GM Darren Mougey: Jets will 'exhaust every option' to find quarterback 'solution'

As the Jets begin what is sure to be a critical offseason, the quarterback position will once again be at the forefront of the conversation.

From Sam Darnold to Zach Wilson to Aaron Rodgers and most recently with Justin Fields, the Jets have had somewhat of a revolving door at the most crucial position in all of sports for the better part of the past eight seasons.

But with the team owning the No. 2 overall pick in April's draft, as well as additional first-round draft picks acquired in deals with Indianapolis and Dallas, general manager Darren Mougey made it clear on Tuesday that the team will leave no stone unturned in finding the right player for the job.

We're going through that whole process this week," Mougey said when asked about evaluating the quarterback position. We're going to evaluate every position on the team, and obviously we've got to be better at several spots, quarterback included."

I can tell you this," he added, we're going to exhaust every option - free agency, [around] the league, obviously the draft. We will exhaust that and have a good solution for the New York Jets.

Last offseason, the Jets signed Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract, but between injuries and inconsistent play, it seems clear that Fields isn't the long-term answer for the Jets.

While there would be some dead cap money to deal with, releasing or trading Fields after June 1 would save money against the salary cap.

Justin is under contract," head coach Aaron Glenn said. Brady [Cook] is under contract. But when it comes to the quarterback, we're going to always have the best guy, and that's always been the plan from the beginning, the guy who gives us the best chance to win."

Drafting at No. 2, the Jets would be able to grab one of the two best quarterbacks in the NFL Draft. While it appears that Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza is the consensus top QB prospect and likely to go first overall to Las Vegas, Oregon's Dante Moore (who still could return to school) isn't far behind. And between the Scouting Combine, pro days, and Top 30 visits, a lot can change between now and April 23.

Factor in veteran quarterbacks who could be available like Kyler Murray, Daniel Jones, Malik Willis, and Kirk Cousins, and the Jets have plenty of intriguing options to get the quarterback position right.

And that should make for quite the offseason.

I'm excited about the offseason as we go into it," Mougey said. Obviously, the draft capital that we have, the cap space, and just being here now a year with AG, working with AG and the staff, getting to know the players, getting to learn this division. I feel more confident today than ever, moving forward, with what we have going."

Added Glenn: For our fans, listen, there's a vision that we have, and there's a trust that we have in that also. I would expect and I would want our fans to have a total trust in us in being able to do that, and we have to earn that too, and our plan is to do that.

"We don't expect to have another season like this here."