When former Giants GM George Young developed the NFL’s “planet theory”, in regards to targeting NFL talent, it was embraced by Giants head coach Bill Parcells who clearly influenced the thinking of current Jets head coach Aaron Glenn.
The theory is simple, but important. Young essentially said that there are only so many men on the planet who possess great size, such as a 300 pound defensive lineman, who can move with the speed and agility normally reserved for a much smaller player. Young believed that when possible, you should acquire as many of those players as possible.
If you take a look at how the Jets have approached this offseason, it’s clear that Young’s theory has made its way to the Jets through Parcells to Aaron Glenn. One example of that is the selection of Florida State defensive tackle Darrell Jackson in the fourth round (103rd overall) of this year’s draft.
A behemoth who clocked in at 6′ 5” 337 pounds for FSU, Jackson is a huge space eater up front. Even more eye-opening is his incredible wingspan which comes in of 86” (7′ 2”). This has enabled Jackson to be a force up the middle and gives him a chance to be the biggest steal of the Jets class in the coming years.
Jackson is the nephew of former Tampa Bay Bucs defensive back Dexter Jackson, who had this to say about his nephew in a recent interview.
“When you look at Jackson Jr., he looks like somebody drew him. He looks like a superhero. He’s 6’5″, 337 lbs. It’s just amazing. I wish I were built like that. If he comes in and learns from those vets, buys into the system and is willing to improve, I think Jackson Jr. can be a vital piece of that defense”.
When you consider the fact that Jackson could have a chance to play next to defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat (6′ 4” 366) with Kingsley Enagbare (6′ 4” 258) at linebacker in some packages, it’s clear that the Jets went out this offseason and made getting bigger a huge priority as they look deploy more 3-4 fronts on defense.
