Aaron Maybin, One of the Busts From the 2009 Draft, Signs with the Jets

The 2009 draft is off to a sputtering start. Some guys have found success – Washington took Brian Orakpo 13th and he’s been a beast; Brian Cushing, drug tests aside, has been a menace for the Texans defense; Percy Harvin is an explosive offensive weapon in Minnesota, and Mark Sanchez has guided the Jets to two AFC title games. But an equally-large number of first-round picks have been unlucky with injuries (Matthew Stafford, Larry English), smell like a bust (Aaron Curry, Darrius Heyward-Bey), and or have just been underwhelming (Andre Smith, Knowshon Moreno).

Maybin’s going to get his 2nd chance with the Jets. The Jets run a 3-4 defense, and return all four linebackers from a year ago. How will Maybin get on the field? Is he just Rex Ryan’s latest reclamation projection (LaDanian Tomlinson, Antonio Cromartie, Plaxico Burress are the three most prominent players he’s taken a chance on)? I’m curious to see how the Jets will work him in. Don’t they already have a designated pass-rushing linebacker in Jamaal Westerman for blitz packages?

The only thing that makes sense here: If you can get a 23-year-old kid who was taken 11th overall just two years ago, and was an absolute stud at times for Penn State, you have to take a chance. There won’t be pressure on Maybin, and who knows, maybe – as someone proposed on twitter – the Jets line him up opposite Vlad Ducasse and build up his confidence.