How the New York Jets will attempt to replace cornerback Darrelle Revis is a major question heading into tonight's NFL draft.
Two of the most discussed corners in the draft are confident they could step into the island-sized hole in the Jets' secondary, created by the trade of the Pro Bowl mainstay to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
"I feel like I'm the guy to do it," said former LSU defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, The Star-Ledger reported Wednesday night.
Gang Green hasn't shown interest in the 5-foot-9 corner -- who made news Wednesday afternoon after he tweeted a flyer announcing a party in his honor, then canceled it. He told The Star-Ledger someone else with access to his account tweeted the flyer.
Mathieu said his talent makes him deserving of hearing his name called tonight.
"I expect to go in the first round, yes I do," he said. "I think I'm a first-round talent, but I think I'll fall to the second."
The more likely replacement for Revis could be Alabama's Dee Milliner, widely considered the top corner in the draft. Milliner could slide to the Jets at No. 9 overall.
"I talked to them when I visited up there," Milliner said Wednesday, via the New York Post. "They like me. They probably like me more now since they got rid of Revis."
Milliner said he wouldn't feel the pressure of replacing the best cornerback in the NFL.
"I'd feel fine," he said. "I'd go in and just do what I'm supposed to do, do work, and just go about playing the way I've been playing."
The truth is you don't replace a Revis, you try and plug the holes as best you can as the boat takes on water. The Jets could use one of their two first-round picks on a corner, but the major job of filling Revis' production will fall on Antonio Cromartie, Kyle Wilson and those already on the roster.
Follow Kevin Patra on Twitter @kpatra.
