NY Jets winners and losers following Day 1 of the 2023 NFL Draft

The first round of the 2023 NFL Draft has come and passed, and the NY Jets certainly raised some eyebrows with their selection of Iowa State edge rusher Will McDonald IV.

McDonald was widely seen as a fringe first-round talent, and he doesn't exactly fill an immediate need on the Jets' roster, but the team is very high on his pass-rush upside. They believe in his natural talent.

The Jets likely wanted to target one of the top offensive tackles at pick 15, but with the top four already off the board, the team was forced to pivot. Rather than address a more significant roster need, the Jets went with a player who likely was near the top of their board.

Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba would have been a popular pick among Jets fans. Pittsburgh defensive tackle Calijah Kancey would have filled a more pressing need. Even Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid could have provided more of an instant impact.

Instead, the Jets went with McDonald — a likely sub-package pass rusher early in his career. With Carl Lawson and Bryce Huff potentially walking after this season, this pick feels like one that's more for the future than 2023.

The thought process makes sense, but it's worth wondering if the Jets could have made a more impactful selection given the short window of opportunity they have right now.

Either way, the McDonald selection, while controversial, is good news for some players on the Jets' roster. On the other hand, the pick could spell trouble for a few of McDonald's new teammates.

Let's take a look at the biggest winners and losers following the Jets' selecting of Will McDonald.

Winner: Mekhi Becton

There is no bigger winner from Day 1 of the draft than Mekhi Becton. The Jets went into the draft with a clear objective to add an offensive tackle, but with their top four options off the board, they didn't really have that option anymore.

The Jets could still add a tackle on Day 2 or Day 3, but the odds that Becton is a Week 1 starter just went up significantly. If the Jets drafted someone like Broderick Jones or Peter Skoronski, there was a possibility that Becton wouldn't end up as a starter.

The team seems to really like Duane Brown at left tackle, and the fact that they're paying him over $11 million this year certainly helps his case. But with no clear competition for Becton at right tackle now (outside of potentially Max Mitchell), he's the clear-cut favorite to start at right tackle.

The Jets are showing faith in Becton after all the work he has put in this offseason. He came away as a big winner from Day 1.

Loser: Bryce Huff

On the other end of the spectrum, Bryce Huff is easily the biggest loser. Huff was one of the most efficient pass rushers in football last season. He finished with the highest pass-rush win rate in the NFL and ranked second among qualified edge defenders in pass-rush productivity.

That's partially why the Jets extended a second-round tender to Huff this offseason. They didn't want to lose him. Despite this, they essentially just drafted his replacement.

Will McDonald should immediately fill the role that Huff did last season as a situational edge rusher on passing downs. Both players occupy the same space, but one has the benefit of being a first-round pick.

There remains a good chance that Huff, much like he was at the start of last season, is a healthy scratch on game days with a healthy Jets' front four. He seemingly just lost his spot in the rotation.

Winner: Corey Davis

All things considered, it's quite frankly stunning that Corey Davis is still on the Jets' roster as we approach May. At this point, it seems likely that he will be with the team come Week 1.

That notion would have seemed preposterous just a couple of months ago, but after passing on drafting a wide receiver in Round 1, it seems as though the Jets are comfortable with Davis and his hefty cap hit.

Many Jets fans were pushing for the team to select Ohio State's Jaxon Smith-Njigba, a move that would have almost certainly spelled the end for Davis in New York. Ultimately, the Jets went in a different direction.

It's still possible that the Jets add a wide receiver on Day 2 and put Davis' roster spot in jeopardy again, but for now, he seems likely to stick around. That makes him a winner.

Loser: Aaron Rodgers

What does Aaron Rodgers need to do to get some help around here? The Jets' skill position group is perfectly acceptable, but it is at least a little funny to see the team make a move for Rodgers and instead add to their already-stacked defensive line.

Rodgers has still never had his team draft a wide receiver in the first round. In fact, the last time Rodgers' team drafted a non-quarterback offensive player in the first round was 2011. The Jets made sure that trend continued.

I've been very vocal about this Jets' skill position group needing one more difference-maker to put them over the edge. Smith-Njigba could have been that player. Even Dalton Kincaid could have filled that role.

It's hard to blame the Jets for not drafting an offensive tackle, but there were skill position players available who would have made a larger impact than McDonald this season. The Jets passed on them, and Rodgers saw his team draft a defensive player once again.

Winner: Robert Saleh

The Will McDonald pick was a Robert Saleh decision, through and through. Saleh has never been shy about his love of defensive line depth, and you can absolutely argue that the Jets now have the deepest and most talented defensive group in the NFL.

The Jets are legitimately six-deep at the position. That's a dream scenario for a coach like Saleh, who loves to rotate his defensive linemen as much as possible. McDonald is just another chess piece for him to play with.

On top of that, Saleh is evidently very excited to see McDonald's skill set implemented in the Jets' Wide-9 scheme. Iowa State often lined McDonald up as a 4i defensive end, shading inside the offensive tackle.

Saleh believes that McDonald can reach his full potential as a Wide-9 edge rusher lining up far outside the tackle box. Given his impressive speed and bendability, it's hard to disagree.

Loser: Jermaine Johnson/Micheal Clemons

Perhaps one of the biggest criticisms of Saleh's defense is that he rotates his defensive linemen too much. After all, this is the same guy who played Quinnen Williams just 60 percent of snaps last season.

Following impressive rookie campaigns, many hoped that the likes of Jermaine Johnson and Micheal Clemons would be in line for larger roles in year two. That seems unlikely now.

Johnson and Clemons both played roughly 27 percent of the Jets' defensive snaps last season. It's difficult to believe that number will go up with McDonald now joining the room.

In reality, we're likely looking at similar snap totals for Johnson and Clemons and somewhere around 20-25 percent of snaps for McDonald if everyone is healthy. There might just be too many mouths to feed in the Jets' defensive end room.