Jets general manager Mike Maccagnan stopped short of saying controversial Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon is off the team’s draft board, but it sure sounds like he is.
Mixon is considered one of the top talents in this year’s draft, but his assault of a woman in 2014, captured by security cameras, has given teams pause about drafting him.
Maccagnan declined to comment specifically on Mixon, but gave his overall view on players with a domestic violence incident in their past.
“I would say simply we don’t take it lightly,” Maccagnan said Monday in a pre-draft press conference. “I have no problem whatsoever taking players off the board from that standpoint. I’d rather we focus on players that are good players and ideally good people and good members of our society.”
Maccagnan and his wife, Betty, have a personal experience with domestic violence after one of their neighbors in Houston was shot and killed by her husband. That led to Betty and Mike Maccagnan to work with the organization One Love to raise awareness about domestic violence.
“There are some things that are extremely egregious, which I personally have a very hard time condoning,” Maccagnan said. “Violence, in particular, that is a very serious thing to me. For me and my wife, we had a personal experience with that.”
It has been reported that some teams have taken Mixon off of their draft boards, meaning they would not select him in any round.
Mixon was charged with a misdemeanor and missed the entire 2014 season after he punched fellow student Amelia Molitor in a restaurant. He returned to the Sooners the following season and ran for 1,274 yards and 10 touchdowns.
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Maccagnan would not say whether the Jets will exercise the fifth-year option on safety Calvin Pryor. The team has until May 3 to decide whether to pick up the option for the 2018 season. Pryor, a 2014 first-round pick, has had an inconsistent career.
“We have to make that determination, obviously, after the draft,” Maccagnan said. “That’s the final deadline for it. That’s not something I’m going to comment or speculate on. That will work itself out shortly.”
He could be waiting to see if they draft a safety before making a decision.
Maccagnan danced around a question about whether he is trying to trade defensive lineman Sheldon Richardson, who is entering the final year of his contract with the Jets.
“Simply stated, I would say, this is not directed at Sheldon or any player on our team, but when you’re a general manager you’re looking at all the different ways you can maybe change the team or improve the team or help the team,” Maccagnan said. “So, you just weigh everything accordingly as you come across it really. I’m not going to get into speculating what we’re doing. I’m definitely not going to talk about any trade discussions we had with any players on our team.”