Jets' draft room video shows the Falcons trying to trade back into the top 10

The Atlanta Falcons had a doozy of a 2024 NFL Draft. It was panned by pretty much everyone who covers the sport, including yours truly who for some reason decides to still root for his hometown team. I tried to re-draft what Terry Fontenot did on the fly, but even I didn't like the results. What would have been even zanier is if the Falcons were somehow picking again at No. 10 ...

Yes, that was kind of sort of almost in play last Thursday night. In the latter part of the top 10 selections, the New York Jets caught wind that Atlanta was not only going to take a quarterback at No. 8 but were looking to trade back up to draft a defender near the top 10. Jets general manager Joe Douglas listened to what Fontenot had to say and then proceeded to move on with his life.

New York then traded back a spot from No. 10 to No. 11 in a deal with the Minnesota Vikings. The Jets ended up with offensive tackle Olu Fashanu out of Penn State, while the Vikings move up a spot to get Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy. For those who lost track, Atlanta took Washington quarterback Michael Penix Jr. No. 8 and wanted to add edge rusher Laiatu Latu out of UCLA at No. 10.

Here is a clip of what all went down in the Jets' war room when the Falcons proposed a trade offer.

The Falcons would move up from No. 43 to take Clemson defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro at No. 35.

New York Jets draft footage shows Atlanta Falcons trying to trade up

My FanSided.com colleague Scott Rogust did a great job of trying to make sense of the nonsense the Dirty Birds were trying to do in draft night. He is a New York Giants fan, so he knows all about dysfunction and what that looks like inside of an NFL front office. Even the NFL Network's Steve Wyche, who still has strong ties to Atlanta from his days at the AJC, struggled to make sense of this.

It became apparent that throughout the draft process that Atlanta really had an affinity for Latu, despite his medicals being less than stellar. He was the first defensive player taken in the draft after falling to the Indianapolis Colts at No. 15 overall. My preferred selection of Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner fell to the Vikings at No. 17, who moved up from No. 23 in a trade with Jacksonville.

Overall, you have to appreciate Douglas' poise in taking what was probably the smart pick for the Jets in Fashanu. Getting more draft capital in the deal with Minnesota makes it an even better move. Unfortunately, he will still be defined by taking Zach Wilson No. 2 overall out of BYU in 2021. Similarly, Fontenot will be defined by taking Penix at No. 8 this year, even if teams in the teens wanted him, too.

Ultimately, we should respect teams like the Jets giving us fans behind the scenes footage of what really goes on in a war room on draft day. Guys like Douglas have prepared their whole lives for this. In a situation where stress could be at an all-time high, these front office executives are often cooler than a cucumber. If only everyone was wearing a satin kimono like Red did during Pineapple Express.

Atlanta liked two very popular draft prospects, but only got one of them and got burned because of it.