Ranking NY Jets' biggest NFL draft gems of the last decade

The NY Jets haven't always gotten things right in the NFL Draft. The franchise has its fair share of draft busts that will gown in Jets infamy, but they've also managed to find some excellent value in the form of draft gems.

This is the same organization that landed future Hall of Famer Joe Klecko in the sixth round. For every historic Jets draft bust, there's an under-the-radar draft-day steal. Those are the players we'll be taking a look at here.

So, what defines a draft gem? We're looking for players who were taken in the later rounds of the draft who far exceeded the expectations of their draft slot.

In theory, a player doesn't have to be a Day 3 pick to qualify for this list, but there will be an emphasis on later rounds. The later a player was drafted, the more likely they are to rank highly on this list.

It should also be noted that we're only accounting for what these players did during their time with the Jets. That means a player like Blake Cashman, who broke out with the Houston Texans in 2023, will not be considered.

Finally, this list is only exploring players drafted by the Jets within the last decade (2014-2023). Players like Brian Winters, Bilal Powell, and Jeremy Kerley would've qualified, but they don't fit in that time frame.

Let's take a look at six of the Jets' biggest draft gems of the last decade. Below are a few honorable mentions that just missed the cut.

Honorable Mentions: Nathan Shepherd, Bryce Hall, Ashtyn Davis, Brandin Echols, Marcus Maye, Joe Tippmann