NY Jets: Team secures their 2016 NFL Draft positioning

With the season of the NY Jets over, it’s time to shift the focus to the upcoming 2016 NFL Draft and their first round draft order has been locked in.

The Jets have finished the 2015 season 10-6 by way of the Buffalo Bills ending their five-game winning streak in the regular season finale. With the 2015 season over, the Jets can now begin preparations for the off-season and first things first, the Jets have locked in their draft order.

The Jets have the 20th pick in the draft, per ESPN Stats. #nyj

— Rich Cimini (@RichCimini) January 4, 2016

It’s kind of a bittersweet situation, the Jets just missed the NFL Playoffs with a 10-6 record because of that they get the last pick available. But this 10-6 team has a few holes they need to fill in order to break this postseason drought next season.

Here’s a quick snippet of positions that need addressing:

Running Back

Chris Ivory, Bilal Powell and Stevan Ridley are all impending free agents. The Jets will have a few options as they could look to bring back some of the crew or look to attack this position in the draft that is stockpiled with talent. Ezekiel Elliott, Derrick Henry (Heisman Winner) and Devontae Booker to name a few.

Offensive Line

D’brickashaw Ferguson and Nick Mangold carry large cap charges and could be asked to renegotiate or quite possibly could be cap casualties. Their veteran leadership and lack of a replacement on the roster probably prevents the latter. While Breno Giacomini has been underwhelming to say the least since coming over from Seattle, the Jets could do wonders with a replacement in the early rounds of the draft.

Linebacker

Demario Davis is an impending free agent and is most likely headed to a new home in 2016, unless the Jets and Davis can agree on fair compensation. David Harris on the other hand is fresh off his own extension last season and isn’t headed anywhere. It may finally be time to move on from veteran Calvin Pace and initiate the youth movement.

Lorenzo Mauldin appears destined for a full-time gig next season which leaves an opening at the other position the Jets could look to add an edge rusher through free agency, though Von Miller would be a dream to acquire in free agency, I don’t see the Jets shedding out that kind of money for him.

More jets: What went wrong in 2015 for the Jets

Final Thoughts

Unfortunately now that the Cinderella season for the Jets is over, it’s time to prepare and look forward to hopefully a good off-season. The positive is that there was tangible improvement from 2014 to 2015. It appears that long term sustained success is on the horizon and the next step is this pivotal off-season for the Jets brass.