The Raiders decided to trade back into the first round of the draft to improve the tight end position.  Dustin Keller is a big target at 6′2″, 248 pounds and he has the speed (4.55 40) to get down the field.  Keller played in 46 games (26 starts) at Purdue and he caught 142 passes for 1,882 yards (13.3 avg) with 16 TD grabs.  Keller will likely bump Chris Baker out of the starting lineup as the Jets want a bigger threat for either Chad Pennington or Kellen Clemens to throw to.

The Jets coveted running back Darren McFadden but the hopes to draft him ended with the 4th pick of the draft when the Raiders selected him.  The Jets then recovered to take the defensive player who might have the largest upside in the draft.  Vernon Gholston is 6′4″, 265 pounds and he run a freakish 4.5 40.  The Jets will initially probably use him at DE but they might convert him to outside linebacker at some point.  Gholston played in 28 games (25 starts) in his career at Ohio State and he made 87 tackles, 30.5 tackles for a loss, had 22.5 sacks, batted down 2 passes and he recovered a fumble.  Gholston is just scratching the surface of his potential and he was a solid pick for the Jets.

The Jets kept making trades to move up in the draft last season and when it was over they only added 4 players, but two of them could be future Pro Bowlers.  CB Darrelle Revis was the first round pick of the Jets.  He played in 16 games (all starts) for the Jets last season and he made 87 tackles, forced a fumble, defensed 17 passes and intercepted three passes.  Inside linebacker David Harris was the 2nd round pick of the Jets and he was one of the best backers in the NFL when the Jets inserted him into the starting lineup.  Harris played in 16 games (9 starts) for the Jets last season and he made 126 tackles, had 5 sacks, forced 2 fumbles and defensed 3 passes.  Last year was just the tip of the iceberg for the Jets as Harris will be one of the best linebackers in the NFL for a long, long time.  OT Jacob Bender was the 6th round pick of the Jets and he played in 2 games (0 starts).  He has the look of a career backup for the Jets.  WR Chansi Stuckey spent all of his rookie season on the Injured Reserve List.

GRADE FOR THE 2007 SEASON:  A

GRADE FOR THE FUTURE:  A

The Jets have traded linebacker Jonathan Vilma to the Saints for a conditional 4th round pick that can improve based on his play.  Vilma didn’t really fit in with Eric Mangini’s defensive system so they decided to ditch him.  He played in 7 games for the Jets last season and he made 43 tackles, defensed 4 passes and intercepted 1 pass.  Vilma has played in 55 games in his NFL career and he has made 441 tackles, defensed 19 passes, has 2.5 sacks, forced 5 fumbles and intercepted 6 passes including one that he returned for a TD.  The Jets probably won’t miss Vilma too much but he should play pretty well for the Saints.

The Jets have placed Chansi Stuckey on the Injured Reserve List due to a foot injury ending his rookie year.  Stuckey was the leading receiver in receptions with 11 in the pre-season for the Jets.  They really like him but they will have to wait a year to get him back on the field.