Garrett Wilson

Jets Place WR Garrett Wilson On IR

November 14th, 2025 at 12:45pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

NOVEMBER 14: Head coach Aaron Glenn said on Friday (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini) he thinks Wilson will be able to return late in the season. A final call on that front has yet to be made, and it will no doubt be influenced by the team’s place in the standings come December. The progress of Wilson’s recovery will be key in determining whether or not he suits up again in 2025.

NOVEMBER 13: The Jets are placing star wide receiver Garrett Wilson on injured reserve, per a team announcement.

Wilson was diagnosed with a knee sprain after exiting Sunday’s victory over the Browns with a projected return timeline of three to four weeks. The Jets have elected to free up a roster spot by placing him on injured reserve, which will sideline him for the team’s next four games.

That will deprive Justin Fields of his best wideout for another handful of games. Unsurprisingly, the fifth-year quarterback has been significantly better when Wilson has been on the field. The Jets have gotten precious little out of their other pass-catchers this year; rookie tight end Mason Taylor leads the pack at 27.3 receiving yards per game, and none of his healthy teammate are over 25.0 YPG.

Wilson already missed a few weeks with an injury to the same knee, which has multiple implications.

First, it shows that the Jets cannot necessarily rely on one of their other receivers to step up. They had the opportunity during Wilson’s first absence and could not deliver.

Second, it may encourage the team to take a more cautious approach with Wilson’s return. He could come back in Week 14 at the earliest with four games remaining in the season. The Jets are already all-but-mathematically eliminated from the playoffs right now, and by the time Wilson is eligible to play, they will likely be mathematically eliminated, too. They may want to keep Wilson on the shelf for the rest of the season to ensure he does not suffer another, more severe injury that could impact 2026.

Jets WR Garrett Wilson To Miss 3-4 Weeks With Knee Sprain

November 10th, 2025 at 5:09pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Jets receiver Garrett Wilson returned from a two-game absence on Sunday only go suffer an injury to the same knee that sidelined him for the team’s previous two games.

Wilson is dealing with a knee sprain that will keep him out for another three to four weeks, per ESPN’s Rich Cimini. He will not require surgery and will instead spend the time rehabbing in the hopes of a strong return for the last few weeks of the season. The Jets air attack that has run through Wilson this year, so the 25-year-old’s absence will be a major, if not fatal, blow to their already-struggling offense.

Despite missing two-and-a-half games, Wilson is the Jets’ leading receiver by a wide margin. He has commanded a 25% target share and produced 22.9% of the team’s receptions (59) and 25.9% of their receiving yards (395). The rest of the receiving room has combined for just 39 catches and 418 yards.

The Jets insisted that wide receiver Adonai Mitchell be part of the Sauce Gardner trade, and the former Colts wideout could quickly see a huge role in his new home after Wilson’s latest injury. He was inactive on Sunday, but the Jets will try to integrate him into the offense this week.

Rookie tight end Mason Taylor, the Jets’ second leading receiver with 30 receptions and 246 yards, will likely see an uptick in targets, too. Offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand will likely lean on a rushing attack that ranks fourth in the NFL with 5.0 yards per carry and 1,276 rushing yards on the season.

The Jets recorded their first two wins of the season in the last two weeks, but their 0-7 start will make it nearly impossible for them to make the playoffs. Wilson could return in Week 14 at the earliest, based on this initial timeline, but the Jets may consider shutting him down for the season. Even if they win their next three games without Wilson – which come against the Patriots, Ravens, and Falcons – they may still want to take a cautious approach with their star wideout. They signed him to a $130MM extension in July and made him untouchable at the trade deadline despite moving star players at other premium positions. He has hurt the same knee twice, raising the chance for re-injury before the end of the season, and a significant injury could have an impact on the 2026 season.

Jets QB Justin Fields To Start In Week 10

November 9th, 2025 at 10:04am CST by Rory Parks

It appears Justin Fields’ respectable showing in the Jets’ narrow victory over the Bengals in Week 8 – their first win of the season – bought him a little extra time as New York’s QB1. The team had a Week 9 bye, and although head coach Aaron Glenn held off on an official announcement, ESPN’s Adam Schefter says Fields will get the nod against the Browns in Week 10.

