HEADLINES

New York Jets News & Rumors

QB Justin Fields To Start Season For Jets

April 4th, 2025 at 8:10pm CST by Ely Allen

When the Jets made the move to sign free agent quarterback Justin Fields, two things were made clear based on the makeup of his contract. First, with only a two-year deal, it was clear that this is still a prove-it contract for the young passer. Second, the $30MM of guaranteed money at signing for the $40MM deal indicated an expectation that Fields will be the starter throughout the duration of the contract.

This past weekend at the annual league meetings, new Jets general manager Darren Mougey confirmed that second point. According to ESPN’s Rich Cimini, Mougey made it clear that Fields is QB1 for the 2025 NFL season.

“We believe Justin is the starter,” Mougey told the media. “We believe in Justin. We believe we can win with Justin, so we’re excited about Justin.”

Fields, drafted 11th overall in 2021 by the Bears, had a rough start to his career in Chicago. The Ohio State product started his rookie season coming off the bench behind veteran Andy Dalton. A knee injury to Dalton forced Fields into action in Week 2. Fields led the team to a win in relief but went 2-6 in the first eight starts of his career. A rib injury led him to miss two games before losing his next two starts, and an ankle injury forced him out for the rest of the year. In his rookie season, Fields went 2-8 as a starter, throwing only seven touchdowns to 10 interceptions while adding two more scores on the ground.

In his sophomore campaign, as a full-time starter, Fields showed significant improvement statistically. While his team finished 3-12 in his 15 starts, Fields improved his passing numbers with 17 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. He broke out as a rusher, too, with 1,143 yards and eight touchdowns, but he led the NFL with 16 fumbles. In 2023, Fields once again worked as a full-time starter, though he missed four games with a dislocated shoulder and thumb. The Bears improved to 5-8 with Fields as the starter, and Fields was able to record career-high passing numbers despite playing two fewer games than 2022. He rushed much less as a result, though.

2024 saw Fields traded to Pittsburgh where he soon began competing with Russell Wilson for the starting job. It was announced prior to the start of the year that Wilson had won the starting job, but a calf injury forced Fields into the starting role for the first six weeks of the season. Fields played some of the best football of his career as a Steeler, completing 65.8 percent of his passes for 1,106 yards while throwing five touchdowns to only one interception in six games. He also rushed for 289 yards and five touchdowns during his time with the Steelers.

The Jets will hope to see Fields continue in his year-to-year improvement. In Year 5, Fields will be suiting up for his third NFL team. While the running backs group mostly looks the same, the Jets have lost some pieces in their passing and blocking game. With the draft and spring ball coming up, New York still has time to add bodies.

With Fields in place as the starter, and a reliable backup in place in Tyrod Taylor, the Jets should feel good about their quarterbacks roster. If there were any doubt in Fields being an effective starter, it would make sense to see New York go for a quarterback fairly early in the draft, in the hopes of developing him into the future leader of the offense should Fields falter. While it still makes sense for the team to take a flyer on a young passer, that draft pick would likely be coming on Day 2 or 3. With a fairly deep group of passing prospects, the Jets should have plenty of options.

Minor NFL Transactions: 4/2/25

April 2nd, 2025 at 8:23pm CST by Ben Levine

Just two minor moves to pass along:

Los Angeles Chargers

  • Signed: TE Jordan Petaia

New York Jets

Xavier Newman-Johnson was tagged as an exclusive rights free agent last month, so his return to New York was all but inevitable. A former UDFA, the lineman has spent the past year-plus with the Jets, including a 2023 campaign where he started four of his seven appearances.

Newman-Johnson didn’t have nearly as big of a role in 2024. After getting into 280 offensive snaps in 2023, he was limited to only 11 reps in 2024. However, he did garner 31 snaps on special teams this past season. The 25-year-old will likely be eyeing a similar role if he sticks on the roster for the 2025 season.

Jordan Petaia was signed by the Chargers via the NFL International Player Pathway program. A native of Melbourne, Petaia has appeared in a pair of Rugby World Cups, including a 2019 showing where he became the youngest Australian player to ever suit up in the event.

Russell Wilson Expects To Be Giants’ Starting QB

March 31st, 2025 at 10:45am CST by Nikhil Mehta

MARCH 31: To little surprise, Giants general manager Joe Schoen confirmed at the league meetings on Monday (via Dunleavy’s colleague Paul Schwartz) Wilson will operate as the team’s starter when offseason workouts begin in the near future. It remains to be seen if the upcoming draft will include the addition of a rookie under center, but Wilson will receive the first opportunity to lock down the QB1 gig in New York.

