FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- Like noxious gas and smoke, the Rex Ryan-Robert Saleh war of words will dissipate into the ether. What won't go away is the reason that sparked Ryan's radio rant.

The New York Jets' defense, to use Ryan's word, is "horrendous." Chances are, it won't get a whole lot better until the organization invests significant resources on that side of the ball.

After two years of trying to fix the offense, general manager Joe Douglas needs to make the 32nd-ranked defense his No. 1 priority in the offseason. With four draft picks in the first two rounds, among nine picks overall, and a projected $52 million in cap space, he has the currency to make upgrades.

The Jets need help on all three levels of the defense, especially the back seven, and the good news is the 2022 NFL draft should be top-heavy with defensive players.

"It'll be like going into a cookie store: What do you do?" ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper, Jr. said in a phone interview. "You've got plenty of options. Or like going to a candy store. Go get a snowball; there's a lot of different flavors you like. There's going to be a lot of different options for them that are going to be attractive."

The Jets were all about defense from 2010 to 2017, using all nine first-round picks on defensive players, but Douglas changed the approach in 2020. In his first two drafts, he used all five picks in the first two rounds on offense -- a quarterback (Zach Wilson), two wide receivers (Elijah Moore and Denzel Mims) and two linemen (Mekhi Becton and Alijah Vera-Tucker).

The highest-drafted defensive player under Douglas? That would be safety Ashtyn Davis (third round, 2020), who is trying to find his way after a recent bump into the starting lineup. Douglas did use his biggest free-agent splurge on a defensive player, edge rusher Carl Lawson, who was lost for the season with an Achilles' rupture in August.

Bottom line: There isn't enough premium talent, which is why the Jets are last in points allowed (32.9 per game), last in yards allowed (417) and have surrendered 175 points in the last four games. You're also talking about a new scheme, with a lot of inexperienced players. It's the perfect storm.

"There’s a level of consistency, obviously, that we’re lacking and we've got to coach it a lot better," Saleh said.

Help could be on the horizon.

Four of the top five players on Kiper's Big Board play defense -- defensive end Kayvon Thibodeaux (Oregon), safety Kyle Hamilton (Notre Dame), cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. (LSU) and defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (Michigan). Linebackers Devin Lloyd (Utah) and Nakobe Dean (Georgia) and defensive end David Ojabo (Michigan) round out Kiper's top 10.

"Thibodeaux and Hamilton would be two guys you'd certainly have to look at" for the Jets, Kiper said. "Devin Lloyd and Nakobe Dean are great linebackers, great players, reminiscent of the Devin White-Devin Bush draft (2019)."

It would be hard to pass on Thibodeaux, the consensus No. 1 prospect. Hutchinson, too, is a terrific edge prospect, but it raises a question: Can they take another edge player with all the money they have invested in defensive ends?

Lawson and John Franklin-Myers are counting a combined $27.8 million on the 2022 cap, thanks to Franklin-Myers' recent extension (four years, $55 million). Presumably, they will try to extend Quinnen Williams, which would mean another huge contract. That's a lot of loot, but remember Saleh's roots: He came from the San Francisco 49ers, which poured major bucks into its front four.

They also have a big need at corner, which brings Stingley into the conversation, but evaluators consider him a risk because of a foot injury that has limited him to three games. All told, he has played only 10 games since his sensational freshman year in 2019.

The Jets (2-7) figure to have one top-10 pick, maybe two. They own the Seattle Seahawks' first-round pick from the Jamal Adams trade, and the Seahawks (3-6) are having a rare down year. Douglas has the tools to fix what could be one of the worst defenses in NFL history.

What about free agency?

Douglas isn't a big spender, preferring to build through the draft, but he can't expect to plug every hole that way. Problem is, 2022 projects as a lean year for defensive free agents. There are some interesting safeties, led by Jessie Bates III (Cincinnati Bengals), but the cornerback group is thin. The top player is J.C. Jackson (New England Patriots). The off-ball linebackers, another weak group, are led by Leighton Vander Esch (Dallas Cowboys).

The Jets have eight current starters under contract for 2022, which sounds good, but how many are legit starters? Five, for sure, including cornerback Bryce Hall -- the only player in the secondary worthy of that status. The rest of the secondary needs to be upgraded, which means this year's rookies could become depth players.

"It's frustrating and it's trying," Saleh said of the defensive woes. "At the same time, we have eight games to embrace an unbelievable opportunity to go get better and to prove what we’re capable of."

Maybe so, but it won't get truly better until they make an offseason commitment to fixing it.