04/27 — Ping! The Radar is on.

Welcome to "Randy's Radar," our new blog here at newyorkjets.com. We've been working feverishly to get the Radar up and running, and I am honored and excited to be able to flip the switch today, in time to blog for Jets fans everywhere about the NFL Draft.

On Saturday, I'm planning to file from the floor of the draft at Radio City Music Hall, then from one of the Jets' three Draft Day parties at Dave & Buster's on 42nd Street, then from the team's training complex in Hempstead the rest of the day.

In the days after the draft, Eric Allen and I will be blogging about the Jets' draft picks, the free agency signings, the rookie and veteran minicamps and anything else the Radar picks up between now and late July. Then comes the start of head coach Eric Mangini's second Jets training camp, when our new corner of the blogosphere will really become hot and heavy.

For now, we're less than a day away from the Big D, and I don't mean the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving. It's almost time for the New York Jets to go on the clock.

Barring a trade up, the Jets figure to open their second draft under the guidance of general manager Mike Tannenbaum and Mangini with the 25th overall selection — the first time the franchise has ever held the No. 25 pick — Saturday afternoon, between 4 and 5 p.m. EDT, probably closer to 5 than 4.

I promised to revisit selected NFL draft analysts' opinions about whom the Jets might draft in Round 1. So here are some of the late picks — and there's actually quite a variety now — being made by national mockers:

Many still feel that 15 years after Johnny Mitchell was the 15th pick of the 1992 draft, the Jets are targeting their next great first-round receiving TE in Miami's Greg Olsen. That's been Vic Carucci's opinion since March 5 and he's sticking to it.

Sports Illustrated's Don Banks and two CBSSportsline.com NFL writers, Clark Judge and Pete Prisco, also feel Olsen will drop to the Jets. So did ESPN's recent 11th annual interactive draft, with Len Pasquarelli tabbing Olsen for the Green & White.

But Pat Kirwan of nfl.com has been unwavering on the Jets taking a corner, and for his last three mocks, that corner has been Arkansas' Chris Houston. (However, for the first time, he offers a new name as an alternative pick in Purdue OLB/DE Anthony Spencer.) Peter Schrager of Foxsports.com is also staying on the Chris Houston bandwagon.

Mel Kiper, whose ESPN work and draft bible some credit with having turned Draft Weekend into an NFL holiday second only to the Super Bowl, tabbed Florida State OLB Lawrence Timmons for the Jets on air a few weeks ago. But Kiper has sight-adjusted recently to Texas CB Aaron Ross. In that he agrees with Real Football, which pegged Ross for the Jets in its final mock draft today.

Justin Harrell, Tennessee's 6'4", 305-pound DT, no doubt familiar with the work of former Vols Shaun Ellis and Cedric Houston, is getting some late attention as the Jets' first-round pick, from Pro Football Weekly's Nolan Nawrocki and Derek Harper of NFLDraftScout.com.

Sirius NFL Radio's Adam Schein, a frequent contributor to the SNY shows Jets Nation and Jets Extra Point, had some advice for Green & White followers regarding Darrelle Revis in his "reverse mock draft" on Foxsports.com: "Do not be surprised if the Jets trade up to obtain the Pittsburgh cornerback." Sorry, Adam, but I would still be surprised.

And Ourlads.com has an interesting approach, pitching two mock drafts based on whom Oakland takes with its first overall pick. Ourlads says if the Raiders go with LSU quarterback JaMarcus Russell, the Jets will take Florida DE Jarvis Moss. But if the Silver & Black go for Georgia Tech WR Calvin Johnson, the projection at No. 25 becomes Penn State LB Paul Posluszny.

For those of a swap-meet mentality, here's how high the Jets might be able trade up if they decided to package some picks, according to that dastardly Draft Trade Value chart, which went from top-secret to seemingly everywhere the last several years. Keep in mind that there are actually several slightly different charts in use around the NFL and that the values are not hard and fast but are merely guidelines with which to formulate terms of a trade.

• The Jets' 25th pick overall plus one of their second-rounders (59 or 63) could move them toward the midpoint of Round 1.

• Their first-rounder plus their third (89) could jump them into the top 20.

• Their two second-round picks (59 and 63) could get them near the top of Round 2.

• One of their twos and their three would get them into the middle of Round 2 or a little higher.

That's all for now from Randy's Radar. To paraphrase the advice they used to give Chicago's voters, check in tomorrow, early and often.