MARCH 26: Russell Wilson signed in New York planning to take over as the Giants’ starting quarterback. His contract, as well as the team’s other moves this offseason, tell a different story.

“I expect to be the starter,” said Wilson at his introductory press conference (via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post). “I think this team is looking for someone to lead them in every way.”

Was Wilson promised the first crack at the starting job, or was he declaring his intention to earn it?

His one-year contract with a base value of $10.5MM suggests the latter. That would be the lowest salary of any starting quarterback not on their rookie contract. Justin Fields is expected to start for the Jets at a $20M APY, and Daniel Jones signed with the Colts for $14MM to compete with Anthony Richardson for the starting gig.

Wilson’s deal also includes another $10.5MM of incentives, $7.5MM of which are “based on a variety of play-time, performance, and playoff incentives,” according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The remaining $3MM can be earned on a per-game basis if Wilson plays more than 50% of the team’s offensive snaps and the Giants win.

In other words, Wilson’s contract will only reach starter-level money if he starts and succeeds. Staying at his base value would make him an expensive backup, but that would mean the Giants have a much cheaper starter in Winston or a rookie.

Winston’s deal is worth $8MM over two years with another $8MM available via incentives with triggers that have yet to be reported. Given Wilson’s incentive structure, it will be impossible for both quarterbacks to reach the maximum values of their deals.

The veterans’ earning potential could also be threatened by a rookie quarterback, should the Giants choose to go that route in the draft. Wilson has frequently been tagged as a potential mentor for a rookie, but he doesn’t see his role in the same light, per The Athletic’s Dan Duggan. He’s in New York to win football games.

“If we draft a quarterback, we’ll make sure he does everything he can to be ready to go,” said Wilson (via Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News). “But for me it’s about the process of winning. I’m focused on winning as the QB of the Giants to help us win.”

Jets Aim To Keep WR Allen Lazard

March 30th, 2025 at 4:52pm CST by Adam La Rose

With Aaron Rodgers no longer on the Jets, wideout Davante Adams is understandably out of the organization as well. Many have expected New York to also move on from fellow ex-Packer Allen Lazard, but he could remain in place for 2025.

New Jets general manager Darren Mougey said on Sunday (via Brian Costello of the New York Post) the team hopes to keep Lazard on the roster. A report from last month indicated a release could be expected, and the same was recently repeated in the wake of the Josh Reynolds signing. As Costello notes, though, efforts to restructure Lazard’s pact are ongoing.

The 29-year-old joined the Jets on a lucrative deal in 2023, a move which was followed by the Rodgers trade. Lazard faced high expectations given the $11MM annual average value of his deal, but things did not go according to plan and he recorded 23 catches and one touchdown. A healthy season from Rodgers helped produce a better output in 2024 (60-530-6 statline), although a parting of ways would still not come as a surprise. Lazard received permission to seek a trade not long before free agency began, but obviously no takers emerged.

Mougey’s remarks suggest the Jets could still be willing to move on from the former UDFA, but working out a pay cut arrangement would allow him to remain in the fold. As things currently stand, Lazard is owed $11MM next season with a scheduled cap hit of $13.18MM. The same setup exists for 2026, the final year of the Iowa State product’s deal. A trade or release would yield roughly equal cap savings and dead money charges, but a post-June 1 designation would generate $11MM in savings while incurring a dead cap charge of $2.18MM.

Without Adams in place, moving on from Lazard would leave the Jets short on experienced receivers (although that vacancy was addressed to an extent with the Reynolds deal). Garrett Wilson is set to once again operate as the focal point of New York’s passing attack – something which was not always the case during Adams’ brief stint with the team – in 2025. Reynolds will serve in a complementary capacity, and 2024 third-rounder Malachi Corley could as well.

If Lazard accepts a pay cut, he will be in position to continue as a regular on offense (having handled an 84% snap share in 2024). Failing that, the possibility of a release will loom as the countdown to the draft continues.

Minor NFL Transactions: 3/28/25

March 28th, 2025 at 7:46pm CST by Adam La Rose

Friday’s minor moves:

Atlanta Falcons

Detroit Lions

Green Bay Packers

Jacksonville Jaguars

Kansas City Chiefs

New York Jets

Pittsburgh Steelers

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Welch has played 72 games in the NFL, with much of his tenure taking place with the Ravens. The 26-year-old saw time with Baltimore and Denver last season, but in 2023 he played for the Packers. This reunion will give Green Bay depth at the second level of the defense along with a familiar face on special teams.

