We may be early in the NFL draft process, but it’s becoming pretty clear that Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza is the unquestioned favorite to be the top overall pick and selected by the Las Vegas Raiders.
The New York Jets, picking second, also need a quarterback, and ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. told Steve Serby of the New York Post that he believes Oregon’s Dante Moore should be the pick, though he thinks the team needs a specific plan for him.
“You’re drafting him based on traits and talent. You can’t have him thrown to the wolves. You gotta get that personnel to where it needs to be, and you gotta get some weapons around him, and you gotta allow him some time to grow into that position. … If you feel as a Jet organization, and you’re the GM Darren Mougey, right, and you’re Aaron Glenn, and we need this kid to be our guy this year, he’s gonna have to be ready, we’re not going though another horrible season, and he’s gonna have to be our guy from the get-go. If that’s your expectation, it might be a little too much. … It’s up to the Jets to coach him up and have a plan in place to develop him and groom him to be the franchise quarterback he has the talent to be, and stick to that plan. Somebody’s gotta be there as a bridge to Moore. In Vegas, Mendoza will be the Day 1 starter. That can’t be the case with Dante in my opinion. It’s not about 2026, it’s about ’27 moving forward, then you take him.”
Moore threw for 3,565 yards, 30 touchdowns and 10 interceptions in the 2025 season, leading Oregon back to the College Football Playoff. He struggled against Mendoza and Indiana in the Peach Bowl, however, turning the ball over three times in a 56-22 loss.
Still, he has an excellent chance to be a top-10 pick at this year’s draft if he declares, and Kiper believes the Jets should tab him at No. 2, albeit with a long-term plan in place.
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