At halftime of a Week 7 loss to the Panthers, Glenn benched Fields in favor of veteran Tyrod Taylor. Taylor did not fare any better than his younger counterpart, but the Jets did plan to have him start their Week 8 contest against Cincinnati (owner Woody Johnson publicly criticized Fields after the Carolina game, which further underscored Taylor’s expected promotion).

Unfortunately for Taylor, a knee injury prevented him from playing in that game. Fields went on to post a 99.0 quarterback rating – against an admittedly poor Bengals defense – and completed 21 of 32 passes for 244 yards and a score in the victory. He also rushed 11 times for 31 yards.

It will not be any easier for the Jets to win games after the trade deadline, as defensive cornerstones Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams have been dealt elsewhere in exchange for future draft capital. The club is clearly in rebuild mode, and while it appears Fields is unlikely to consistently live up to his potential as a former first-round pick, it makes sense for New York to continue evaluating him rather than asking the 36-year-old Taylor to play out the string.

After all, $10MM of Fields 2026 salary is already guaranteed, and a pre-June 1 release this offseason would create a $22MM dead money charge at a time when Aaron Rodgers will already be accounting for $35MM of dead money. The fact that Fields seems destined to be on the Jets’ 2026 iteration anyway further supports the notion that they might as well keep giving him opportunities.

He will at least have a new receiver to work with (eventually, anyway). As part of the Gardner deal, New York acquired 2024 second-rounder Adonai Mitchell, who had been buried on the Colts’ depth chart. Mitchell, however, is inactive for Week 10.

Top wideout Garrett Wilson is expected back in Week 10 after missing the prior two games due to a knee ailment.

Jets Will Not Trade WR Garrett Wilson; Latest On LB Quincy Williams

November 4th, 2025 at 2:51pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Jets have traded away Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams. Jermaine Johnson continues to draw interest, meanwhile, while Breece Hall has asked to be dealt.

With all that going on around the franchise, New York has understandably received calls about Garrett Wilson as well. In that case, however, no swap is forthcoming. Wilson is considered untouchable, SNY’s Connor Hughes reports.

Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post confirms Wilson will not be on the move. The 25-year-old was linked to trade talk last season after the Jets reunited Aaron Rodgers with Davante Adams. Neither were retained in the offseason, though, and Wilson wound up inking a four-year, $130MM extension in July. That pact moved Wilson into fifth in the league in terms of receiver compensation on an annual basis.

Considering the fact New York’s current regime (led by general manager Darren Mougey and head coach Aaron Glenn) authorized that extension, it would stand to reason Wilson will be staying in place. Of course, the same was also true of Gardner, who has been dealt just eight games after signing his extension. While the Jets’ defense will look vastly different moving forward, Wilson, 25, will remain a focal point of offense for the foreseeable future.

As for another Jets trade candidate, nothing is imminent at this point for Quincy Williams. The former All-Pro linebacker has been on the radar of interested teams leading up to the deadline, but no deal has been worked out yet. The Exhibit’s Josina Anderson reports New York has been seeking a fourth-round pick for Williams, whose brother is no longer his teammate. Quincy Williams is a pending free agent.

Time still remains for the Jets to swing one or more trades, but it seems as though that will not be the case. Wilson in particular can be assured of remaining in the fold as the team engages in a rebuild.

Jets WR Garrett Wilson To Miss Multiple Weeks With Knee Injury

October 13th, 2025 at 9:33pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson is expected to miss “a couple of weeks” with a hyperextended knee suffered in Sunday’s loss to the Broncos, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

Wilson went down late in the London-hosted matchup after his least productive performance of the season. After the game, head coach Aaron Glenn said that Wilson would undergo an MRI with an official update to come on Wednesday. The MRI revealed no serious damage, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini.

