Jets tried to trade up for Chris Long

[Nick]

Jets try, but fail to get Chris Long
by Gary Myers
Monday, April 28th 2008, 12:17 PM

Jets' decision to balk at Rams' demands lands Chris Long in St. Louis.

The Giants established a blueprint in the Super Bowl for beating the Patriots: Knock Tom Brady around, put him on the ground.

Now the Jets, with the additions of Calvin Pace in free agency, Kris Jenkins in a trade and Ohio State's Vernon Gholston in the first round, have improved their chances of getting to Brady in the fall after their pass rush produced only 29 sacks in 2007.

But Gholston was not the Jets' first choice to get after Brady. They wanted Virginia DE Chris Long and tried on Saturday to trade up from their No.6 spot in the first round to St. Louis' No.2 spot to get him.

When they couldn't satisfy the Rams' demands for the pick, sources said they were going to deviate from the pass rush plan and take Arkansas running back Darren McFadden over Gholston. But the Raiders blew that up and took McFadden at No.4. The Jets never attempted to trade up for McFadden with the Falcons or Raiders after Long was taken by the Rams.

The Daily News learned Sunday that the top three players on the Jets' board going into the draft were, in order: Long, McFadden and Gholston. The board eliminated Michigan tackle Jake Long, who had already signed with Miami.

Before the Rams took Chris Long at No.2, the Jets called St.Louis. Mike Tannenbaum and Eric Mangini wanted Long, an energetic pass rusher who had 14 sacks last year playing for ex-Jets coach Al Groh. But the Rams' price was so exorbitant, the Jets basically said "see you later." It was a one-and-done phone call. No more talk.

The Ravens also called the Rams, but their target was Boston College QB Matt Ryan. They also did not offer enough. The Rams made the decision to take Long over LSU DT Glenn Dorsey on Friday. Considering it was the second pick in the draft, the Jets probably would have had to give up at least their first-round pick next year to jump four spots.

Once Long was gone to St. Louis, the Jets wanted McFadden, who would have added explosion to their offense. The Falcons took Ryan at No.3, but then the Raiders took McFadden. Despite pre-draft speculation that the Raiders, already with four running backs, would go for defensive line help, they picked McFadden over Dorsey and Gholston.

"I knew months ago that this is a guy we had to have and we have to figure out a way to get him," Raiders coach Lane Kiffin said.

That left the Chiefs at No.5. After trading 2007 sack champion Jared Allen to the Vikings, it was possible they would take Gholston over Dorsey, who plays inside. Herm Edwards did the Jets a favor taking Dorsey, who would not have been a good fit at nose tackle in Mangini's 3-4 defense.

If Dorsey was on the board at No.6, the Jets could have traded down to No.10 with the Saints and added at least an extra third-round pick. New Orleans craved Dorsey and couldn't work a deal with the Rams or Chiefs. At No.10, the Jets could have taken Troy CB Leodis McKelvin, who went at No.11 to Buffalo.

I know previously some had talked about whether it meant anything that teams wanted to trade up for Dorsey but no one wanted to trade up for Long. In the spirit of that discussion, I found this news to be interesting, especially since this would be revealed so soon after selecting Gholston. Wonder how Vernon feels?

[tomahawk247]

i like that the FO decided that it would have to be a monster trade for them to move down, because if no one was going to match their price then they would just stay where they were and take one of the best players in the draft

say what you want about Glenn Dorsey being the best player in the draft, if that were true he wouldnt have fell to KC at 5.

[Mooselini]

Thank God we got the best DE available. Smart move.

[jkramsfan]

good info Nick,glad they hung onto the pick,this guy is the real deal.

[r8rh8rmike]

good info Nick,glad they hung onto the pick,this guy is the real deal.

Very interesting read. I too am glad nothing kept the Rams from taking Long. I'm confident he's going to pay huge dividends for years to come.

[HUbison]

Wonder how Vernon feels?

Good question. Yikes, that can't make the kid feel good.

[Fortuninerhater]

Good question. Yikes, that can't make the kid feel good.

And conversely, it could also give him the motivation he needs to go out and be defensive rookie of the year.

[HUbison]

And conversely, it could also give him the motivation he needs to go out and be defensive rookie of the year.

Hopefully, a professional football player doesn't need a news report to get motivated. That being said, I'm sure the Jets hope you're right.