Did the New York Jets have a successful 2025 NFL draft?
Depending on who you ask, first-year general manager Darren Mougey either addressed key roster needs with quality selections or struggled mightily in his first draft. There hasn’t been much middle ground.
According to The Athletic’s Dane Brugler, the Jets didn’t completely “win” the draft among NFL organizations, but still came out above average. Brugler ranked New York’s 2025 draft class 13th overall among the league’s 32 teams.
Brugler listed No. 7 overall pick Armand Membou as his “favorite pick” for the Jets, while highlighting Alabama safety Malachi Moore as a Day 3 selection who could be a “surprise”.
“The Jets did an outstanding job in the first three rounds addressing needs with starter-level talent — I loved the Mason Taylor and Azareye’h Thomas picks. But I have to go with Membou here [as my favorite pick],” wrote Brugler. “The 21-year-old right tackle immediately became one of my favorite players in the class once I studied him in the fall. He plays with outstanding body control and patience, plus the finishing attitude that fits what Aaron Glenn is looking to build.
“The Jets brought in Andre Cisco, but Tony Adams is in a contract year and Moore will have a chance to see defensive snaps as a rookie,” Brugler wrote of Moore. “The former Alabama safety won’t stand out based on size or speed alone, but he is solid against both the pass and run. He was a two-time captain and core special-teamer in college.”
Armand Membou
Mougey allocated the seventh overall pick towards Membou, solidifying all five starting positions across the team’s offensive line.
Membou anchored Missouri’s offensive line in 2024 with dependable pass protection, giving up zero sacks or quarterback hits across 411 pass-blocking snaps. He yielded only eight total pressures all season and earned an impressive 87.6 run-blocking grade from Pro Football Focus, further showcasing his all-around effectiveness in the trenches.
The Missouri product followed his stellar 2024 campaign with highly impressive measurables at the NFL Scouting Combine. He posted a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.89, placing him among the most athletic offensive linemen ever recorded.
Membou joins Olu Fashanu as the second offensive lineman New York has drafted in the first round over the past two years, while becoming the highest selected offensive lineman by the Jets since D’Brickashaw Ferguson in 2006.
Malachi Moore
To secure Moore, Mougey orchestrated a draft-day trade, a sixth-round pick this year (No. 207 overall) to trade up 15 spots with the Philadelphia Eagles.
A former four-star prospect out of Hewitt-Trussville High School in Alabama, Moore committed to the Crimson Tide and spent his entire collegiate career in Tuscaloosa.
Over five seasons, Moore appeared in 64 games for Alabama, recording 214 total tackles, including 16 for loss, seven interceptions, 25 passes defended, and three forced fumbles.
At 23, Moore delivered a standout 2024 campaign, earning a stout 89.4 coverage grade from Pro Football Focus and showing reliability as a run-defender with a 75.5 grade against the run.
The Alabama product could help provide depth for the Jets at the safety position as a fourth-round developmental option behind Tony Adams and Andre Cisco.