Wilson’s absence will be a major loss for a Jets offense whose 865 passing yards rank dead last in the NFL, even though a handful of teams have played one fewer game. The 2022 first-rounder leads the team with 36 receptions for 395 yards and four touchdowns; the rest of New York’s receiving corps have combined for just 20 catches, 183 yards, and one touchdown.

Contributions from other positions have been limited as well; the team’s second- and third-leading receivers are rookie tight end Mason Taylor (21 catches, 177 yards) and running back Breece Hall (17 catches, 150 yards).

The Jets’ other wideouts – Josh Reynolds, Allen Lazard, Tyler Johnson, and Arian Smith – will need to step up in their upcoming matchups against the Panthers and the Bengals. Carolina has been middling against the pass this season, while Cincinnati has allowed the second-most passing yards in the league. Still, it will be exceedingly difficult for Justin Fields to move the ball through the air without Wilson. The Jets may rely more on Fields and Hall in the ground game instead.

Wilson, meanwhile, will spend the next few weeks rehabbing his knee. He was on pace for his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard season through the first six weeks, but a few absences could put that in jeopardy. Still, he has been the only bright spot in the Jets offense this year and seems to be worth the four-year, $130MM extension he signed before the season.

Jets, WR Garrett Wilson Agree To Extension

July 20th, 2025 at 1:42pm CST by Adam La Rose

JULY 20: Wilson secured $38.3MM fully guaranteed, Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated notes. That includes a $13.75MM signing bonus and $15MM in total compensation for 2025. The remaining locked in money – included in the pact as injury guarantees – is scheduled to vest one year early for the 2026 and ’27 campaigns. Wilson’s compensation for the final two years of the deal is not guaranteed. His cap charges, per Breer, range from $4MM this year to $38.5MM in 2030.

JULY 14: One of the Jets’ major offseason priorities has been taken care of. An extension agreement has been reached with wideout Garrett Wilson, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports. The move is now official, per a team announcement.

Wilson’s new pact is four years in length and carries a value of $130MM with $90MM guaranteed, per Schefter. That works out to an average annual value of $32.5MM; the former first-rounder is the first to reach that figure after three seasons in the NFL. Given New York’s decision to pick up Wilson’s fifth-year option this spring, he is now on the books through 2030. This marks the first Jets extension for a former Day 1 pick ahead of their fourth season in the rookie wage scale era (h/t Schefter).

Adding further details on this mega-extension, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network notes Wilson will receive a $13.75MM signing bonus. The pact also contains a $20MM option bonus in its second year as well as a $10MM option bonus in Year 3. As expected, the 24-year-old is therefore due to collect on a large scale in the near future.

In terms of both total value and average compensation on a per-year basis, this deal moves Wilson to fifth at the receiver spot. The former Offensive Rookie of the Year has proven to be a focal point on offense in spite of the Jets’ level of play at the quarterback position over the past three years. To no surprise, Wilson was thus a high priority for the team on the extension front. In time for training camp, team and player worked out an agreement.

Part of the Jets’ highly successful 2022 draft class, Wilson made an immediate impact. The Ohio State product has been consistent to say the least even with New York cycling through multiple quarterbacks. Wilson has yet to miss a game in his career, and he has managed no fewer than 1,042 yards each season. Having seen his receptions total climb from 83 to 95 to 101, he will be expected to continue operating as the team’s top option in the passing game for years to come.

The Aaron Rodgers addition resulted in only four snaps played in 2023, but this past season saw the future Hall of Famer play a full campaign. Wilson and Rodgers did not mesh as well as many hoped, and the midseason arrival of Davante Adams notably altered the receiver pecking order. In the wake of that phase of his career (and the Jets’ continued inability to reach the postseason), Wilson’s future in New York became a talking point. This spring, however, he made it clear he hoped to remain in place as part of the post-Rodgers future.

Of course, the Jets’ decision to install a new coaching staff (led by Aaron Glenn) and general manager (Darren Mougey) has marked a turning point in addition to the fact Rodgers and Adams are not in place moving forward. Contract talks with Wilson have been taking place for some time now, and as of last month at least one offer was on the table. Without much issue (in terms of a potential holdout or other training camp drama), Wilson and the new decision-making regime have managed to hammer out a deal.

