2019 NFL Draft: New York Jets 7 round mock draft

Round 5 – Pick 141

Ross Pierschbacher, C , Alabama

Another pick geared towards helping out Sam Darnold up front. The Jets do not have any foundational pieces along their offensive line as of right now. Jonah Wiliams in the first round can fix that. Adding some help in the interior should be a critical piece for the Jets. Look at what adding two quality offensive lineman from the same draft did to the Colts. Quinton Nelson and Braden Smith fixed the unit as a whole. New York should look at that as a path.

In this instance of the mock draft they grab a solid, former National Champion from the SEC. Ross Pierschbacher is a smart player who was at the center of the Crimson Tide’s dominant offense this season. His strength at the point of attack was exposed against some of the better pass rushing defensive tackles in the SEC. He has the ability to get after guys in the run game with an exceptional first strike.

There will be concerns over his pass blocking. It was too often he wound up collapsing the pocket onto his quarterback, a cardinal sin in the NFL. With a solid NFL line coach to work on refining his pass sets, he has starter level size. This is not a flashy pick that some Jets fans might hope for but the best way to grow a young quarterback is to keep him clean. Jenkins will help that while also helping a running game that may have a new BELL-cow before the offseason is over.

Round 6 – No pick

Round 7 – Pick 219

Dontavius Russell, DT, Auburn

The Jets already doubled up along the offensive line in this mock draft with Jonah Williams and Ross Pierschbacher. That plan is in place to help Sam Darnold and the offense succeed. You know what else will help that offense? The defense getting off the field.

Despite grabbing Ximines in round three, the Jets have some needs still remaining up front. Those needs get even more pressing should they part with Leonard Williams. Now they did draft Nathan Shepherd and Foley Fatukasi a year ago, so there will be young pieces in place. Neither of those two offer the disruptive 2-down nose tackle player this team could use. In the seventh round, a player of Dontavius Russell’s quality will only be there because his skill set is not as valued in today’s NFL.

What Russell excels at is eating up space, and plugging gaps. Russell may not be the biggest or strongest but he wins with solid pad level and plays his assignment’s well. His motor runs hot most of the time and he will give a-plus effort whenever he is engaged. This is a solid pick that can add a rotational piece with developmental upside in the last round of the draft.