New York Jets: 5 offseason needs in 2020

4. Cornerback

Defensive coordinator Gregg Williams did a masterful job with the Jets’ defensive unit, which was left with a ton of holes by Mike Maccagnan. One of the most obvious ones was at cornerback, which Maccagnan strangely ignored despite having a boatload of cash last spring.

The Jets only re-signed Darryl Roberts to pair with Trumaine Johnson, who had been awful in his first year of a big-money deal, while adding nickel back Brian Poole to replace the departed Buster Skrine. The starters were an absolute disaster, with Johnson and Roberts both losing their jobs and missing time with injury.

Poole was a steady presence at the nickel for the Jets, who began rotating the likes of Arthur Maulet, Nate Hairston, and sixth-round pick Bless Austin at the outside corner spots. The pass defense actually improved with those players starting ahead of Roberts and Johnson, which should explain a lot when the pair is cut in the coming weeks.

While guys like Austin showed promise, the Jets can’t afford to duplicate Maccagnan’s mistake by simply handing them a starting gig without any competition. Douglas will likely bring in at least one veteran corner in free agency and draft another, fortifying the unit’s depth and increasing the competition level in the secondary.

The Jets can’t always produce a stellar pass rush, making it more important for them to get strong play from their secondary. Safety is set with Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye, but the Jets need to get better players to put outside them at the cornerback spots.