Now, Gang Green will turn their attention towards their ongoing negotiations with cornerback Sauce Gardner. His contract is likely to eclipse the $30MM per year mark set this offseason by Derek Stingley, who was selected one pick ahead of Gardner in the 2022 draft. Extending the two-time All-Pro would give the Jets’ new regime clear cornerstones on both sides of the ball for the foreseeable future.

Jets CB Sauce Gardner Encouraged By Extension Talks; Team Has Made Offer To Gardner, WR Garrett Wilson

June 15th, 2025 at 9:19am CST by Adam La Rose

JUNE 15: ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler confirms that the Jets have made offers to both Gardner and Wilson (video link). The players have likewise presented numbers to the club, so both sides now know exactly how much of a gap there is to bridge.

Gang Green now has the fourth-most salary cap space in the league ($38MM) after its post-June 1 cuts took effect, as well as the NFL’s lowest cash payroll ($228MM). As such, Cimini believes at least one of the Gardner/Wilson duo will have a new contract in hand by the time the regular season gets underway.

JUNE 12: Negotiations on a long-term extension with Garrett Wilson have begun. The Jets have another monster deal looming with respect to Sauce Gardner, and talks on that front have apparently been positive so far.

Both 2022 first-rounders are now eligible for an extension at any time. As expected, the Jets’ new regime picked up Wilson and Gardner’s fifth-year options, tying them to the team through 2026 by doing so. Of course, it would come as no surprise if one or both were to have a long-term pact in hand well before their rookie deals expire.

Gardner attended this week’s minicamp against the backdrop of extension talks taking place, per Dianna Russini of The Athletic. That is in line with most players around the league, of course, but like every year 2025 has seen some angling for a new deal remain away from their teams. Gardner being present is of course a positive sign regarding the nature of contract negotiations.

“I just wanted to show my teammates, my coaches how much I want to win,” the former Defensive Player of the Year said when speaking to the media on Thursday (via Russini’s colleague Zack Rosenblatt). “I want to be part of change in the organization.”

Gardner added he feels “pretty good” about the current state of extension talks (h/t Rosenblatt). As things stand, the two-time All-Pro is due $20.19MM in 2026. The top of the corner market now sits at $30MM annually, though, and that represents a logical benchmark for negotiations in this case. Gardner, 24, racked up 31 pass deflections across his first two seasons in the league. He experienced a drop in production last year, but given his age and pedigree it would come as no surprise if he found himself as the league’s top-paid corner in the relatively near future.

Wilson is a clear priority for general manager Darren Mougey, head coach Aaron Glenn and Co. The same is not necessarily true of running back Breece Hall, although he has been assured of remaining in New York for 2025. Gardner will again play a key role in the team’s performance this year and beyond, and the Jets’ cap outlook will of course be greatly affected by any long-term agreement which is reached. Based on his comments, progress has been made on that front.

Extension Candidate: Garrett Wilson

June 1st, 2025 at 10:17pm CST by Nikhil Mehta

The NFL’s wide receiver market hit a new high-water mark this offseason with Ja’Marr Chase receiving $40.25MM per year from the Bengals less than a year after Justin Jefferson became the first WR to reach a $35MM APY. D.K. Metcalf also negotiated a strong deal with the Steelers worth just under $33MM per year.

A rising tide lifts all boats, so the boom in wide receiver pay should benefit a talented 2022 draft class that became extension-eligible this offseason. Leading the pack with 279 receptions for 3,249 yards in the last three season is former No. 10 pick Garrett Wilson, who has started negotiating a long-term deal with the Jets.

Wilson has been New York’s top receiver since he joined the team and projects to play a foundational role in their new offense under offensive coordinator Tanner Engstrand. Wilson will also reunite with Ohio State teammate Justin Fields and should be his most trusted target off the bat with little competition for targets. That could position the 24-year-old receiver for a strong 2025 that could significantly raise his price tag if the Jets don’t get an extension done before the season.

