There is a staring contest happening between the New York Jets and the Arizona Cardinals.
Both appear to be interested in Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson, but who will land him? In Mel Kiper Jr’s latest mock draft for ESPN, he predicted that the Cardinals would trade up to block the Jets from getting him.
“It’s getting late in Round 1, and all of the non-Mendoza quarterbacks are still on the board. The Jets have the 33rd pick to kick off Round 2, so I wouldn’t be surprised if one of these QB-needy teams tries to trade back into Round 1 to get ahead of New York and also secure the fifth-year option on Ty Simpson,” Kiper wrote.
“In this projected deal, the Cardinals send Nos. 34 and 65 to the Dolphins for Nos. 30 and 94. The Dolphins would then have five total picks in the top 75 and still be able to get an impact player early on Day 2,” Kiper explained.
With that No. 30 overall pick, he predicted that Arizona would trade up for Simpson.
Who Is Willing to Bite the Bullet?
In the first round, Arizona holds the No. 3 overall pick. That seems far too rich for Simpson.
The Jets hold the No. 2 and No. 16 overall picks in the opening round of the NFL draft. On a conference call with the media, NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah revealed that, based on his intel, he doesn’t see the Jets selecting Simpson with either of their first two picks.
That leads us to the second round. The Jets are in the catbird seat. They have the No. 33 overall pick in the second round. If Simpson slides to day two, which is within the realm of possibility, then the Jets would control what happens.
Arizona holds the No. 34 overall pick in the second round, one slot behind the Jets. If the Cardinals want Simpson, they may have to trade in front of the Jets to ensure they land him.
Mock Draft Results
In the first round, Kiper played the hits. He predicted that the Jets would take Texas Tech’s David Bailey with the No. 2 overall pick to add to the pass rush. Then, with the No. 16 overall pick, he predicted that the Jets would add a pass catcher in Indiana’s Omar Cooper Jr at wide receiver.
Pass the biscuits. We have seen this pairing dozens of times during the pre-draft process.
However, when we got to day two, Kiper had some fun surprises.
With the No. 33 overall pick, he mocked Georgia linebacker C.J. Allen to the Jets.
“Allen is a three-down ‘backer who always seems to be around the ball because he anticipates so well. He racked up 97 tackles last season and flashed as a blitzer with 3.5 sacks. The Jets brought in Demario Davis this offseason, but he’s 37,” Kiper said.
Then with the No. 44 overall pick, he went back to the defensive well, taking South Carolina cornerback Brandon Cisse.
“The Jets aren’t much better in that CB department. After all, they intercepted zero passes last season. I like Cisse’s awareness in coverage, and he’s fast to the football. He had only two interceptions in college, but he did have 12 pass breakups,” Kiper wrote.
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