NY Jets Post-2021 NFL Draft State of the Roster: Cornerbacks

Michael Carter II, CB, NY Jets

One of three players that the Jets drafted at the cornerback position in April, Duke defensive back Michael Carter has experience at both corner and safety, and the Jets have talked him up as a player who can play in a similar role that Lamarcus Joyner is going to assume for Gang Green.

A role that former Robert Saleh soldier Jimmie Ward assumed in San Francisco. Three similar players in terms of size and stature.

Carter and Ward are listed at 5-foot-10 and Joyner at 5-foot-8. The Jets have Carter listed at cornerback, but it's fair to speculate that he could be playing multiple roles in the defense.

Although Carter was a fifth-round pick, the opportunity to start in the nickel for the Jets secondary is a real one. 

A former team captain and Academic All-ACC player at Duke. Carter is a heady player who can absorb next-level concepts and has enough clocked speed at 4.32 to play on the outside if needed.

Because of this, Carter will have a legitimate chance to crack the Jets' starting lineup. With the war of attrition that occurs every year during an NFL season, you can never have enough players who can play multiple positions.

Michael Carter II is a player that the Jets defense might bring into battle very early.

Brandin Echols, CB, NY Jets

The last of three cornerbacks drafted by the Jets in April, Brandin Echols might be the player with the most upside of the group. An elite athlete, Echols has 4.3 speed with a 42.5-inch vertical leap. Echols also has a basketball and long-jump champion background coming out of Mississippi. 

A former junior college transfer to Kentucky, Echols is a potential diamond in the rough with excellent ball skills.

Normally sixth-round picks are longshots to crack the starting rotation, and in some cases, they fail to make the active roster out of camp, but the Jets will be wary of trying to sneak Echols onto their practice squad in 2021. He has a real chance of making the opening day roster. 

The question is, will Echols make the team at the expense of one of the holdover players at cornerback from last season? He very well could.