Addressing right tackle has long been seen as a logical draft target for the Jets. To no surprise, then, Missouri tackle Armand Membou has been selected seventh overall. 
While LSU’s Will Campbell was widely seen as the most NFL-ready offensive tackle in the draft, Membou was seen as the tackle prospect with the highest potential ceiling. Membou came to the game of football late but still found his way into Missouri’s starting lineup as a freshman. He would keep the job for the rest of his collegiate career, improving with each start.
Membou is a strong run blocker, serving as a lead battering ram for the Tigers throughout his career. He’s an equally menacing pass blocker with impressive balance and quickness off of the line of scrimmage. What he lacks in ideal size, he makes up for with effort and attitude.
Some teams saw Membou as a guard leading up to the draft, but based on the Jets’ O-line configuration, it is fairly clear they view the Mizzou product as a tackle. The team has now chosen tackles in back-to-back first rounds, having added Olu Fashanu to start last year’s draft. New York has also gone O-line in four of the past six first rounds, dating back to its Mekhi Becton and Alijah Vera-Tucker choices. The latter remains on the team at guard.
After working with two extremely experienced veterans, Morgan Moses and Tyron Smith, for most of the year as their bookend starters in 2024, a youth movement will now take over in New York. Last year’s first-round pick, Fashanu, should man the left tackle role. Membou should certainly challenge to start immediately at right tackle, but if he isn’t quite ready for the job, Chukwuma Okorafor should be able to fill in until he is.
Adam La Rose contributed to this post.