NY Jets somehow land Caleb Williams in wild 2024 NFL Mock Draft trade prediction

The NY Jets will have their share of options in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, and one route the team could explore is the addition of a new young quarterback of the future. That said, someone like USC's Caleb Williams is presumably not within reach.

The 2022 Heisman winner is unanimously seen as an expected top-two pick in next year's draft, meaning that the Jets probably won't have a shot at drafting him. That is, however, unless they trade up.

A recent mock draft from Pro Football Network's Ian Cummings has them doing exactly that. Cummings has the Jets moving up from the eighth overall pick to the second pick in a wild draft-day trade with the Arizona Cardinals.

And when I say wild, I mean wild. The trade includes seven total draft picks (from both teams) and a whopping three players the Jets would send to Arizona. The full details of the trade can be seen below.

Jets Receive:

• No. 2 pick
• No. 66 pick
• 2025 fifth-round pick

Cardinals Receive:

• No. 8 pick
• 2025 first-round pick
• 2025 second-round pick
• 2026 second-round pick
• CB D.J. Reed
• RB Breece Hall
• WR Xavier Gipson

Yeah...this NY Jets/Caleb Williams trade is insane

Where do we even begin here? For starters, it's probably unlikely that the Jets opt to draft a quarterback in the first round next year, let alone give up significant assets to trade up for one.

The Jets are trying to win during the Aaron Rodgers window. Trading away two star players and a host of draft capital isn't a great way to do that.

The Jets would essentially be trading a future first, two future seconds, and two franchise cornerstones to move up eight slots in the first round (along with a high third-round pick). Needless to say, nothing like this is going to happen.

It's almost unprecedented to see an NFL team trade away three separate players in the same deal. Reed would be entering the final year of his contract, although he remains a crucial part of the Jets' defense.

Meanwhile, Hall is one of only two offensive cornerstones the Jets currently have on their roster. This offense needs more playmakers, and a young star running back on his rookie contract is a valuable asset the Jets likely aren't looking to part with.

The addition of Xavier Gipson is just...confusing, I guess. What sort of value does a bottom-of-the-roster wide receiver/special-teamer even have in a trade? His inclusion in the deal almost feels arbitrary.

Trading up for a so-called generational talent like Williams wouldn't come cheap, but that's exactly why the Jets wouldn't do it. Why would they give up all of this to trade for a player they expect to sit on the bench for the first 1-2 years of his career?

The simple answer: they wouldn't.

While it's fun to dream about scenarios in which the Jets land a franchise quarterback in next year's draft, the team is much more likely to add an offensive lineman or offensive skill player in the first round. The Caleb Williams dream is little more than that — a dream.