With the 30th Pick in the 2011 Dawgs By Nature Mock Draft, the New York Jets Select...

With the 30th pick in the 2011 Dawgs By Nature Community Mock Draft, the New York Jets select...

Phil Taylor, NT, Baylor

This selection and write-up was made by Roger Dorn:

The Jets are in the enviable position of being able to select the Best Player Available thanks to a long-term roster building plan that was implemented with great foresight due to the efforts of former head coach, Eric Mangini. The Kris Jenkins trade appeared to be a steal on paper, but the Panthers knew what they were doing given the extensive injury history. Jenkins has flashed brilliance in his limited time on the field, but has also lived up to his injury prone billing having only appeared in 7 games over the past two years.

The Jets will continue to run a 3-4 defense under Rob Ryan’s twin brother. As AFC North fans are aware, a solid nose tackle can go a long way to shutting down the run and anchoring the defense. While Rex has the girth to plug in this hole on the Jet’s D, to date there has not been a player/coach in NFL history. The Jets will instead look to the draft to fulfill this need on defense. Jets fans will undoubtedly embarrass themselves again and boo this pick, but Taylor falling to pick 30 would be a real coup for the Jets. Taylor has lost weight since the college football season and weighed in at 330 pounds at the Combine while also stunning scouts with a 5.18 40 yard dash time. Taylor’s character concerns are obviously going to be ignored by the Jets front office, and his solid season for Baylor make him the top nose prospect available in this draft.

Phil Taylor would likely start on day 1 and continue to improve throughout the season. While not likely to generate much pass rush in the NFL, he would ideally turn into a run stuffing nose tackle in the mold of Casey Hampton or Pat Williams in a best case scenario. Worst case, you have an overweight defensive lineman that can still play rushing downs and also eat at the same table as coach.

I don't think I'll ever be sold on Mark Sanchez, but there is no way the Jets will take a quarterback. Getting someone to fill in the void that Kris Jenkins has left is the best decision they can make at this pick. It works toward improving the defensive line, something New England already did before the lockout by signing Marcus Stroud, and will allow the Jets to continue preventing opposing teams from being able to sustain drives on the ground.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are on the clock next (email will be sent to SpecialBrownie).