Previous Jets Regime Considered 2025 Quincy Williams Extension

March 27th, 2025 at 5:56pm CST by Sam Robinson

Jamien Sherwood‘s market producing the result it did creates an interesting issue for a new Jets regime. A special-teamer for three seasons, Sherwood stood out subbing for the injured C.J. Mosley in 2024. The result: a three-year, $45MM contract — agreed to just before free agency — that came with $30MM guaranteed at signing.

That deal matched Nick Bolton‘s second Chiefs contract, with both approaching Zack Baun‘s Eagles re-up. This trio helped provide a bump for the off-ball linebacker market, which had taken some hits in recent years. The market soon included three more eight-figure AAVs — in Robert Spillane (Patriots), Dre Greenlaw (Broncos) and Terrel Bernard (Bills). However, the Jets’ most accomplished linebacker is not among this expanding group.

Quincy Williams remains attached to a three-year, $18MM deal. Considering the multiyear Mosley ILB partner has a first-team All-Pro nod on his resume and has played well for four Jets teams, it would seem the team’s Darren Mougey-Aaron Glenn regime has an update to make. It is not yet known if they have another payday in mind for Williams, but ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini notes the Joe Douglas-Robert Saleh partnership was open to a 2025 extension.

As the off-ball linebacker market stagnated following the Fred Warner and Shaquille Leonard extensions in 2021, Williams expressed disappointment with the contract he ultimately received from the Jets. Re-signed months before younger brother Quinnen received a high-end extension, Quincy disagreed with the comps the Jets used in negotiations. That 2023 offseason saw a host of off-ball LBs sign deals in the Williams neighborhood, but the Jets received a bargain. The former Jaguars castoff soared to the All-Pro level during his first season on that contract and added another strong season in 2024, though last season brought front office and coaching staff overhauls.

Sherwood received a much better market for his services this year, as the cap had climbed by a staggering $55MM between the 2023 and ’25 offseasons, but only has one season as an LB regular on his resume. Sherwood, however, is nearly four years younger than Williams; the latter is going into his age-29 season. That adds to a potential Jets dilemma, one that likely soon will involve Williams taking issue with his now-low-middle-class contract. The Murray State alum, who posted four forced fumbles and two sacks to go with 14 tackles for loss this past season, has become one of the league’s top off-ball LBs. He is now the NFL’s 37th-highest-paid player at the position.

One of the top acquisitions of the Douglas era, Williams is now in a key period regarding earning potential. This will be the last last season of his 20s to market toward a lucrative contract, and a $15MM-per-year floor certainly makes sense for a player who has been one of the drivers for the Jets’ Saleh-Jeff Ulbrich-era defensive turnaround. It will be interesting to see how Glenn views the productive ILB, who is due a $6.5MM base salary in 2025.

Elsewhere on the Jets’ payroll, the team added Josh Myers for even cheaper than initial reports suggested. The four-year Packers center signed with the Jets on a one-year, $2MM deal, KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweets. It is fully guaranteed. This is well outside the ballpark fellow free agent center Drew Dalman landed in, and it profiles as a “prove it” pact. Myers, though, does not have a clear path to starting in New York, which has its 2024 interior-line trio (John Simpson, Joe Tippmann, Alijah Vera-Tucker) returning.

Rounding out Jets O-line notes, the team’s Chukwuma Okorafor contract is worth $1.3MM, Cimini tweets. Despite bailing on the Patriots after one game last season, the former Steelers RT mainstay received $758K guaranteed. He will vie for time at tackle for a team that lost 2024 RT starter Morgan Moses to the Pats.

Jets To Sign WR Josh Reynolds

March 27th, 2025 at 1:10pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The Jets are signing veteran wide receiver Josh Reynolds to a one-year deal worth up to $5MM, per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

The deal includes $2.75MM in fully guaranteed money with another $2.25MM available via incentives, according to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler.

The Jets’ new regime is very familiar with Reynolds. General manager Darren Mougey helped bring Reynolds to Denver during free agency last year when he was the Broncos’ assistant GM. Reynolds spent the previous 2.5 seasons in Detroit, where he worked closely with then-Lions passing game coordinator Tanner Engstrand. Engstrand is now the Jets’ offensive coordinator under new head coach Aaron Glenn, who also overlapped with Reynolds in Detroit.

After releasing Davante Adams and letting Tyler Conklin walk in free agency, the Jets needed to add an experienced pass-catcher to their offense. The team is expected to release Allen Lazard after June 1, per ESPN’s Rich Cimini, and the rest of their wideouts outside of Garrett Wilson have combined for 12 career starts.

