New Jets report reveals the embarrassing extent of Joe Douglas draft failures

Former New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas made plenty of questionable decisions during his tumultuous tenure in Florham Park, but one recent revelation about the team’s 2023 draft process may be among the most embarrassing.

On Friday’s episode of SNY’s Jets Mailbag, Connor Hughes reported that the Jets didn’t just not have a first-round grade on Seattle Seahawks superstar wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but they didn’t even consider him as an option when they were on the clock at No. 15.

Instead, the Jets zeroed in on defensive end Will McDonald, operating under the belief that acquiring Aaron Rodgers meant they would be playing with frequent leads. That game-script assumption was the impetus for this strategy, with the idea that McDonald could pin his ears back and rush the passer late in games.

Of course, that's not exactly what ended up happening. McDonald has fallen well short of expectations in New York, while Smith-Njigba has since developed into one of the NFL’s premier receivers, currently leading the league with 1,637 receiving yards through 15 games.

The Jets never even considered Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the 2023 NFL Draft

The Jets' decision to pass on Smith-Njigba for McDonald was widely criticized at the time, and it's only continued to look worse with the benefit of hindsight. One could argue that this one draft mistake was the beginning of the end for Douglas in New York.

McDonald broke out with a 10.5-sack season in 2024, but the Iowa State product remains a massive liability in run defense and has taken a sizable step back this season. He's a streaky situational pass rusher who probably shouldn't be playing more than 30-40% of snaps per game.

Meanwhile, the McDonald pick was eventually used as justification to let Bryce Huff walk for free and to trade John Franklin-Myers for pennies. The current state of the team's defensive line can, in many ways, be traced back to this draft pick.

The Jets will have to make a decision on McDonald's fifth-year option this offseason, and there's a very good chance they opt to decline it, making him a free agent after the 2026 season. His future in Florham Park moving forward is very much in doubt.

But the real issue was Douglas’ evaluation of Smith-Njigba. Hughes reported that the Jets had concerns about the Ohio State star’s "ability to separate" and his overall route running, despite the fact that he was widely viewed as one of — if not the — best route runners in the class.

I suppose we shouldn't be surprised, however. This is the same regime and scouting department that had Malachi Corley as their No. 4 overall wide receiver in the very next year's draft class, ahead of future stars like Brian Thomas Jr. and Ladd McConkey.

Douglas had a higher grade on Corley than Smith-Njigba. That alone speaks volumes about the Jets’ broken draft process at the time.

The Jets have moved forward with a new era headed by general manager Darren Mougey, but the mistakes of the Douglas regime continue to haunt the present-day roster. This egregious draft-day blunder stands out as arguably the most impactful.