For the Jets, the NFL draft is about more than filling needs.

It's also about building strengths.

Locked-on Jets starts now.

You are Locked-on Jets, your daily New York Jets podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day.

I'm John B from gangreneation.com, and on today's show, we're going to talk about three strategies the Jets should take in the 2026 NFL draft. We'll discuss why the Jets

need to focus on the draft board that's actually in front of them instead of the draft

board they wish they had. We'll also discuss two key spots where the Jets need to invest

in developmental players. But we'll start by talking about why the Jets need to draft for more than just need.

Now, I think that there's this general assumption, particularly in the national media,

that every draft pick should fill an immediate need.

That's just the way it is.

And on some level, it's easy to understand because the first two nights of the NFL draft are really the last chance a team has to improve itself in the offseason.

Yes, you might hit on a day three pick.

You might get an immediate starter in the fourth through seventh rounds.

But most of the guys drafted in those rounds are not going to pan out.

Now, it's important to hit in those rounds. One of the things that separates the good teams

from the bad teams in this league are finding the few genuine diamonds in the rough in the late

rounds. But even a lot of the guys who eventually become good players aren't going to be

immediate contributors. And yes, there are still a few

free agents who are going to sign into May and June. There are some guys who are rehabbing from

injuries who have to show that they're healthy. There are some guys who are, you know,

nearing the end of their careers who maybe were not priorities in the first wave of free agency,

...