Ranking the 10 best moves of the Joe Douglas era for the NY Jets

6. The NY Jets made a great draft-day deal for a budding young star

As mentioned, the promise that Douglas made when he took over the Jets organization was that he would build the right way, through the trenches. While not every one of their moves has worked out, one draft day trade did, when the team moved back into the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft to land USC guard Alijah Vera-Tucker.

Last year may have been cut short for Vera-Tucker, but he proved in his short time to be one of the most versatile offensive linemen in the NFL, starting at both guard and tackle. Now, he's one of their most important players moving forward.

Sure, the Jets gave up two third-round picks and a first in the deal, but as of right now, it appears to be worth the risk because it's just a matter of when, not if, Vera-Tucker becomes a Pro Bowler and potentially even an All-Pro star in the NFL.

5. The NY Jets landed a star cornerback in free agency

Last year, the Jets landed All-Pro and Defensive Rookie of the Year Sauce Gardner, but in free agency, they made just as important a move when they signed former Seattle Seahawk and San Francisco 49er D.J. Reed to a three-year, $33 million deal.

In 17 games last season, Reed tallied one interception, 80 tackles, 12 passes defended, and one forced fumble, and combined with Gardner to form arguably the best cornerback duo in the NFL, despite still being heavily underrated around the league.

If this team is to finally break their playoff drought and go deep in the playoffs, many things will need to go well, but it's this pairing that Douglas brought together a season ago that is just as important as any on this Jets squad. Another example of a great free-agency pickup for Douglas.