05/01 — Several newyorkjets.com visitors have inquired about the draft trade value chart that many analysts invoke when weighing who got the better of a swap of picks. One version of the chart is available on several football Web sites. Here's that chart in a nutshell:

Each position in the draft is assigned a value, ranging from 3,000 points for the first pick overall to 2 points for the 224th pick. And the difference between back-to-back selections varies even within rounds, reflecting the greater values all teams put on high picks. For instance, the second overall pick is worth 2,600 points. But the sliding scale pegs the 223rd pick at 2.3 points.

How does it work in practice? Glad you asked. The Jets' second-round trade with Green Bay to acquire LB David Harris is a great example of the chart in action. (Boilerplate reminder: There are several slightly different charts in use throughout the NFL.)

The Jets had the 63rd pick, worth 276 points. They wanted to get to the Packers' No. 47 (430). The Green & White needed to kick in about 154 points to balance the equation. Into the deal went their third-rounder, No. 89 (145) and sixth-rounder, No. 191 (15). That's 159 points, a little generous. So the Pack kicked in their seventh-rounder, No. 235.

That pick is actually worth no points on the chart in question, but it's another player, which the Jets turned into WR Chansi Stuckey. Close enough. It can be said the two green teams struck an equitable Round 2 bargain Saturday.

One of a Kind

Having already achieved one first by becoming the first player ever drafted by the Jets from Nicholls State in southeastern Louisiana, Jacob Bender could achieve another distinction if he makes the roster. He could become the first Colonel (that's what NSU athletes call themselves) to play in a regular-season game for the Jets.

Jay Thomas — the Nicholls State coach, not the comic — is optimistic that will happen. "This is great for our program," Thomas said, "and it shows that guys can still play in the triple-option offense and have a chance to play on Sundays."

Mock Mogul

One last note on the draft "experts." I charted the mock drafts of 15 football writers/analysts from 10 different organizations to see who fared the best. I graded them on several points: direct hits, most first-round players picked, and best grade, based on a scale I like. It awards three points for a direct hit (player to the right team at the right position), two points for a player picked in the right position/wrong team or in the wrong position/right team (to give a bonus for picks that are traded on draft day), and one point for all other players tabbed as first-rounders (wrong position/wrong team).

And the unchallenged winner of this informal test is ... Clark Judge of CBSSportsline.com.

Nobody I monitored came close to Clark's Judge-ment — my system awarded him 53 points (second-best was CBS Sportsline teammate Pete Prisco with 46). Judge also had 29 first-rounders, tied with Pro Football Weekly's staff mock draft. And Judge had 11 bull's-eyes (Prisco had nine). He started by going 4-for-4 at the top of the draft and finished with the Colts choosing the next Tony Gonzalez (the Ohio State WR otherwise known as Anthony).