NY Jets GM Darren Mougey can’t afford to repeat this major Joe Douglas mistake

The NY Jets officially ushered in a new era this past Monday, when new head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey were introduced. While winning games matters most, Jets fans should leave Monday's press conference encouraged.

Aaron Glenn made it clear he wanted this job over any other opening. His message was clear: "We're the freaking New York Jets and we're built for this s—t." As for Darren Mougey, he made it known how much talent is on this roster and how they would like to add to it.

The next steps for this new regime will include Glenn continuing to form his coaching staff, deciding on Aaron Rodgers, and building the rest of this roster through free agency, trades, and the NFL Draft.

While free agency and any trades that could be made will play a huge part in building this roster, one of the biggest keys for this regime needs to come during the draft. Mougey and company need to find offensive talent moving forward in the middle rounds of the draft.

Darren Mougey's mid-round offensive draft picks will be crucial for NY Jets success

Over the last few regimes for the Jets, finding offensive talent in the middle rounds of the NFL Draft has not come often. This was the case most recently with Joe Douglas who finished his Jets tenure with a 30-64 record.

Over five drafts, Douglas' clear standout was 2022, but his overall draft record fell short — especially when it came to finding offensive talent beyond the first round.

Some of Douglas' mid to late-round draft picks on the offensive side of the football that isn't on the team anymore include La'Mical Perine, Denzel Mims, Elijah Moore, James Morgan, Israel Abanikanda, and Michael Carter.

Others who are still on the team but are trending toward misses include Max Mitchell, Carter Warren, Jeremy Ruckert, Zack Kuntz, and Malachi Corley, who rarely saw the field in his rookie season. Since his first draft in 2020, Joe Douglas' inability to find offense after Day 1 was very alarming.

As Darren Mougey enters 2025 and beyond with the Jets, he needs to be able to hit on mid-round offensive selections. When looking at the offense as currently constructed, New York could look to bolster positions like quarterback, wide receiver, offensive line, and tight end in April.

Douglas was able to hit on Breece Hall and Joe Tippmann, while Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis both look promising. Mougey needs more of those as he looks to turn Gang Green into a legitimate proven contender for the first time in well over a decade.

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