Top 11 biggest NFL Draft steals in NY Jets history

The NY Jets haven't always found the most success in the NFL Draft over the years, but that doesn't mean they haven't been able to uncover some draft-day steals throughout their history.

From mid-round steals to late-round gems, the Jets have landed quite a few draft steals over the course of their 65-year history. Those are the players we're set to look at today.

Criteria for this list will be twofold: individual success and draft status. The more successful a player was with the Jets and the later they were drafted, the more of a "steal" they will be considered.

11. Jason Ferguson, DT, NY Jets

One of the more underrated members of the Bill Parcells era and early 2000s Jets, Jason Ferguson was selected in the seventh round of the 1997 NFL Draft after falling due to perceived off-field concerns.

Ferguson would go on to play more than 100 games with the Jets over seven seasons, surviving multiple regimes as an integral part of the team's defensive line.

While he never filled up the stat sheet, Ferguson was an excellent run defender and an important piece in the Jets' defense for nearly a decade. The fact that the Jets were able to land someone like that in the seventh round makes him an obvious candidate for this list.

10. Kerry Rhodes, S, NY Jets

Before Jamal Adams, there was Kerry Rhodes. A fourth-round pick in the 2005 NFL Draft, Rhodes immediately made an impact as a rookie, winning the starting job in training camp before finishing third on the team with 106 tackles.

Rhodes would go on to develop into an All-Pro safety for the Jets, starting 78 games over five seasons with the team before he was traded to the Arizona Cardinals in 2010.

Rhodes was one of the best safeties in the NFL during his prime, and although he only spent five seasons with the Jets, he still made quite the impact. Drafting a player like him in the fourth round doesn't happen often.