Right now, negotiations will likely start around $30MM per year, the low end of the NFL’s WR1 market. Brandon Aiyuk, Tyreek Hill, and Amon-Ra St. Brown are making the same amount, per OverTheCap, and five more wideouts have an APY of $32MM or more.

Wilson seems to belong to the first group. He ranks eighth in receptions and 10th in receiving yards among WRs since 2022 with at least 1,000 receiving yards in each year. However, his career-best 2024 numbers don’t come close to Aiyuk, Hill, or St. Brown in their best seasons, so Wilson may have trouble arguing that he deserves a bigger contract than all three. Though he won Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2022, he has yet to receive Pro Bowl or All-Pro recognition, another factor that will likely keep him from a top-dollar deal.

Wilson can still construct a strong case out of his age, durability, and adaptability and argue that he’s an ascending player who has yet to play his best football. He will turn 25 this year after appearing in all 51 of the Jets’ regular-season games since being drafted despite his slight 185-pound frame. He has also demonstrated clear growth into a WR1 role with 83, 95, and 101 receptions in his first three years with noticeable improvements at the catch point last season. (Wilson posted a 56.5% catch rate in 2022 and 2023; in 2024, it jumped to 65.6%.)

However, Wilson has not been especially efficient in the pros. He ranks 19th among all WRs in yards per game (63.7) since 2022 with a pedestrian 6.93 yards per target. He has also struggled to reach the end zone with just 14 career touchdowns on 469 targets.

Advanced metrics from Pro Football Focus (subscription required) tell a similar story. Wilson’s 51.7% contested catch rate in 2024 was a career-high, but only ranked 20th among receivers with at least 85 targets. His 1.69 yards per route run ranked 32nd in that same group, though he did lead all WRs with 25 missed tackles forced after the catch.

Wilson’s production alone would likely place his next contract just outside the top 10 at his position (and therefore under $30MM per year), but context is important. The Jets’ offense around him has been terrible with three straight bottom-10 finishes in yards per game, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post. Costello also pointed out that Wilson has caught passes from eight different quarterbacks on plays called by three different coaches; his best passer was a clearly aging Aaron Rodgers in 2024 playing some of the worst football of his career. (It’s still worth noting that Wilson’s production remained largely the same with Rodgers under center, partially due to expanded competition for targets from Davante Adams.)

Fields certainly isn’t a more proven quarterback than Rodgers, but he already has a rapport with Wilson that Rodgers was never able to establish. Wilson should also benefit from Engstrand’s schematic influence after he coached Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams to breakouts in his last role as the Lions passing game coordinator.

As a result, a long-term contract in the neighborhood of $30MM per year could end up looking like a steal if Wilson takes his game to the next level in 2025. He may recognize that and adjust his demands accordingly, but the Jets have some leverage after picking up his $16.8MM fifth-year option for 2026. Wilson cannot earn more than $20MM in the next two years unless he signs a long-term extension, which should also come with upwards of $50MM in guaranteed money. The former first-round pick may still choose to bet on himself with the hopes of breaking into the upper echelon of WR contracts next offseason.

Extension Talks Between Jets, WR Garrett Wilson Underway; CB Sauce Gardner Aiming For Record-Setting Deal

June 1st, 2025 at 10:10pm CST by Rory Parks

An April report indicated the Jets would explore extensions for 2022 first-rounders Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson (along with 2021 first-round choice Alijah Vera-Tucker) after the 2025 draft. Now that the draft is over, it is fair to expect those talks to get underway.

As for Wilson, ESPN’s Rich Cimini says negotiations are in the early stages, and he anticipates the discussions will become more involved in training camp. Prior reports noted it may be difficult for the parties to agree on the appropriate compensation for the wide receiver, because while he has put up strong numbers (three consecutive 1,000-yard seasons), his surface-level statistics would not seem to make him a candidate for a top-of-the-market accord.

On the other hand, Wilson’s talent is undeniable, and he has managed his production with poor-to-mediocre quarterback play. As such, Cimini believes the Ohio State product will be looking for a $30MM/year deal, which would effectively place him in a four-way tie with Amon-Ra St. Brown, Tyreek Hill, and Brandon Aiyuk for sixth place on the WR market (the average annual value on St. Brown’s contract is $30.0025MM).

