2026 NFL Draft: The Athletic analytics grade Jets picks league's best

The Athletic did an analytical breakdown on the 2026 NFL Draft for all 32 teams which provided good news for the New York Jets.

The outlet handed out letter grades for each team based on their research and variables. In the end, the Jets were only one of two teams (Cleveland Browns) to earn an A-plus grade.

The Jets earned praise again for their top selections in Round 1, even edge defender David Bailey at No. 2 despite The Athletic considering him the second-best player in his position prior to the draft (Arvell Reese).

The Athletic's breakdown on the Jets can be found below:

The Jets kicked off the draft-night drama when they selected Texas Tech edge rusher David Bailey with the No. 2 pick. Even though Bailey was the second-highest edge on the consensus board (behind Arvell Reese), that pick still stands out as a big winner because of Bailey's potential impact.

Arguably, the best Jets moves happened months ago when they traded Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams to the Colts and Cowboys, respectively — they'll reap the benefits of those trades next year, too. Those swaps added a ton of value for the Jets on the trade part of this equation and ultimately gave them three first-round selections.

With the rest of their picks, the Jets picked mostly around the consensus, although they did select premium positions with five of their first six picks; the only pick on a non-premium position was of top tight end Kenyon Sadiq.

This article originally appeared on Jets Wire: 2026 NFL Draft: The Athletic analytics grade Jets picks league's best