By Connor Hughes | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Could the Jets trade with the Giants for the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, sending Josh Rosen or Sam Darnold to Gang Green? That and more in this week's mailbag.

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NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Opening the mailbag ...

The Jets need a quarterback, as has been the case the better part of forever. Unfortunately for general manager Mike Maccagnan, he's not in the best position to grab one.

The Jets pick sixth in the NFL Draft. With quarterback-needy teams like the Browns, Giants and Broncos picking in front of them, Josh Rosen (UCLA), Josh Allen (Wyoming) and Sam Darnold (USC) could all be gone well before the Jets' selection. That leaves the Jets with ... nothing.

So if New York wants to ensure they get their guy, they may have to trade up. Could they phone their cross-town rivals?

A blockbuster Jets-Giants trade was one of the many topics discussed in this week's mailbag. Check it all out below.

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HUGHES: I see two situations playing out for the Jets quarterbacks. No. 1: Re-sign Josh McCown, then add a quarterback in the draft. No. 2: Sign Kirk Cousins.

If the Jets go with the first, no, the two won't be on the roster. The Jets aren't carrying four quarterbacks, so they'd likely let go of Petty, unless some trade market develops for Hackenberg.

If the Jets were to sign Cousins, though, both Petty and Hackenberg could make the roster. I'd probably still lean more towards Petty getting cut, though. The Jets could keep Cousins as the starter, Hackenberg as his backup, then add a third arm to the practice squad. That would open up a roster spot on the 53.

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Will Jets finally sign pass rusher?

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How would you rate these non-Cousins QB options: McCown, Keenum, T. Taylor — David Sokolik (@davidsokolik1) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: Depends on who the offensive coordinator is. If the Jets promote Jeremy Bates, Josh McCown is the best option. He's a tremendous mentor, and knows the scheme. It will be easier for him to teach the rookie the ropes because he's already had a year in the offense.

If the Jets hire outside, though, it changes things up. I'd say Case Keenum, Tyrod Taylor then McCown. I think Keenum would be the best because he's proven he can play, and is a bit more diverse in the offenses he can run. With Taylor, you've got to tailor the offense to him. McCown is just an age (he'll turn 39 in July) and durability thing.

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Timing of Morton firing is curious and sort of like cutting David Harris after free agency (where can Morton honestly get an equivalent gig at this stage?) Better yet, if Todd doesn’t have his guy already targeted who else would even want this job? — jimmy (@JIMMYGK1) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: It will be one of these three: Todd Haley, Jeremy Bates, John DeFilippo. In order, I'd say it's Bates, Haley and then DeFilippo.

The Jets love the job Bates did with the quarterbacks this year. It all comes down to if he wants the gig. Remember, Bates failed in his last coordinator opportunity (Seahawks, 2010) and got fired. Todd Haley is probably next.

The Jets would love DeFilippo, but he's interviewing for head coaching jobs. He might not be a realistic target.

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Best case scenario for the Jets this offseason would be for the following 3 things to happen (or not happen):



Worst case scenario for the Jets this offseason would be for the following 3 things to happen (or not happen):



Everything’s on the table: coaches/players/mgmt/ownership — bellmore jim (@BellmoreJimR) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: Best case -- Sign Kirk Cousins, cornerback Trumaine Johnson, defensive end Ezekiel Ansah and (an extra fourth) draft running back Saquon Barkley.

Worst case -- Miss on Cousins, Josh McCown retires, Sam Darnold/Josh Rosen/Josh Allen gone before Jets pick.

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What is the likelihood they call the Giants to trade up to #2? If over 50% yes, do they have an enticing enough package to swing Gettleman to make the trade? — Big Blue United (@BigBlueUnited) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: It's a really interesting concept. I shot a text over to our Giants beat writer Dan Duggan to get his take, too. You can find it right below mine.

Personally, seeing the situation from afar, the Giants would be insane not to draft a quarterback this year. Look at the Jets: As bad as this team's been, they've never been able to pick with the No. 1 or No. 2 pick the last 10 years. When you're drafting that high, and you've got a chance to get your quarterback for the next 12 years, you do it. Eli Manning might have a year, two years left ... but you need to plan beyond that. Draft Sam Darnold or Josh Rosen, and call it a day.