Perceived tension with former QB Aaron Rodgers and a role impacted by 2024 trade acquisition Davante Adams seemed to put Wilson’s New York future in doubt not too long ago. However, Rodgers and Adams are gone, and Wilson recently expressed his desire to remain with the Jets for the rest of his career.

Gardner has echoed those sentiments, and Cimini confirms the two-time First Team All-Pro cornerback is, like his 2022 draftmate, looking to hit or exceed the $30MM/year threshold. In the case of the CB market, though, that AAV would make Gardner the highest-paid player at his position.

Cimini does not indicate whether Gardner negotiations have begun in earnest, but previous reports suggested talks with the 24-year-old defender are not expected to be as challenging as those with Wilson. Derek Stingley Jr. ’s three-year, $90MM pact with the Texans (featuring roughly $48MM in full guarantees) presently tops the cornerback hierarchy, and despite a regression last season, player and team understand Gardner will command at least that much (Cimini predictably confirms Gardner is using Stingley’s deal as his benchmark in extension discussions).

The Jets made the easy decision to exercise the fifth-year options for both players, and the fact that Gardner has earned two Pro Bowl berths in his young career placed him in the top bracket for such options. The transaction puts him in line for a fully-guaranteed $20.19MM salary in 2026, though it would not be surprising to see a record-setting contract in place well before then (especially given the importance of a true CB1 in new head coach Aaron Glenn’s man-heavy scheme). Wilson, meanwhile, has locked in a $16.82MM salary for 2025.

As Cimini observes, the Jets will be near the top of the league in cap space on June 2, when Rodgers and C.J. Mosley – both released with post-June 1 designations earlier this offseason – officially come off the books. Those moves will free up $22.8MM of room, so there will be plenty of financial flexibility to get deals done with Gardner and Wilson (and perhaps Vera-Tucker as well).

WR Garrett Wilson Hoping For Jets Extension

May 22nd, 2025 at 9:40pm CST by Ben Levine

While there were rumblings of a potential trade request towards the end of the 2024 season, Garrett Wilson is now making it clear he wants to stick in New York. The extension-eligible receiver told reporters today that he doesn’t only want to sign a new deal with the Jets…he hopes to spend the rest of his career with the organization.

“I’m hopeful I’m a Jet for life and that we get this thing rolling and that all of our best days are ahead of us,” Wilson said (via ESPN’s Rich Cimini).

After spending the start of his career dealing with subpar QB play, frustrations mounted after the Jets failed to meet expectations during the 2024 campaign. Wilson’s issues were attributed to perceived tension with Aaron Rodgers and competition for targets from midseason acquisition Davante Adams, and there was speculation that the organizational friction could lead to a trade request.

Instead, Rodgers and Adams are both out of town, and it sounds like the Jets made a pair of offseason moves that have Wilson excited for the future. According to Cimini, the addition of Aaron Glenn has “infused the organization with hope,” and the new head coach has made it clear to the wideout that he’ll be a focal point of the offense. Wilson was also quick to laud new QB Justin Fields, with the receiver pointing to the duo’s “trust” and “communication.”

With the organization having appeared to mend fences with their star wideout, they can now look towards negotiations. While Wilson has managed to top 1,000 yards receiving in each of his three NFL seasons, sources believed the Ohio State product wouldn’t top the market at his position, with some pointing to an AAV around $25MM to $30MM.

Wilson would likely push for that $30MM threshold that’s recently been surpassed by a number of extended wideouts. A $30MM AAV would rank seventh at the position with Brandon Aiyuk and Tyreek Hill. Of course, there’s no rush for contract talks, as Wilson still has two years remaining on his rookie pact after having his fifth-year option exercised. When the time comes to get serious about negotiations, the receiver is hopeful he’ll give the front office no choice but to hand him a new deal.

“When the time does come and those conversations are being had,” Wilson said (via Cimini). “I’m going to try and do my part to make sure that it’s undeniable.”

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