The first draft by general manager Joe Douglas looked like a good one to start, but quickly went the opposite direction. With the 11th pick, the Jets selected Mekhi Becton, and had a terrific rookie year at left tackle. Entering his second season, he suffered a knee injury Week 1 and missed the rest of the season. The following year he was moved to right tackle in training camp, then fractured his kneecap and missed the whole season. There were a lot of storylines regarding Becton’s conditioning and rehab those two seasons and seemingly fell out of favor in New York. He battled back and lost weight and rehabbed and earned the starting right tackle spot. He was moved over to left tackle the rest of the season following an injury to Duane Brown. He got his fifth-year option declined and will be a free agent, so it’ll be interesting to see what his market is.
Denzel Mims was touted as a steal in the second round, but dealt with injuries as a rookie, and just never produced in his three seasons. He had requested a trade a bunch during his tenure, and was eventually traded to the Lions for next to nothing, but was cut before the 2023 season and will be looking to make the Steelers roster next year.
The two remaining players from this draft are Ashtyn Davis and Bryce Hall, both borderline starters in the secondary. Davis has mostly been a third safety in four years, playing in 54 games with 21 starts. Hall started seven games as a rookie, and was a 17-game starter in 2021. He lost the starting job following the acquisitions of Sauce Gardner and D.J. Reed, and slipped to fifth on the depth chart.
Jabari Zuniga was injured as a rookie, and was on the practice squad the next year, then cut the following. He had stints with the Seahawks and Saints before retiring in 2023. La’Mical Perine was a nice depth player as a rookie, but was released in 2022 and has spent time with the Eagles, Dolphins, and Chiefs. James Morgan lasted one season, and has been on the practice squads of four teams. Cameron Clark missed his first two seasons with injury then retired from football in 2022 due to a spinal injury.
Braden Mann was the Jets punter for three seasons, then was released after the signing of Thomas Morstead and became the Eagles punter in 2023.
Bryce Huff is one of the top free agents of 2023 after a solid undrafted career. Primarily a rotational pass rusher his first three seasons after making the final roster as a rookie, Huff broke out with 10 sacks and will get paid this offseason.
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