Reynolds fits the bill with 55 starts across eight years, plus an understanding of what Engstrand wants to do on offense. Two of the best seasons of Reynold’s career came in Detroit in 2022 and 2023 before a hand injury hampered him in 2024. Finding a similar role in New York may help the 30-year-old build on the success he found the last time he played under Engstrand.

The 6-foot-3 wideout has spent most of his time on the outside, though he also has plenty of experience lining up in the slot. He is also known as a strong run blocker, another plus for a Jets offense that figures to take a run-heavy approach with their young backfield of Justin Fields, Breece Hall, and Braelon Allen.

Since Reynolds was released by the Jaguars earlier this month, his signing will not count towards the compensatory pick formula (if his APY even qualified).

Draft Rumors: Visits, Green, Nolen, RBs

March 25th, 2025 at 9:58pm CST by Ely Allen

As the 2025 NFL Draft continues to draw nigh, teams are beginning to do their due diligence on each prospect, including hosting several for visits.

A perfect example of this saw the Saints host a bevy of Longhorns for a dinner last night, per Nick Underhill of NewOrleans.Football. The list of Texas prospects included possible first-rounders cornerback Jahdae Barron and wide receiver Matthew Golden as well as defensive tackle Vernon Broughton and quarterback Quinn Ewers.

The Saints weren’t the only team to spend time with Ewers yesterday, per Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated. Both the Jets and Raiders sent staffers to meet with the 22-year-old in Austin prior to the team’s pro day. Ewers has several visits planned following today’s pro day, as well, including meetings with the Cowboys, Colts, and Raiders, again, in early April.

Another potential Longhorn first-rounder, wide receiver Isaiah Bond, has also reportedly set up a number of visits following today’s pro day, per CJ Vogel of On Texas Football. Bond apparently has top-30 visits scheduled in the next month with the Falcons, Bears, Packers, and Rams.

Here are some more rumors concerning the 2025 NFL Draft:

  • East Carolina cornerback Shavon Revel Jr. is making the rounds, as well. After previously meeting with New Orleans, Revel reportedly visited the Texans on Friday, per Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2. Revel is attempting to make a speedy recovery from a torn ACL that ended his final collegiate season after only three games. He’s reportedly on track to be ready to return in time for training camp.
  • One of Revel’s top competitors at the position in this year’s class, Michigan cornerback Will Johnson, is set to meet with the Raiders, according to Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. Johnson has already met with the Falcons and reportedly met with the Cardinals already, as well.
  • Already having met with the Saints and Falcons, Oregon offensive tackle Josh Conerly Jr. is set to meet with several other franchises, per Wilson. One of the top tackle options in the class, Conerly has visits planned with the Texans, Eagles, Commanders, Bengals, and Bears. Wilson adds that, at the NFL Scouting Combine, Conerly already formerly met with the Texans, Jets, Titans, Patriots, Raiders, Commanders, and 49ers.
  • Marshall’s pro day garnered a few more visitors than usual today, thanks to the presence of potential first-round pass rusher Mike Green. According to Tony Pauline of sportskeeda, while several teams sent personnel to check Green out, the Falcons sent most of their front office as well as head coach Raheem Morris. Pauline adds that the Commanders also held a significant presence at the pass rusher’s pro day.
  • Due to the draft being more deep than top-heavy, there are several prospects who receive a wide range of opinions on when and where they’ll go in the draft. According to Matt Miller of ESPN, though, no player has a wider range than Ole Miss defensive tackle Walter Nolen. Transferring within the conference from Texas A&M for the final year of his collegiate career, Nolen had a strong, consensus All-American season with the Rebels, totaling 48 total tackles, 6.5 sacks, and 14 tackles for loss. Despite the impressive performance, Miller claims that “teams are torn on (Nolen’s) lack of refined pass-rush moves,” resulting in projections from the top 10 all the way back to the second round.
  • Last year was the second time in the three years that we saw no running backs taken in the first round of the draft. According to Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports, we could see two running backs hear their names called on Day 1 of the event this year. A running backs coach told Schultz that “there’s no way (Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty) falls outside the top 15-20 picks.” Jeanty has been projected in multiple mock drafts to both the Raiders at No. 6 overall and the Cowboys at No. 12. While the position is deep, with players like Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson, Ohio State’s duo of TreVeyon Henderson and Quinshon Judkins, Miami’s Damien Martinez, and several others, it’s North Carolina’s Omarion Hampton who may have played himself into the first round with Jeanty. Schultz claims that a personnel director told him the only thing Hampton needed to do in order to go in Round 1 was run in the 4.4’s at the combine, and Hampton ran a 4.46. He may not get taken as high as Jeanty, but he should still be considered a first-round candidate come the end of April.

