NFL Draft: Once again, the Jets are set to take a quarterback with a top-five pick

The biggest night in recent Jets’ history is finally here. They are set to draft a quarterback who they hope can change the fate of the franchise.

Here we go again.

The Jets organization and their fan base are all too familiar with this. For the third time in 13 years, the Jets use a top 5 pick on a quarterback and expect him to lead the franchise to greatness.

No other team can say that over that same timeframe. It speaks to the sad state of the Jets for so very long, and general manager Joe Douglas’ need to hit a home run with this pick and in this draft.

All signs point to BYU’s Zach Wilson being the Jets’ pick with the No. 2 selection in Thursday’s NFL Draft. The Jets have nine more picks – including No. 23 in the first round – and many holes to fill. But all eyes are on No. 2.

The pressure will be on Wilson (presumably) to help lift the Jets out of their 10-year playoff drought and become the franchise quarterback this franchise has been searching for since Joe Namath was traded to the Rams in 1977.

"There’s pressure on all of us," Douglas said. "There is a spotlight on the top picks. The good part about the system we have, the coaches we have, the people we have, the people we have in the building, all this pick has to do is be himself. That’s going to be the most important thing.

"We’re going to do everything we can to help not only pick 2 but every pick be as successful as they can be."

Maybe the Jets will get it right this time.

Mark Sanchez, the No. 5 pick in 2009, was the quarterback the last time the Jets made the playoffs. But he had more interceptions (69) than touchdowns (68) in four years with the Jets.

Sanchez lasted one more year than Sam Darnold, the No. 3 choice in 2018. Darnold showed promise early, but he threw nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions during this past 2-14 season. Douglas hit the reset button and traded Darnold to Carolina on April 5.

Douglas, hired in June 2019, spent two seasons with Darnold, so he doesn’t get a pass. But this is his second draft as a GM. He’s following some of the philosophies he learned under Super Bowl-winning executives Ozzie Newsome and Howie Roseman on how to build a team.

Jets first-time head coach Robert Saleh also comes from winning organizations in Seattle and San Francisco and is focused on changing the culture.

Different leadership could lead to different results.

But Douglas knows exactly what he’s looking for in a quarterback: scheme fit, physical traits and intangibles, specifically intelligence, leadership, mental and physical toughness.

Wilson fits the Jets’ new wide-zone scheme well and his arm strength and athleticism rate high. The intangibles are important factors for a young quarterback coming to a team trying to break free from their past and become a perennial winner.

Due to COVID-19 protocols, teams didn’t get to spend as much time with prospects as past years. There was no Combine and few in-person meetings. Other than a passing conversation at Pro Days, interviews with prospects were done through Zooms.

But Douglas is confident in all the work the Jets did to get to know the players.

"We were able to get a lot of great information from coaches, from staffs at every school across the college landscape," Douglas said. "Not only that, we were able to put a lot of these guys into high-stress situations on these zoom calls and see how they would respond, how they processed information within the play, their calls, their checks, just going through each play, going through different games.

"I felt like our process in terms of trying to put some of these players in pressure situations was a good one."

Much has been made about Wilson playing for a non-Power 5 school and thus not facing top competition.

The Cougars were 11-1, but just 1-1 against Top 25 teams. Wilson was outstanding, though. He threw 33 touchdown passes, ran for 10 more and was intercepted just three times.

Many players from non-power schools or conferences have had plenty of success in the NFL. BYU has produced quarterbacks Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks Steve Young and Jim McMahon and New Orleans’ swiss-army knife Taysom Hill.

Buffalo’s Josh Allen played at Wyoming. Taken in the same draft as Darnold, Allen was an MVP candidate last year and led the Bills to the AFC championship game.

The Jets and their fans can only hope their next franchise quarterback follows a similar path, and they’re not saying "Here we go again" in another few years.