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Not sure what difference this makes now.
And in fact, it’s kind of insulting to the guy they picked.
Talking about two insiders reporting that the Jets loved Washington receiver Rome Odunze, and might have picked him over Olu Fashanu, if he had slipped to 10.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported the pick was going to be Fashunu unless Odunze was still on the board.
“Fowler reported the Jets would have jumped at the opportunity to select Odunze if he was on the board but correctly believed that the Chicago Bears would select him at No. 9,” wrote Billy Riccette for USA Today.
And Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer said something similar:
“The only wrench in the Jets’ plans was the one player they wanted over Fashanu,” wrote Rifka Boord for Jets X-Factor. “Breer indicates that the predraft rumors were correct: Joe Douglas loved Rome Odunze. Had Odunze fallen to the Jets’ spot, Breer said it would’ve ‘complicated it. Once the Bears took Odunze at No. 9, the Jets’ path forward became clear.”
I am quoting these other writers on these reports because I did not see them myself.
But what was the point of somebody leaking this?
Some might find this distasteful.
How would you feel if you were Fashanu?
They picked Fashanu, what difference does it make now that they might have picked somebody else if he wasn’t selected already?
Why leak something like this?
To appease fans who wanted the Jets to pick a receiver? To show them they would have picked one, but the one they wanted was off the board?
And while Odunze is a heck of a player, how would it have made sense to not pick an offensive tackle at 10, or what turned out to be 11?
They have a 40-year-old QB, coming off a torn Achilles, and they signed a talented, yet, off-injured left tackle, Tyron Smith, to protect his blindside. Smith hasn’t played a complete season since 2016. One reason Dallas didn’t re-sign him is concern about chronic back issues.
So, while it might not be the sexiest pick, and doesn’t appease the people who view NFL team’s like they view fantasy football teams, where it’s all about weapons, how could they have not picked an offensive tackle, as insurance, not just for Smith, but 33-year-old right tackle Morgan Moses, who is coming off a torn pec he needed surgery for a few months ago.
So if they picked Odunze at 10, who was going to be the backup swing tackle?
Granted, Carter Warren, Max Mitchell or Austin Deculus could probably fill in for Moses, or at least one of the three could, but to have any of them play left tackle, on Rodgers blindside, would be rolling the dice. They are all better fits on the right side.
Fashanu is a bonafide left tackle who did not give up a sack his last two years at Penn State, playing in the Big Ten.
This idea of picking Odunze over Fashanu would have made little sense, also considering the Jets have plenty of receivers, led by Garrett Wilson and Mike Williams, and whether you like him or not, Allen Lazard, who is a good receiver when Aaron Rodgers is throwing him the ball.
I have no idea who leaked this stuff to Fowler and Breer. Maybe it didn’t come from the Jets, but if it did, why do that to Fashanu?
May 10, 2024
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