Shedeur Sanders Unlikely To Fall Out Of First Round; Jets, Giants, Browns, Steelers In Play

March 23rd, 2025 at 11:27pm CST by Rory Parks

One of the more intriguing storylines in this year’s draft coverage is Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders’ stock and how long Sanders might have to wait to hear his name called after the draft opens on April 24. There has been some chatter that the scion of Colorado HC and NFL legend Deion Sanders could slip out of the first round entirely, though ESPN’s draft analysts do not expect that to happen.

In a subscribers-only roundup of the latest draft rumors, ESPN’s Jordan Reid says he does not anticipate Sanders falling past the Jets, who hold the No. 7 overall selection. New York saw its latest swing at a first-round QB prospect (Zach Wilson) fail spectacularly, a miss that undermined the fortunes of otherwise talented rosters and precipitated the failed Aaron Rodgers experiment.

Gang Green signed Justin Fields to a two-year, $40MM contract earlier this month, and while there is still some hope that Fields can grow enough as a passer to sufficiently complement his running ability and to turn himself into an upper crust QB1, the short-term nature of the deal illustrates his current deficiencies in that regard. Sanders may be an imperfect prospect, but his reportedly poor performance in team interviews does not undo the touch, accuracy, and pocket presence he displayed on the field. It would thus not be terribly surprising to see the Jets’ new regime, with its 2025 starter already in place, take a shot at a high-upside talent.

One player who has been something of a forgotten man in the constant QB-related chatter surrounding the Jets is 2024 fifth-rounder Jordan Travis. Travis was in the midst of a terrific final season at Florida State in 2023 when he suffered a gruesome ankle injury that torpedoed his own draft stock. New York took a flier on him last year, though he redshirted his entire rookie season while rehabbing the injury.

According to Travis’ agent, Deiric Jackson, the Jets’ since-ousted staff rushed Travis’ rehab, thereby undermining his chances of seeing game action in 2024. 

“His rehab with the Jets was not the best,” Jackson said (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini). “They tried to rush him. It was too fast. There was pressure on the coaching staff and they tried to get him going sooner than the timeline really was. That caused the setback, and we had to shut him down completely.”

The nature of the setback Jackson mentioned is unclear, though Cimini says new HC Aaron Glenn and his staffers are excited to work with Travis. At the moment, the former Seminole is behind Fields and veteran Tyrod Taylor on the depth chart, and drafting a player like Sanders would immediately put Travis’ Jets future in doubt. But if the club takes a different route in the draft, Travis could get enough reps to prove himself worthy of at least a backup job down the road.

For all of the talk suggesting Ole Miss signal-caller Jaxson Dart or even Louisville’s Tyler Shough may have surpassed Sanders on draft boards around the league, Reid believes the Giants – who own the No. 3 overall pick – would be hard-pressed to pass on Sanders. With Cam Ward looking increasingly likely to go to the Titans at No. 1 overall, one AFC executive told Reid the Giants are praying the Browns take a top non-QB talent with the No. 2 pick, thus leaving Sanders available to be selected at No. 3. Just yesterday, we learned that Big Blue’s signing of Jameis Winston would not preclude the hot-seat tandem of GM Joe Schoen and HC Brian Daboll from signing a veteran passer like Rodgers or Russell Wilson and adding a QB via their top draft choice.

In the same subscribers-only piece cited above, ESPN’s Field Yates confirms Sanders has a legitimate chance to be a top-three choice and is unlikely to fall out of the top 10-15 selections (despite some sources expressing their worry about making Sanders a top-10 pick). Similarly, Yates and Reid colleague Matt Miller notes the chatter about a dramatic Sanders slide has not come from anyone employed by an NFL club.

Miller acknowledges the Browns remain a viable landing spot for Sanders, and he believes the Steelers and their No. 21 pick represent the prospect’s floor. Pittsburgh has designs on a championship run in 2025, as it recently acquired and extended WR D.K. Metcalf and is seemingly making a hard push for Rodgers. That said, HC Mike Tomlin’s famous streak of .500-or-better seasons rarely leaves the team in position to draft a premium QB prospect, and the 41-year-old Rodgers (and even the 36-year-old Wilson, if the Steelers revisit that possibility) are obviously short-term fixes. The pre-draft concerns that could lead to Sanders falling a bit could also represent a real opportunity for Pittsburgh, as was the case when its AFC North rival Ravens nabbed Lamar Jackson with the No. 32 pick in 2018.

Load More Posts