Jets Warned to Avoid $21 Million QB Addition: ‘Very Obvious’

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New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett reacting in the middle of an NFL game.

All of the free agency moves have opened the doors for the New York Jets heading into the 2024 NFL draft.

One big red button the green and white shouldn’t press is taking a quarterback with the No. 10 overall pick according to Joe Tansey of Bleacher Report.

“It’s very obvious to state the Jets do not need a quarterback in the first round. However, there is a scenario in which a quarterback could be tempting to the Jets to plan for the post-[Aaron] Rodgers era. The Jets reside in the spot where Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix could be considered as first-round selections,” Tansey explained in a column posted on Monday, April 8. “The future is not what the Jets are worried about, even if they are still haunted by the struggles of their backup quarterbacks in 2023.”

The No. 10 overall pick is projected to sign a rookie contract worth $21.3 million, per Spotrac.

Top Reasons Why Jets Shouldn’t Take One of These QB Prospects

Rich Cimini of ESPN revealed that the Jets “will have the oldest quarterback room in the league” in 2024.

One of the top reasons Tansey listed as to why the Jets should avoid Nix and Penix is because of their age.

Penix is 23 and he will turn 24 before the start of the 2024 season. While Nix already turned 24 back in February. Penix has played six seasons of college football from 2018 through 2023. Nix played five seasons of college football from 2019 through 2023.

While experience can certainly be an attractive quality, the trait that NFL teams covet is upside. You could make an argument that you already know what Nix and Penix are because they have played for so long.

“Keeping either player behind Rodgers for at least one year would limit the window either player has in the NFL. They are both built to play now, and even in the most extreme scenarios, the Jets should avoid them,” Tansey said.

Jets Have Done Homework on This QB Class: Insider

NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport revealed to Jets team reporter Eric Allen that Gang Green “have done quarterback work” ahead of Apri’s draft.

“Do they take one [a quarterback] in the first round? I don’t know who is going to be there. If a top guy they like a lot is there and they could, oh I don’t know, sit him for two years behind one of the greatest of all time like we know that can work,” Rapoport said. “So if they have a quarterback they like … I think Rodgers would handle that differently than he did earlier in his career. If the Jets take one and it turns out to be what Jordan Love is now in Green Bay, that’s the biggest win you can have as an organization. You don’t have to do what they did to get Rodgers. To me, if the right guy is there, that could be an option.”

Gang Green has two quarterbacks on the roster who are projected to still be on it by the time the season rolls around. Rodgers will be QB1 and Tyrod Taylor will be his backup.

However, head coach Robert Saleh confirmed at the Annual League Meeting that the team isn’t done at that position.

Paul A. Esden Jr. covers the New York Jets for Heavy.com. A New York native, he is also the official PA voice of the Syracuse Strong Football Club and co-hosts Cumulus Media’s morning show, “The Manchild Show with Boy Green.” Before joining Heavy in 2021, Esden Jr. covered both national and New York sports for FanSided, Elite Sports NY and The Score 1260. More about Paul A. Esden Jr.