Although the 2027 draft is still a year away, pundits have circled the Jets’ three first-round picks next April and the possibility of adding an elite QB. But Smith has a great opportunity and will be surrounded by the likes of WR Garrett Wilson, TE Mason Taylor and RB Breece Hall plus two impressive first-round picks in TE Kenyon Sadiq (Rd 1, No. 16) and WR Omar Cooper Jr. (Rd 1, No. 30). While QB1 is not a question, Glenn is not putting a ceiling on any of his passers.
“In this league, you got to have a system where there are backups and there are guys that are pushing the starter,” Glenn said. “You always want to create that type of competition. Listen, I’m not going to sit here and say exactly where Cade’s going to play. The thing is those guys are going to go out there and compete. Right now, I like that room. I like where it’s at. The guys are going to continue to compete, and I don’t want to cap any of those guys as far as playtime and how long they are going to play and things like that. They’re going to go out there and as long as they’re competing and giving us the best chance to win – they’ll be here for us.”
It wasn’t a surprise the Jets drafted a quarterback on Day 3. After Fernando Mendoza (LV, No. 1 overall), Ty Simpson (LAR, No. 14 overall), Carson Beck AZ (Rd 3, No. 65 overall) and Drew Allar (Rd 3, No. 76 overall) were selected, the Jets didn’t want to risk the chance of losing Klubnik. So, Mougey moved up 18 spots in Round 4 in a picks swap with Cincinnati and got his guy.
“I felt really good about Cade,” Mougey said. “It started, obviously, last year, evaluating all those quarterbacks. We had good grades on Cade going into this year. And then, you’re watching this year, he got hurt early and was playing hurt much of the year, and that team kind of struggled, but was excited to get around him at the combine. (He) had a great Combine interview, which kind of sparked us to want to get down to Clemson and work him out and spend some more time with him. We went down there and, again, it was a great exposure, being there on campus with him, in the room, talking ball. It felt very natural, felt like there was a connection there, getting on the field, doing the workout, showed well.”
And while the Jets like Klubnik and they could add another veteran passer to the room, Smith will be the unquestioned starter for an offense that has a lot of talented pieces.
At the NFL Annual Meeting last month, Glenn said: “He can go out there and throw 4,000 yards and have 30 touchdowns and no interceptions, and you think we’re just going to let him go? So, I think that just goes by year, and listen, I do know this – he’s excited about being here and he’s going to be our quarterback.”