Heading into this year’s draft, the Jets were high Tennessee running back Alvin Kamara. However, GM Mike Maccagnan was unwilling to pay the price to move up and draft him, sources tell Manish Mehta of the Daily News. “Important people” within the organization badly wanted to make a big play to get him and some of those people are still annoyed at the GM’s passiveness, Mehta hears. 
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Ultimately, the Saints grabbed Kamara in the third round via an aggressive deal with the 49ers, shipping their 2018 second-round pick and 2017 seventh-round pick out west for the No. 67 choice. Kamara may not have top billing in New Orleans with Mark Ingram and Adrian Peterson ahead of him on the depth chart, but he is in the midst of an excellent preseason and the Jets are among the teams wishing they could get a re-do on the draft (To play devil’s advocate: the Jets’ 2018 second-round pick could very well be in the No. 33-35 range, and that’s a steep price for a current year third rounder.)
The Jets, meanwhile, have the league’s most lackluster roster and an offense that is painfully short on playmakers. Matt Forte and Bilal Powell will be the top options in the backfield and while they could be a serviceable pair, neither player has guaranteed money beyond this season. It’s too early to anoint Kamara as a star, but he would have given the Jets something to build off of for the future.
“I wouldn’t say we (don’t) have any difference makers,” said coach Todd Bowles earlier this month as he tried to combat criticism. “We just have to play together. If we block the quarterback we’ll have a chance.”
If Kamara turns out to be a starting caliber player, Maccagnan won’t be the only GM kicking himself over a missed opportunity. However, it seems that others at One Jets Drive are growing frustrated with Maccagnan’s passiveness and emphasis on stockpiling draft picks, and that could be a bigger issue for the team down the road.