Keidel: If Jets Don't Go QB Early, They'll Probably Face Risks Later
By Jason Keidel
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Todd Bowles and Mike Maccagnan had to be green with envy when news broke that John Lynch signed a six-year deal to become general manager of the San Francisco 49ers. Lynch, who had never been an NFL GM, then signed newbie Kyle Shanahan to a six-year deal to coach the club.
It's unusual, if not unprecedented, for two neophytes to get six-year deals, security rarely afforded even the most seasoned coaches or general managers.
By contrast, Mike Tomlin, one of the most tenured and accomplished coaches in the NFL -- only Marvin Lewis, Mike McCarthy, and Bill Belichick have been with their teams longer -- has never been offered more than four years on any of his deals, and his latest extension was only for two years, assuring his time in Pittsburgh only through 2018.
Bowles has no such luxury. And since the head coach of the Jets (or famously coined HC of the NYJ) is so perilously tethered to the general manager, it leads us to wonder how much Bowles' job rides on this week's NFL Draft.
Maccagnan picks the players that Bowles coaches. Or to borrow from another former Jets coach, Bowles cooks the groceries his boss buys. So is it fair to Bowles that the Jets don't have the personnel to contend this year?
Add to that the fact that Bowles is clearly squirming on the hot seat this season. More than warm, it's scalding. There has been a growing chorus among fans to fire Bowles. And then there's the haunting list from CBSSports.com, which listed the league's top coaches. The top spots were self-evident (Belichick, McCarthy, Reid, Carroll, etc.), but while you expect Bowles to dwell around the lower rungs based on his 5-11 campaign in 2016, you don't expect him to be at the bottom rung. Which is exactly where CBS has him -- 27th out of 32. The only five coaches below him are coaching their first NFL games in September.
That feels a bit unfair. It's not as if Bowles has made a habit of 5-11 seasons. Just the one, which was preceded by a 10-6 season. But with all the rumors swirling around the HC and GM of the NYJ, why not shake, rattle, and roll the dice and snag a quarterback in the first round? Even with a dearth of dominant QBs this year, take a shot at the one position that really can turn this team around.
The media and masses are drooling over Mitchell Trubisky, even if 90 percent of the public had no idea who he was two months ago. It says here a QB is the way to go, just not Trubisky, who lost to Duke last year in a schedule that included The Citadel and James Madison.
I can't be the only one sick of upside, that amorphous attribute with more variables than long-form calculus. Trubisky played one full season under center -- or not, with spread offenses -- in college, and we're actually hearing the Browns could bag him with the top pick.
The Jets may not be the Browns, but they should attack this draft with equal desperation. Indeed, the league's haunting acronym, Not For Long, is not limited to the gridiron, and has wafted its way to the sideline and down the halls and up to the executive suites.
MORE: Keidel: Even The Experts Have No Idea What Jets Will Do At The Draft
Recently, I wrote a piece urging Gang Green to go for a game-breaker, either running back Leonard Fournette or quarterback Deshaun Watson. Fournette was a man at 19, ready for Sunday as soon as he started playing on Saturday. Watson authored two performances worthy of Broadway. Both in national championship games. Both against Alabama, with easily the most ornery defense in college football, with more NFL prospects than any two teams combined. ('Bama will have five players plucked in the first 25 picks; three defenders in the top-15.) Watson shredded them, twice, with alarming ease.
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Some of us have taken a shine to DeShone Kizer, but the Nortre Dame QB needs some seasoning. If the Jets demure at pick No. 6 then they need to pick a QB soon thereafter. Perhaps Kizer, who will surely be around in the second round. Or Patrick Mahomes, who's dazzling scouts and soaring up mock drafts with his arm (check the YouTube clip of him heaving a football a country mile from his knees.)
Then there's the rest, a soup of lower-tier signal-callers, like Davis Webb, Josh Dobbs, Brad Kaaya, and Nathan Peterman. Webb is from Cal and scares people as Jared Goff 2.0. Dobbs doesn't have the arm. And most scouts say "Bye, Felicia" to Kaaya, who, yes, really is the son of the actress from the cult classic, "Friday." If the Jets are to select from this group, Peterman should be the pick. He's not only the best prospect, but is also the only QB to beat Watson and Clemson last year. CBS Sports has Peterman as the No. 6 QB overall, yet some compare him favorably to Kirk Cousins.
But if Gang Green is serious about showing stones and rolling bones on a bona fide QB, it's Trubisky, Watson, Mahomes, or Kizer. And if winning matters, it's Watson. If potential matters, Mahomes or Kizer. Or wait until the third round, take Peterman, and pray.
Please follow Jason on Twitter at @JasonKeidel