Last year, New York Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan declared his team "open for business" in the NFL draft, as it was his desire to trade down and acquire extra picks.
"Every draft I've been in, I've always wanted to acquire more picks," Maccagnan said at the time, per the Associated Press. "I think the one thing for ourselves would be, we would like to move back and acquire more picks in this draft if possible. ... We're open for business in every round. If somebody wants to move up in any particular round, call us up."
When the actual draft rolled around, Maccagnan traded down five times, turning four picks into seven and generating the equivalent of a free fourth or fifth-round pick in terms of draft value.
In advance of this year's draft, Maccagnan was asked an entirely different question: given the team's situation, would he be willing to trade up for a quarterback?
"The simple answer to that question is yes," Maccagnan said, per ESPN.com. "If that was a player we felt strong about, we would have no qualms of potentially trying to go up and get him."
The Jets have been starting Ryan Fitzpatrick and Josh McCown over the last few seasons, and have not spent a first-round pick on a QB since taking Mark Sanchez No. 5 overall back in 2009. They've drafted five quarterbacks since then, all in the second round or later. Most recently, they snagged Bryce Petty in the fourth round in 2015 and Christian Hackenberg in the second in 2016. Neither has established himself as a viable option, though, so the Jets are still in the market for a so-called quarterback of the future.
Several quarterbacks are considered among the top prospects in this year's draft, and it's possible one could still be available when the Jets are on the clock at No. 6, but with the Browns and Giants picking in the top-two and the Broncos set to pick right ahead of the Jets at No. 5, New York may have to move up in order to get the passer of its choice.
