NY Jets: 4 most disappointing trades in franchise history

4. NY Jets trade up to draft Sam Darnold in 2018

When the Jets sent three second-round picks to the Indianapolis Colts for the third overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, the consensus at the time was that the team had paid a pretty penny to move up just three spots.

But if the quarterback that they drafted panned out, no one would have been complaining. Unfortunately, that quarterback did not pan out.

Not only that, but the players drafted with the picks sent to Indianapolis make this one of the least successful trades in Jets' history.

Sam Darnold's story has been told ad nauseam. The former USC star spent three years with the Jets bottoming out in 2020 after his team failed to surround him with an adequate supporting cast.

An incompetent coaching staff, one of the worst offensive lines in football, and a lack of dynamic skill players all contributed to Darnold's failures. But the man himself doesn't escape blame either.

Meanwhile, the Colts turned the first two picks sent to them into a pair of stalwart offensive linemen. Quenton Nelson is arguably the best offensive lineman in the entire NFL while Braden Smith is one of the better right tackles in the league.

They traded away their second of two second-round picks in 2018 to the Philadelphia Eagles who used it to select Dallas Goedert, someone who has developed into one of the best young tight ends in football.

Finally, they used their 2019 second-rounder on cornerback Rock Ya-Sin. Of the four players, Ya-Sin is probably the worst, but he's still a starting-caliber cornerback who is in the midst of the best season of his career.

All four players drafted with the picks traded away turned out to be significantly better players than Sam Darnold. Although the trade is still fresh in the minds of many, it's fair to say it already ranks up there as one of the most disappointing swaps the Jets have made.