If they do want to trade, though, the Jets have the means to move up. There's the No. 6 pick in the draft, then two more selections in the second round (their own, Seahawks), and picks in the third, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh. They've also got all their picks in 2019, too.

DUGGAN: On the surface, it seems unlikely that the Giants and Jets would be trade partners, especially if the result was the Jets landing the franchise quarterback they desperately need. But, as the great philosopher Ted DiBiase said, everybody has a price.

The Giants would have to listen if the Jets were willing to package the sixth pick and a boat load of picks like the Eagles did to move up from No. 8 to No. 2 to draft Carson Wentz in 2016. I think the only way the Giants would be open to trading back is if they aren’t sold on these top quarterbacks. Otherwise, they’ll likely stay put so they can get their top choice to succeed Eli Manning.

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Explaining absurd amount of cap space Jets will have

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Is there any language in the CBA that prevents a team from heavily front loading a contract to limit future impact on the cap? For example, can a four year contract pay out 90% of the value in year one, then drop to league minimum salaries in the following years? — Matt Bauer (@buzzkyllington) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: Interesting question. I actually didn't know the answer, so I reached out to a source I'm close with who deals with contracts every day. Here's what I got back --

"The simple answer is no team in their right mind would ever do that. That is complete backwards thinking from a team's perspective, and gets little complicated when you have the CBA potentially expiring after 2020.

"As we know a 4-year, $40 million (with $11 million guaranteed) deal isn't $10 million each year. That's why what the Dolphins did last year with Lawrence Timmons actually was the closest thing we 'consider' to a fully guaranteed contract. His contract was 2-year, $12 million, with $11 million fully guaranteed. That's over 90 percent of his deal fully guaranteed.

"What the Dolphins (and every other team cap people do) should have added two more years (what we should consider as dummy years for cap proration) to make it a 4 (years) /$40 (million) /11 (guaranteed) rather than a 2/12/11. The 2/12/11 is how deals are today, but written as 4/40/12 for 'looks' and APY purposes."

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If the Jets we're to promote Jeremy Bates to offensive coordinator what would the Jets be getting as opposed to hiring someone external like Todd Haley? — MIKE (@MikeU10) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: Continuity. Bates would run a similar scheme as Morton. Obviously it wouldn't be identical, and play-calling would be different, but players wouldn't have to start from scratch. It the Jets brought in Haley, it would all be back to square. Another offseason spent installing, not building.

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What are the chances that Todd Haley will become the next Offensive Coordinator? I know @LilMissNYJet would love that :) — Gerardo Abreu (@shaft226) January 18, 2018

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HUGHES: Really comes down to Jeremy Bates. From what I hear, he's the favorite, and the job's his if he wants it. If Bates would rather stay as quarterbacks coach, then it opens it up to those outside 1 Jets Drive. Todd Haley is a strong candidate, so too is John DeFilippo. DeFilippo depends on if he gets the Cardinals head coach job or not.

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What will the Jets do to polish up the oline? Will they trade up back into first round to get one, will there be one at top of 2nd, or will they completely ignore it — ajmann (@ajman1906) January 17, 2018

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HUGHES: The Jets will have a new center in 2018. Whether that's a veteran like Ryan Jensen (Ravens), or someone like Billy Price (Ohio State) in the draft, we'll see. Outside of that, though, it's tough to find too many areas the Jets can fix on the line.

Kelvin Beachum and Brian Winters aren't going anywhere. The Jets can't financially cut them yet. Maybe they let go of James Carpenter, but I have a feeling he's coming back. I could see them adding a veteran to compete with Brandon Shell at right tackle, but he won't be a big-time free-agent signing.

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Why Jets fired John Morton

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How likely they get Kirk Cousins in free agency & then draft a pass rusher with the 6th pick? — Gerardo Abreu (@shaft226) January 17, 2018

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HUGHES: I think you nailed why signing Cousins would be so good for the Jets -- They can go anywhere with the No. 6 pick. Pass rusher would be an option, cornerback or running back, too. The Jets will go with the best player available at a position of need.

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#jets. If the season ended today, who is the most realistic Free Agent to end up wearing the green and white for us next year ? Cousins? bell? Lawrence? ziggy? — zach (@zdl1570) January 17, 2018

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HUGHES: Assuming they all hit free agency? I'd go Cousins, Lawrence, Ansah, Bell.

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