The Jets figured they would roll the dice with a project in the 6th round for their offensive line.  Jacob Bender is a big man at 6′6″, 316 pounds and the Jets believe he can even add more weight to his frame.  But they have a lot of work to do with him.  Bender played at Nicholls State and they ran the ball a lot, so he will need a lot of schooling in pass blocking.  He is already a solid run blocker and he can hit a moving target in the open field.  Bender was worth taking for the Jets, but it might take them a little time before they are comfortable with getting him on the playing field.

The Jets have signed veteran DE Eric Hicks to a 1-year contract.  Hicks played in all 16 games last season but he only made 7 tackles, so don’t expect much from him this season.  In his 9 year career, Hicks has played in 128 games and he’s made 320 tackles, has 44.5 sacks, defensed 11 passes, forced 7 fumbles and recovered 6 fumbles (one for a TD).  Hicks is nearing the end of his NFL career, and he will be a backup for the Jets if he can make the team.

David Harris slid a little bit in the draft because of his lack of speed (4.8 40), but the Jets saw through this and know that he’s a “football fast” player.  Harris is very aggressive and he will team with Jonthan Vilma to give the Jets two assassins on the inside of their defense.  Harris is relentless in pursuit and he packs a wallop in the running game.  In 33 games (25 starts) at Michigan, Harris has made 196 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss, had3 sacks, broke up 4 passes and had 1 interception.  This was an outstanding pick for the Jets who will be very hard to run against next season.

The Jets focused on cornerback as something they wanted to add in the first round so they traded up ahead of the Steelers (who might have wanted Revis) and selected Revis who they think is the best CB in this draft.  Revis is a tough guy that loves to hit.  He is great in run support or in taking on blockers in the open field.  Revis does not have great size at 5′11″, 200 and he isn’t that fast (4.55 40) but he is quick.  Revis also has outstanding ball skills as he returned a interception for a TD in consecutive games last season.  Revis played in 35 games (34 starts) at Pitt and he made 129 tackles, broke up 25 passes, had 8 interceptions (88 return yards) and recovered 2 fumbles.  Revis is also a decent punt returner and he likely will get a chance at doing that for the Jets this season.  Revis is a good player at a position of need for the Jets, so he looks like he was a good pick for them.