{"id":142184,"date":"2026-02-23T01:00:16","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T01:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/142184\/"},"modified":"2026-02-23T01:00:16","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T01:00:16","slug":"how-new-york-jets-draft-outlook-improves-via-qb-combine-decisions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/142184\/","title":{"rendered":"How New York Jets’ draft outlook improves via QB combine decisions"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you asked most New York Jets fans, a majority would prefer that the organization avoid drafting a quarterback in 2026. The reasoning is simple: There aren\u2019t enough quality arms<\/a> to go around. <\/p>\n

The 2027 NFL draft class is projected to be much better (at the very least), especially if the likes of Arch Manning, Dante Moore, LaNorris Sellers, and many others declare.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, by no means is it a given that the Jets pass on an arm in 2026.<\/p>\n

Outside of Heisman Trophy-winning signal-caller Fernando Mendoza \u2014 projected to be selected No. 1 overall by the Las Vegas Raiders \u2014 Alabama\u2019s Ty Simpson, LSU\u2019s Garrett Nussmeier, and Penn State\u2019s Drew Allar are available.<\/p>\n

With the NFL Scouting Combine just days away, New York can get a private look at the 2026 quarterback class. Fortunately for Darren Mougey and company, the two top guys have already made decisions about their workout ability next week.<\/p>\n

QB combine decisions<\/p>\n

It is not uncommon for presumptive top players to \u201cskip\u201d out on workouts in Indianapolis, especially quarterbacks. There\u2019s a good reason for these sometimes frustrating decisions. <\/p>\n

During workouts, signal-callers are throwing to different receivers for the first time. A \u201cbad throw\u201d could simply be a timing issue more than anything else.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the argument Mendoza made with his latest decision not to throw in Indianapolis this week. On the Pat McAfee Show<\/a> earlier in the month, the Indiana National Champion defended that very point.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the combine, you\u2019re throwing to different receivers; it\u2019s a whole different thing,\u201d Mendoza said while on the show. \u201cAnd I want to make sure I give my guys the best chance. I want to throw at pro day with my guys, with my running backs, and be there with the boys.\u201d<\/p>\n

Simpson, though, has a different mindset entirely. <\/p>\n

The Alabama product, widely considered the second-best quarterback in the class by most draft analysts, will throw at the Scouting Combine this week, per NFL Network\u2019s Tom Pelissero<\/a>. His decision makes just as much sense as Mendoza\u2019s.<\/p>\n

With Mendoza, most analysts expect him to be the top overall pick in April\u2019s draft \u2014 whether it\u2019s by the Las Vegas Raiders or another team. Simpson, meanwhile, has a first-round grade from some analysts, but which city he\u2019ll call his professional home remains very much in doubt.<\/p>\n

Simpson can help the Jets<\/p>\n

Some pundits have him as a top-15 pick, whereas others have him as a late first-round pick.<\/p>\n

A strong showing in Indianapolis, though, would not only make Simpson a lock for a high first-round grade but also could even get him into top-10 overall pick conversations. <\/p>\n

That would be great news for the Jets<\/a>. <\/p>\n

With two picks in the first 16 overall selections, the better the chance there are two quality quarterbacks in this draft, the more flexible they can be with their draft decisions. New York can choose to be more aggressive in a trade-up or stand pat and take the second-best quarterback in the class.<\/p>\n

A strong Simpson showing would be very helpful. <\/p>\n

The top two quarterbacks in the upcoming draft have made completely different decisions when it comes to the combine. Each had very fair reasons to do so. <\/p>\n

For the New York Jets, the decisions made won\u2019t necessarily affect their draft strategy, but they could definitely help their flexibility if the players performing show out in consequential ways.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"If you asked most New York Jets fans, a majority would prefer that the organization avoid drafting a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":142185,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[34004,7013,2679,9,11,430,10,22,12258,57245,38486,7018,42271],"class_list":{"0":"post-142184","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-fernando-mendoza","9":"tag-free-content","10":"tag-las-vegas-raiders","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-headlines","13":"tag-new-york-jets","14":"tag-new-york-news","15":"tag-nfl","16":"tag-nfl-draft","17":"tag-nfl-scouting-combine","18":"tag-ny-jets-column","19":"tag-standard","20":"tag-ty-simpson"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142184","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=142184"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/142184\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142185"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=142184"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=142184"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=142184"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}