Getty Kansas City Chiefs offensive lineman Trey Smith staring at the defense before lining up during an NFL game.
Everyone loves playing Monday morning quarterback.
We get to talk at the local watering hole about what we would’ve done if we were in that scenario. The New York Jets have been involved in too many of those to count and that was highlighted once again this week.
Gang Green fans should cover their eyes because this shoulda, woulda, coulda scenario will likely haunt your nightmares for the rest of your life.
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A Very Sad State of Affairs
Most Jets fans are feeling pretty good coming off of the 2021 NFL draft. They walked away with six starters and a lot of those players have the arrow pointing in the right direction heading into 2022.
However, ESPN’s group of NFL Nation reporters all participated in a re-draft for the 2021 class possessing all the knowledge we have now that those teams didn’t have back then.
We covered the main highlights already, but there was one pick that stood out from the rest. It appeared glaring in the moment and like the Benjamin Button of wines it has only gotten worse with age.
In this re-draft scenario, Rich Cimini of ESPN selected former Tennessee offensive lineman Trey Smith with the No. 34 overall pick in the second round.
In the actual 2021 NFL draft, Smith didn’t hear his name called until the sixth round as the No. 226 overall pick by the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs got Trey Smith in the 6th round….. SIXTH ROUND!!!!
Despite his resume, intriguing size (6-foot-6, 335 pounds), and potential he curiously slipped on draft day. Jets fans throughout the course of the draft were begging general manager Joe Douglas to pull the trigger.
Gang Green had obvious roster needs on the offensive line and a bevy of picks. Yet despite their pleas, it fell on deaf ears. Douglas passed on Smith 10 times with every pick he had available.
What did Smith end up doing for the Chiefs in 2021? He played every single snap and started the entire 17 game regular season. After Smith’s spectacular campaign he was voted to the PFWA All-Rookie team.
To add insult to injury, the Chiefs also swiped the Jets’ top target in free agency, former New England Patriots star offensive lineman Joe Thuney. Oh, what could’ve been.
Still a Gaping Hole at Right Guard
Unfortunately, time travel hasn’t been invented yet so the Jets are stuck with the decisions they made this past April.
That means they still have a gaping hole at right guard with no immediate solutions staring back at them on the roster.
Fortunately, the left guard spot appears to be locked down with the selection of Alijah Vera-Tucker out of USC in the first round in last year’s draft.
In the draft process it is incredibly important to do your homework on film, their character, and of course the medical. One of the reasons Smith slipped so far was from concerns with his medical, but he showed with the Chiefs that was a silly notion.
Now they have a starting offensive lineman for the next decade. That is sometimes how the cookie crumbles.
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