NY Jets: 3 predictions for Day 2 of the 2021 NFL Draft

It’s not every day that you wake up with a smile as a NY Jets fan, but this morning was a good day for Gang Green nation.

Everyone in the world knew that Zach Wilson was getting drafted second overall, but after that, it was unclear what the plan was. Prior to the draft, there were plenty of rumors speculating that Joe Douglas wanted to trade up — and that’s exactly what happened.

Douglas didn’t want to make the same mistake that the last Jets’ regime made, so he traded the No. 23, No. 66, and No. 86 picks to secure the No. 14 overall selection. With that pick, he drafted Alijah Vera-Tucker from USC.

Drafting an offensive lineman in the first round is never the sexiest pick, but it was an unbelievable move by Douglas. Sure, they probably could have drafted a lineman with the No. 23 pick without trading any assets, but there wasn’t a better guard in this draft than Vera-Tucker.

He’s going to slide in perfectly beside Mekhi Becton, and as a result, the left side of the Jets’ offensive line is young and stacked.

Since New York shipped away two third-round picks, the team now has the following selections heading into the final two days of the draft: No. 34, No. 107, No. 143, No. 146, No. 154, No. 186, and No. 226.

As you can see, there’s a huge gap between their first and second selections, so it’ll be interesting to see what happens. New York still needs to address the cornerback, edge rusher, and skill positions, so there are plenty of directions for this team can go.

Day 2 will consist of Rounds 2 and 3, so at this moment, the Jets will only have one selection. However, here are three predictions about what could happen.