There could be a magical reunion with the New York Jets.
NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah released his mock draft 1.0 on Monday, January 26. He predicted that the Jets would select Ohio State wide receiver Carnell Tate with the No. 16 overall pick in the first round.
“This would be a value pick, but we see talented receivers go in this area of the draft year after year (Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Emeka Egbuka, Justin Jefferson). The Jets pair former Ohio State star Garrett Wilson with a fellow Buckeye,” Jeremiah explained.
Ohio State has consistently been WRU. A factory that cranks out super-talented and productive receivers at the next level. The Jets know that better than anyone with Wilson’s success at the NFL level.
Wilson has had at least 80 receptions and 1,000 yards in three of his first four seasons in the NFL. What Wilson needs is a running mate to draw attention away from him, and Tate is more than capable of doing that.
Tate Appears to Be Next in Line to Take Over at the NFL Level
Tate just turned 21 years of age in January. This young man has a very bright future ahead of him.
Across his three seasons at Ohio State, he has exponentially gotten better. Tate has appeared in 39 games. With those opportunities, Tate has recorded 121 receptions for 1,872 receiving yards and has scored 14 touchdowns.
This Would Be One of the Steals of the 2026 NFL Draft
Jeremiah explained that this selection “would be a value pick” for the Jets. He wasn’t kidding.
According to the 2026 NFL draft consensus big board, Tate is the fourth-best player in this class. He is most commonly mocked to the New York Giants with the No. 5 overall pick. For him to slide all the way to pick No. 16 overall would be a pleasant surprise for the Jets.
“The 2026 Consensus Big Board aggregates data from multiple sources for a balanced prospect ranking. It uses rankings from 86 big boards, evaluating talent across positions. It also incorporates 505 first-round mock drafts, showing team priorities for top prospects. Additionally, 522 team-specific mock drafts provide context on franchise-specific selections. This approach delivers a reliable, well-rounded projection for the 2026 NFL Draft,” the website explains.
Jets Get Best of Both Worlds
The green and white need receiver help. However, after speaking with multiple NFL draft analysts on “Boy Green Daily”, it doesn’t appear a pass catcher is worthy of going No. 2 overall in the class.
Jeremiah predicted that the Jets would go back to the Ohio State well with the No. 2 overall pick in the first round of his mock draft.
He predicted that they would select Ohio State defender Arvell Reese.
“The Jets have needs all over their defense. Reese is versatile and athletic. I think he’ll benefit from working off the edge full-time after also seeing time at off-ball linebacker during his Buckeyes career,” Jeremiah explained.
In this scenario, the Jets get a blue chip player on the defensive side of the ball and a star pass catcher for whoever the heck is playing QB in 2026.
This would be a dream scenario for the Jets if it played out this way on draft day.
Jets Predicted to Reunite Garrett Wilson With Ex-Ohio State Brethren