Throughout his tenure with the New York Jets, Joe Douglas has had an unfortunate history of getting drafting offensive players who showed little to development. His one claim to fame came back in 2022 when he drafted Sauce Gardner, Garrett Wilson, Jermaine Johnson, and Breece Hall. This could have been one of the best draft classes in Jets history, but outside of 2022, Douglas and the NY Jets haven’t gotten many picks right.

Fast forward to 2023 when there were quite a few headscratchers picked who unfortunately didn’t pan out in New York. This includes the likes of running back Israel Abanikanda, and someone who was supposed to be an athletic freak in tight end Zack Kuntz. It was even a bit of a question mark drafting Will McDonald IV 15th overall with needs along the O-line. Thankfully, McDonald is beginning to show some signs of excellence, but he could have been picked much later in the draft.

Despite how much of a disappointing season 2024 turned out to be for the New York Jets, some bright spots came out of it. The New York Jets finally got a pair of offensive picks right and these two players have a very high ceiling of potential. It remains to be seen where they go from here, but these could have been the two best picks since the 2022 NFL Draft class.

The NY Jets finally got these two draft picks right

Breece Hall has once again taken over the running game for the NY Jets. With one game remaining, Hall sits at 819 rushing yards on 197 rushing attempts. He also has five rushing touchdowns and broke free for a 42-yard rush which was his longest of the season. Hall has also shown himself to be a receiving threat out of the backfield, picking up 54 receptions for 468 yards, and a pair of receiving touchdowns in the process. But two other names have emerged in the team’s running game in rookies Braelon Allen and Isaiah Davis.

Both Allen and Davis were picked in the 2024 NFL Draft, and with the exception of Olu Fashanu, these could have been the two top players to come out of that draft for Gang Green. The Jets picked Allen at pick 134 in Round 4 of the 2024 NFL Draft, and Davis in Round 5 at pick 173. In hindsight, both appear to be steals as they have certainly been playing better than Round 4 & Round 5 picks.

Allen and Davis have each seen the field a good portion in the 2024 NFL season. Allen currently sits at 319 rushing yards, on 88 rushing attempts with two touchdowns. Similar to Hall, Allen is a solid receiving back, picking up 140 yards on 17 receptions, tallying one touchdown in the process. As for Davis, despite seeing the field far less than Allen, he sits at 133 yards on 26 carries. Similar to both his counterparts, he has caught nine passes for 75 yards and one touchdown.

Watching Allen run this year has been a lot of fun. His mentality as a running back, including his agility and ability to read a defense has led to a lot of exciting plays for him and the Jets offense. When he realizes he doesn’t have a lane he puts his head down and always somehow gains an extra 3-4 yards. Allen is certainly no small player either at 235 pounds with a ton of raw strength. Having a power back like Allen fits into the Jets offense very nicely.

As for Davis, he’s another power runner. It can be argued he could even surpass Allen when it comes to route running. Davis is a fantastic third-down back. It says something that even though Davis sits in the third-string, the Jets chose to get rid of Israel Abanikanda in order to keep Davis and continue to give him some opportunities. The potential is there, and a trio of Hall, Allen, and Davis may prove to be unstoppable.

Obviously 2024 hasn’t gone according to plan for the Jets and 2025 is a huge mystery right now. The Jets need to find a new GM and head coach, Aaron Rodgers may be out as QB, Davante Adams could be gone with him, similar to Allen Lazard, D.J. Reed and probably more. However, one thing we know for sure is Allen and Davis have all the potential in the world and will likely be big parts of the Jets offense in years to come.

Scott Mitchell

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