New York Jets fans are infamous for their draft-day reactions to whoever the team selects.
When the annual event used to be held exclusively at Radio City Music Hall, a ritual part of the festivities normally featured the thunderous boos from Jets fans as they showed their displeasure for a draft selection.
Now that the draft is a venturing circus, the fans have continued that rich tradition by following the draft on the road.
If Gang Green ends up making this selection, we may hear the loudest and longest boos in franchise history.
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Gang Green Dreamy Target Revealed
Alex Kay of Bleacher Report identified every NFL team’s dream target ahead of the 2022 NFL draft.
For the Jets, he revealed Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum as their top fantasy.
Kay labeled the big man as one of the “safest and surest” selections in this year’s draft. While the center position isn’t considered “sexy” he said that Linderbaum is “too good to risk missing out on.”
According to the latest PFF NFL draft big board, Linderbaum is ranked as the No. 12 overall prospect and the consensus top center in the class.
NFL analyst Lance Zierlein said he has “Pro Bowl potential” and his pro player comp for him was four-time All-Pro Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles.
Here are some more highlights from his NFL dot com scouting report:
- Can’t miss prospect if matched in the right scheme
- Loves to compete
- Wrestling background
That Would Be a Bold and Historic Pick
Not only did the guy from Bleacher Report advocate for the Jets to use a first-round pick on Linderbaum, but they specifically requested the team use the No. 4 overall pick on him.
“While the Jets do need plenty of help elsewhere—the secondary should get addressed with the No. 10 pick—they stand to gain a long-term offensive anchor by selecting Linderbaum at No. 4.”
If that actually happened the former Iowa product would become the highest-drafted center in the modern NFL draft era (since 1970).
The highest a center has gone in the last 52 years is with the No. 12 overall pick: Pete Brock was selected by the New England Patriots out of Colorado in 1976.
While he may be a safe pick and someone that is a really good player for a decade, a big part of the draft isn’t who you select, but when you select them.
It is an art and a science to identify the right player and to simultaneously figure out the right place to take that said player.
Linderbaum has been an incredibly polarizing player to discuss on Jets social media and fans have shared their takes:
Want to thank @BoyGreen25 for joining us on our live show last night!
Great dude, easy to talk to and pretty doggone funny.
Check out his profile/channel #Jets fans!
That seems a bit extreme, but I like the conviction.
And if you want even more takes just go to the little search section on Twitter and type in Linderbaum and Jets, you’ll get all the answers you want and some.
To be frank, the Jets have been spoiled at the center position for the last 25 years with Kevin Mawae (Pro Football Hall of Famer) and Nick Mangold (seven-time Pro Bowler). Linderbaum could be another great player to carry that torch, but the No. 4 overall pick is way too rich for the position.
The Jets just have too many other needs for this to make sense, but we’ll see how things play out.
Follow @BoyGreen25 & @obermuller_nyj on Twitter for all the latest New York Jets breaking news, rumors, fresh takes, and more!
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Polarizing Prospect Listed as Jets ‘Dream Draft Target’; Fans Are Angry