NY Jets land Zach Wilson and Kwity Paye in 3-round 2021 NFL Mock Draft

The 2021 NFL Draft is just around the corner and the NY Jets are set for what should be an exciting, enticing, and emotional three days.

With 10 total picks including five inside the top-90, general manager Joe Douglas will have ample draft capital to change the course of the organization. And following a disastrous 2-14 season, change is exactly what’s needed.

The Jets began that change with the firing of disgraced head coach Adam Gase and continued it by hiring his replacement, highly-regarded San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.

Saleh promises to usher in a new era in New York, one that will feature a new quarterback.

Sam Darnold was shipped to Carolina earlier this month as the Jets have made it clear that they are committed to starting over at the quarterback position.

Gone are the Gase and Darnold-led Jets. The 2021 Jets will look vastly different from years past.

The 2021 NFL Draft will offer an opportunity to start over. An opportunity to continue building the foundation that Douglas started to lay a year ago with the selections of players like Mekhi Becton and Denzel Mims in the draft.

It’s widely known that the team will target a quarterback with their first selection, but what about the rest of the draft?

We utilized The Draft Network’s Mock Machine to run through one possible scenario in this three-round mock draft.

Five picks were made. But how did we use them? Only one way to find out.

Round 1, 2nd Overall, NY Jets: Zach Wilson, QB, BYU

This pick isn’t going to change. There have been brief rumblings over the last week that the Jets could consider going in a different direction with this pick, but don’t buy into the pre-draft noise.

The Jets are going to draft BYU quarterback Zach Wilson second overall. That much is all but a certainty at this point.

Wilson has been connected to the Jets for months now, the moves from around the league point to him being the pick, and Joe Douglas might as well have signed off on the selection with his recent comments.

The Jets are prepared to start over at quarterback and Wilson will soon become the highest-drafted quarterback in franchise history. Will he live up to the hype? Only time will tell.

But Wilson has all the natural talent to become a franchise quarterback at the next level. The Jets must do a better job of supporting him than they did Darnold, but his potential is obvious.

Round 1, 23rd Overall, NY Jets: Kwity Pate, DE, Michigan

The plan was to target an offensive lineman or cornerback with this pick. But with the top-four cornerbacks and the likes of Alijah Vera-Tucker, Teven Jenkins, and even Alex Leatherwood off the board, we made the pick that made the most sense.

Kwity Paye has perhaps the highest upside of any edge rusher in this class. Paye is a rare, twitched-up athlete with the size, length, and athleticism to develop into an All-Pro in the NFL.

His traits are a little more impressive than his actual pass-rush moves at the moment, as evidenced by his lack of college production. This is more of a projection pick, but there’s a reason why Paye is considered to be a top-15 player in this class by many outlets.

I’m putting the trust in Robert Saleh to unlock the potential that lies within Paye and I’m trusting that his attitude and coachability (two things he’s been widely praised for) can help him reach his ceiling.

If he does, the Jets might have just landed the steal of the draft.

Round 2, 34th Overall, NY Jets: Creed Humphrey, C/OG, Oklahoma

The Jets only have one selection in Round 2, but we made it count by drafting Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey. Humphrey has been one of the most consistently mocked players to the Jets at this spot, and it makes a lot of sense.

If the Jets don’t trade up for a lineman in Round 1 and miss out on their top options, they could wait until 34 and likely still land a day-one starter in Humphrey.

A three-time All-American, Humphrey helped anchor one of college football’s best offensive lines over the past three years. He was voted Big 12 Offensive Lineman of the Year in each of the last two seasons and is viewed as one of the best interior line prospects in this year’s class.

That said, his lack of standout physical traits and the fact that he plays an unglamorous position will likely cause him to fall out of the first round.

The Jets, however, remain very intrigued by the Oklahoma center. At least as far as pre-draft reports go.

The Jets are desperately in need of a boost to their interior offensive line after a poor season a year ago. They missed out on Joe Thuney in free agency and carry the same starting five into the draft.

Don’t expect that to be the case after this weekend, however.

Humphrey could either step in as a day-one starter at center or, if the Jets feel comfortable with Connor McGovern at center (which they seemingly do), he could shift over to guard and replace either Alex Lewis or Greg Van Roten in the starting lineup.

Either way, Humphrey and Mekhi Becton would give the Jets a pair of young, stalwart offensive linemen to build around.

Round 3, 66th Overall, NY Jets: Tyson Campbell, CB, Georgia

The Jets also need to address the cornerback position in the draft, ideally landing a potential day-one starter. In this case, we swing for the fences again with the selection of Georgia cornerback Tyson Campbell.

Campbell has the size and traits to be a star at the next level. At 6-foot-1, 193 pounds, Campbell has the prototypical frame you look for in a boundary cornerback and he pairs that with superb speed and athleticism.

The 21-year-old ran a blazing 4.36 40-yard dash at his pro day. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more ideal size/speed blend at the cornerback position in this class than Campbell.

Unfortunately, his play at Georgia was inconsistent at best. His ball skills are underwhelming and he was frequently flagged as a result of poor awareness. He’s a project.

But Joe Douglas is someone who is known to bet on upside over polish, as evidenced by his first three picks in last year’s draft. And under the guidance of Robert Saleh, perhaps Campbell could reach his potential.

The Jets would probably be wise to sign a veteran cornerback after the draft, but Campbell gives them a high-upside young cornerback to mold into a long-term starter.

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Round 3, 86th Overall, NY Jets: Kenneth Gainwell, RB, Memphis

This is one of those picks that I’ve mocked so many times purely in an effort to will it into existence. Kenneth Gainwell is everything the Jets should be looking for in a running back.

He’s fast, elusive, has great vision, and was incredibly productive in the passing game in college. In other words, he’s the perfect Mike LaFleur running back.

Gainwell is never going to be a three-down, between-the-tackles runner. He lacks ideal size (at 5-foot-8, 201 pounds) and he’s not an overly powerful running back. But his outside speed and electric feet give him ample upside in an outside-zone running scheme.

The Jets likely won’t spend a premium pick on a running back given their countless other needs on the roster. And that’s perfectly fine. The Jets will run a committee backfield in 2021 and few players would fit that committee approach more than Gainwell.

If the Jets look to the middle of the draft to address the running back position, Gainwell should be their top target.