NY Jets trade up for Jermaine Johnson and win the entire draft

Justin Fried

NY Jets, Jermaine Johnson / David Becker/GettyImages

The NY Jets have won the 2022 NFL Draft. At least, that seems to be the consensus after the team traded back up into the first round to select Florida State edge rusher Jermaine Johnson.

The Jets were able to land three players in the top-16 of their draft board last year in Zach Wilson, Alijah Vera-Tucker, and Jermaine Johnson. Somehow they one-upped themselves this year.

There's a very good chance that all of Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, and Jermaine Johnson were top-10 players on the Jets' draft board. Now, all of them will be donning green and white.

Johnson's unexpected slide was one of the surprises of draft day with many believing that the ACC Defensive Player of the Year would be a surefire top-10 pick. There were even some rumblings the Jets would take him at 4.

Instead, they were able to land him 22 spots later in what many consider to be the steal of the entire draft.

Jermaine Johnson adds to a historic draft haul for the NY Jets

A former three-star recruit, Johnson went the JUCO route before transferring to Georgia in 2019. However, he failed to crack an incredibly deep Bulldogs defensive line rotation and opted to transfer to Florida State for his senior season.

That decision turned out to be the best move of his career as Johnson emerged as one of the best pass rushers in college football. Johnson finished with 12 sacks and 18 tackles for loss in 12 games en route to being named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and first-team All-ACC.

Johnson was long considered a favorite of the Jets with many believing he'd be the target at either 4 or 10. But after drafting Gardner and Wilson, it seemed like their opportunity to land Johnson was over.

But much like the Elijah Moore situation last season, the Jets were able to take advantage of a player they loved surprisingly falling. They were aggressive and got the job done.

The Jets were able to land three players who many believed would be top-10 picks in the 2022 NFL Draft. It's still early, but it's hard not to consider them the winners of the draft so far.

Justin Fried

Justin Fried is an editor for FanSided who has over seven years of experience covering the NFL and various other sports. A diehard Jets fan since birth, Justin has served as the editor for The Jet Press since 2019, interviewing athletes such as Sauce Gardner, Curtis Martin, LaDainian Tomlinson, Joe Klecko, and many others. Justin has also worked closely with brands like Red Bull to help highlight the niche sectors of the sporting world. His four-part series on the sport of breaking remains one of his proudest pieces of work. In his spare time, Justin is an avid pro wrestling fan who is fortunate enough to have traveled to nearly 30 different countries.