Joel Klatt gives Jets the ultimate praise for 2026 NFL Draft haul

Did the Jets win the 2026 NFL Draft?

Charlie Baduini

New York Jets general manager Darren Mougey / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The New York Jets, armed with three first four-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, and four in the top-50, had the opportunity to inject high-end talent into their roster with productive college players.

They added a much-needed pass rusher in Texas Tech's David Bailey, drafted two premium pass catchers in Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq and Indiana wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr., and found themselves a hopeful Day 1 starter at cornerback in Indiana's D'Angelo Ponds.

It was one of the best hauls in terms of overall value, considering Cooper, who was a projected top-20 pick, slid down to pick No. 30, and Ponds, a fringe first-rounder, was scooped up at No. 50.

But how did the Jets' draft class stack up against the rest of the NFL? And did they come out of it with one of the best hauls in the league?

Joel Klatt says Jets won the 2026 NFL Draft

Appearing on the Up & Adams show with Kay Adams, Fox Sports draft analyst Joel Klatt revealed that he thought the Jets had won the 2026 NFL Draft.

"I loved what the Jets did...they prioritized production over potential, which I really love.
In my world, in the college game, that's paid off for Indiana. So the first round, the three first rounders, Bailey, Sadiq, and Cooper, really liked them. Then they get D'Angelo Ponds. He was my favorite player in the entire draft. I know that he's only 5-foot-9, but who's gonna know how to get the best out of a 5-foot-9 corner? Aaron Glenn. Right? Like that's a perfect fit right there."
Joel Klatt

Nearly everyone loves what the Jets did with their premier draft capital, and it's not hard to see why.

As Klatt pointed out, they went after guys who produced with their draft picks, like Bailey, who led college football with 14.5 sacks last year, or Cooper, who hauled in 13 touchdowns for the Hoosiers last season.

Hopefully, that's going to contribute to putting a winning product on the field in 2026. Aaron Glenn, and maybe Darren Mougey's jobs depend on how this upcoming season goes in New York.

Either way, they can at least rest easy knowing their draft class is a popular one, and they came out of last weekend's draft with some ready-to-produce players.

Charlie Baduini

Charlie Baduini covers the New York Jets as a site expert for The Jet Press and FanSided. He is a sports journalist based in Northern New Jersey with a wide variety of sports reporting experience in print and broadcast journalism. Baduini’s byline can also be seen on Heavy and The Sporting News, where he covers several teams across the NFL and NBA. His work has been featured in Heavy, Athlon Sports, The Sporting News, Yahoo Sports, MSN, and Yardbarker. He also serves as a seasonal intern for ESPN, working as a production assistant for the Heisman Trophy Ceremony every year since 2022. Baduini has been a Jets fan for as long as he can remember, with his family's fandom dating back to the 1960s when his grandfather, Louis, became a season ticket holder. His family has since held on to the tickets to this day. He is an avid fan of the New York Knicks and New York Mets.