The New York Jets took a big risk in last year's draft when they used their second-round pick on Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg.
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The Jets made the biggest reach for a quarterback in last year's draft, and now he's reportedly 'not even close' to being their answer at the position
The Jets shocked the NFL world last year when the reached for QB Christian Hackenberg in the second round. A year later, the scouting reports are still bad.
Christian Hackenberg
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Leading up to the draft, Hackenberg was perhaps the most polarizing player around. Some scouts, albeit few, pegged Hackenberg as an early-round pick. But the consensus seemed to be that he should be selected in a much later round, if at all.
Pro Football Focus, for example, went so far as to say that Hackenberg shouldn't be drafted — full stop. His accuracy, decision making, and general "lack of upside" led PFF to leave him off their QB Big Board entirely. (When he was drafted, PFF called the pick the second-worst of the entire draft.)
Last season was a virtual red-shirt season for Hackenberg. He saw no action over the course of the team's poor regular season, even as Ryan Fitzpatrick was benched, Geno Smith tore his ACL, and Bryce Petty underwhelmed.
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Fast forward a season and the decision to use a second-round pick on Hackenberg only looks worse.
According to a report on Tuesday from NY Daily News beat writer Manish Mehta, Hackenberg is still believed to be nowhere close to competing in the NFL.
From Mehta:
In all, the Jets' quarterback situation is as depressing as ever.
Fitzpatrick is gone, Smith is unlikely to return, Petty's fate within the franchise appears to be perpetual backup, and Hackenberg is at this point doing little more than taking up space on the roster.
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One might reasonably wonder, then, if the Jets should just give Petty and/or Hackenberg some experience this season anyway, even if they aren't ultimately cut out to be the team's longterm option. They would at least get some reps, and if the Jets lose a lot of games they'll position themselves nicely at the draft as next year's draft class is believed to be much deeper at the QB position than this year's.
The problem, as Mehta noted, is that the Jets are unwilling to fully commit to a rebuilding year.
From the Daily News:
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