🛫 Pilot Watch: 2027 | Drew Mestemaker is the Jets' only shot at a home run

Drew Mestemaker should be the quarterback of the New York Jets.

I'm sorry if that sounded wishy-washy. Hopefully I'll find some conviction soon.

If you've not yet accepted the reality that there are three viable quarterback options for the Jets in this draft class, then I don't know what to tell you. Other than-- at this point, you're doing this to yourself.

The three paths for the New York Jets

CJ Carr of Notre Dame, Trinidad Chambliss of Ole Miss, and Oklahoma State's Mestemaker. Each one represents a specific philosophy and strategy for the organization.

Carr is the safe choice. Mature, refined, intelligent, he represents a commitment to stability. If the Jets are looking for the stock build of an NFL quarterback, Carr's the guy.

Chambliss is more of a wildcard, but an interesting one. His athleticism and dynamic playmaking ability are qualities the Jets have never had in a quarterback. However, at six-foot-even, there's no guarantee that his game will work in the pros.

If it does, it's the type capable of changing a franchise. More importantly, taking him would suggest a shocking but welcome shift in approach for the Jets-- a willingness to try something new.

And finally, there's Mestemaker.

With by far the highest ceiling of any quarterback in this draft class, Mestemaker would be an example of the organization doing something unfamiliar to Jets fans-- making the right choice.

What you should know about Drew Mestemaker

At six-foot-four and 220 pounds, Mestemaker looks like Josh Allen. He even dons No. 17 and plays for a college with a mascot named the Cowboys.

He also shares his howitzer for a right arm, is a dangerous runner of the football, and displays the same brand of underdog grittiness in the way he plays the game.

The other resemblance is in their origin story.

In high school, Mestemaker was a backup to a highly touted quarterback prospect. Though he played some defensive back and was the team's punter, he finished his high school career with the same number of starts as stars - zero.

Still hoping to play college ball, Mestemaker decided to walk on at North Texas. Unsurprisingly, he found himself listed as the fifth-string quarterback. After creeping up the depth chart throughout his freshman year, a transfer announcement from the starter the week of the team's bowl game promoted Mestemaker to QB1 for the first time.

His first time being a starting quarterback. Ever. Not just in college. In life. And in a bowl game. Talk about a welcome to football moment. Surely he struggled...

He did not. The kid threw for nearly 400 yards, chucked two touchdowns, and added a 70-yard touchdown gallop for good measure.

After starting the entire next season, during which he led all of college football in passing, Mestemaker followed his head coach to Oklahoma State as a transfer in 2026. While I typically lean anti-transfer when it comes to quarterbacks, the fact that he went with his coach negates my concern.

If that doesn't justify it, the fact that he led North Texas to an 11-2 record and a national ranking, only to receive an invite to the Isleta New Mexico Bowl, does.

No disrespect to the Mean Green or the Isleta community, but at that point, it's not about school loyalty-- it's about giving yourself a chance.

Today, still just seven games into his second season at the position, all Mestemaker has done is throw for over four metric miles (7,167 yards), 56 touchdowns, and has run for another eight.

The one play you need to see...

I mean... come on. Right?

The double-edged sword of inexperience

Mestemaker is new to quarterbacking. While the success he's had in his short time doing it piques interest in his potential, it's also his biggest red flag.

NFL quarterback is a cerebral position. There's a reason why the guys usually included in the GOAT discussion all look like they could have easily been FedEx drivers if circumstances were different. The combined 40-yard dash times of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and Joe Montana would be a legal drinking age.

What makes it the hardest position in sports isn't any physical trait, but the mental capacity required. Many Adonises have impressed in spandex, only to wilt because they couldn't hack it cognitively.

I have no concern about his physical abilities, but the fact that Mestemaker only has but a hiccup of experience with this particular skill, while not quite a damnation, is certainly a dice roll.

Last, as always - the Jet fit

Mestemaker is like a mythical creature in that we've seen majesty, but he remains largely mysterious. The small sample size we have to assess his play has also offered little in the way of insight into his personality.

As we near the late-season convergence of college football, I'm sure we'll have opportunities to learn more about who Mestemaker is. He'll likely be in Heisman conversations, postseason races, and I'd bet the farm we get a one-on-one with Laura Rutledge at some point.

From the outside, he seems like a reserved, perhaps even shy young man. Then again, maybe he's just still learning the position and hasn't yet had a chance to sculpt his leadership persona.

Either way, quiet doesn't automatically mean pensive.

There've been times, in little moments, when I've seen him shoot a teammate a stare, or change the flow of a game with a display of sheer will that makes me think he might just have his own brand of silent intensity.

In any case, the height of his ceiling alone makes him the right pick for the Jets. Even if he doesn't pan out, the decision, itself, would be proof that the organization is taking the right kinds of shots.

Worst case: a shy, athletic kid who never quite grows into who we'd all hope.

Best case: Terminator/Cyborg leader of the New York Jets resurgence.

Final assessment

Do it.

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