine and could be the center to take the throne.

Let’s look at the measurables:

HEIGHT: 6-3
WEIGHT: 306 pounds
ARMS: 31 3/4″
HANDS: 10 1/2″

His 40 yard dash and his 3-cone drill stood out, 4.92 and 7.41 seconds, respectively. These numbers were faster than the times posted by Mangold back in 2006.

Here are the highlights of his Combine workout. His footwork and use of his hands stick out most for me. His slide-step is as smooth as silk and his hands are always ready to attack the opponent and protect his quarterback.

Daniel Jeremiah gives us a breakdown of the prospect here.

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It’s hard to dislike what you see with Bradbury. He is one tough hombre. Bradbury takes guys on and punishes them. He was not faced by the tough competition either, see the clips from the Senior Bowl practices as indicators.

Lance Zierlein indicates the following:

"Doesn’t get much movement as drive blocker…Pass protection benefitted from quick game and play-action attack."

Those drive blocks looked pretty effective to me, that’s all I am saying. This man can seal off a lane in the running attack. As far as the pass protection, with his strength he should be able to adapt to deeper drops in the passing game.

And a guy as athletic is Bradbury is will do just fine.

Now, should the Jets take him at number 3? Not necessarily. But if the Jets do drop back a bit, Bradbury would be a great fit and a huge step in improving this offensive line.

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