2026 NFL draft: Should the Jets look into picking QB Carson Beck?
· Yahoo Sports
With the NFL Draft a little over two weeks away, the big debate surrounding the New York Jets is whether they will select their quarterback of the future in 2026 or wait until the 2027 draft where they’ll have three first-round picks and their pick of a much stronger quarterback class.
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Despite the Las Vegas Raiders signing Kurt Cousins to a contract worth up to $20 million for this season and could be worth $172 million over five years, they will most likely select Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza with the number one overall pick.
The Jets acquired Geno Smith to be their starting quarterback for this season and, outside of Mendoza, there isn't a quarterback worthy of the number two overall pick. Some draft analysts have the Jets selecting Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson with their other first-rounder, #16 overall. But, it's unknown how much interest they have in a quarterback who only made 15 starts in his college career.
After Mendoza and Simpson, it really is anyone's guess where the rest of the quarterbacks in this draft will be selected. But, in a recent CBS Sports mock draft done by Ryan Wilson and former Tennessee Titans GM Ran Carthon, a surprising name surfaced for the Jets with one of their two second-round picks….University of Miami Quarterback Carson Beck.
Beck has been rising up draft boards and ESPN's Mel Kiper listed him as his third best quarterback available behind Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson. But, it's tough to gauge what that actually means for a 2026 quarterback class that is not considered strong and with plenty of teams looking towards the 2027, where the quarterbacks available are much better.
Like most of the quarterbacks in this draft, Beck has plenty of potential. He threw for close to 4,000 yards and 30 touchdowns during his only season with the Hurricanes. In his final two seasons at Georgia before transferring to Miami, Beck threw for 52 touchdowns to only 18 interceptions. At 6'4, 220 lbs., Beck definitely has the size that new offensive coordinator Frank Reich loves in his quarterbacks.
But, he also has plenty of flaws. Beck struggles with pressure from opposing defenses that often leads to taking too many bad sacks or making poor decisions with the football. He also doesn't take many deep shots down the field and that doesn't play well for a Jets offense that features two receivers, Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell, who are strong vertical threats.
Even if Beck doesn't play in his rookie season, a team that selects him in the second round is telling the league they are very confident in his ability and will expect him to be ready to take the starting job in 2027. For a quarterback class that many draft experts view as weak, that's a bold statement to make and it could backfire spectacularly.
Should The Jets Consider Taking Carson Beck In The Second Round?
The Verdict: Absolutely Not
While the Jets used free agency to address plenty of areas of need, they could still use reinforcements at Wide Receiver, Linebacker, Safety and Cornerback. With Geno Smith the team's starting quarterback and the potential addition of a veteran to back him up, it would be organizational malpractice for GM Darren Mougey to waste a Top 50 pick on a player that wouldn't see the field at all during his rookie season.
Jobs are on the line and every pick will be scrutinized if they don’t pan out. A second-round selection is considered by many to be a starting player or at least a major contributor on offense or defense in their first season. For a team that finished 3-14 and need a fast start to save their head coach's job, a second-round pick should never be used on a player that can’t contribute to the team in their rookie season.
The Jets made this mistake in a previous draft and it was a massive bust. With their second-round pick in the 2016 draft, they selected Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg. He had the size (6’4”, 228 lbs.) and had the tools, but his stats were mediocre at best and his accuracy was a major issue. Hackenberg averaged close to 3,000 yards per season at Penn State, but completed less than 60% of his passes and threw 31 interceptions in three years with the Nittany Lions. Most analysts projected Hackenberg to be a Day 3 selection and some didn't expect him to get drafted at all. But, the Jets panicked and selected Hackenberg 51st overall fearing another team would select him.
Hackenberg played mostly in the preseason and was exactly as advertised. He was so bad, he never played a regular season snap in two seasons with the Jets and was traded to the Oakland Raiders before the 2018 season. He was cut by Oakland and couldn't stick on the practice squads of both the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinnati Bengals. After failing to catch on with another NFL roster, he was selected by the Memphis Express in the second round of the Alliance of American Football's inaugural quarterback draft in 2019. He did not throw a touchdown in his only season with the AAF.
I'm not suggesting the Jets shouldn’t consider taking Beck at all. The Jets could be looking for a developmental quarterback with one of their Day three picks and if Beck is available, there is no harm in selecting him with their fifth-round pick. It's unlikely he will fall to one of their two seventh-round picks, but if he does, even better.
But, for a franchise that's the subject of endless ridicule by every sports network and their own fan base, selecting a project quarterback with a Top 50 selection would be just another link in the chain of embarrassing picks by this organization.
It’s an interesting development that Beck is rising up draft boards. But, the Jets should focus on improving the other areas of need on the roster and let another team assume that risk.
This article originally appeared on Jets Wire: 2026 NFL draft: Should the Jets look into picking QB Carson Beck?