Mike Maccagnan

Mike Maccagnan has studied this draft class extensively. (AP Photo | Michael Conroy)

FLORHAM PARK -- Will the Jets draft a quarterback in Round 1 next week? Will they draft a quarterback, period?

General manager Mike Maccagnan obviously wouldn't answer those questions Friday during his pre-draft press conference.

But he did offer some thoughts on this year's quarterback draft class as a whole:

"It's probably, on average, like a lot of the quarterback classes from previous years. You go back and you look at certain years -- and I think '83 is one of those that comes to mind -- where there were just so many good quarterbacks who came out. I think those are kind of rare years.

"I think this year, I would probably classify it as being average compared to previous seasons. Probably not unlike the year prior [2015], and the year prior, you had two quarterbacks drafted high. And we may very well have two quarterbacks -- how the market kind of views those as the best two guys -- drafted high again this year."

Jared Goff and Carson Wentz (in some order) are considered the top two quarterbacks this year, followed by Paxton Lynch (who could go to the Jets at No. 20). Goff and Wentz (or vice versa) will surely go first and second.

After those three, you're talking about guys like Connor Cook, Christian Hackenberg, Cardale Jones, and Dak Prescott.

Last year, as Maccagnan mentioned, Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota went first and second overall.

In 1983, if you don't recall, the six quarterbacks drafted in Round 1 included John Elway, Jim Kelly, and Dan Marino -- all future Hall of Famers. The Jets took Ken O'Brien at No. 24, three spots ahead of Marino.

As for this year's quarterbacks, as Maccagnan looks at the group below Wentz and Goff, here's what he thinks: "It would compare very much to the previous few seasons. I wouldn't necessarily classify it as a year that, like some of those historic years where there were just so many good quarterbacks that came out. At the time, they may have thought it was an average year, too. Time will tell."

Darryl Slater may be reached at dslater@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @DarrylSlater. Find NJ.com Jets on Facebook.