Andre Cisco got the kind of chance most Jets fans only daydream about: a shot to suit up for the team he grew up rooting for. But after a rough, injury-hit 2025, the Queens native is heading back into camp with a very different kind of challenge in front of him.
The Jets brought Cisco back this offseason on a one-year, $2.5 million deal after originally signing him last year to a one-year, $8.5 million contract. That first run with his hometown team never really clicked. Cisco started eight games before a torn pectoral muscle shut him down in Week 8, and the production never matched the hope the Jets had when they came in high on his youth, upside, and ball skills.
Now the path is narrower. A roster spot looks likely, since half of Cisco’s new contract is guaranteed, but a starting job is not sitting there waiting for him. Dane Belton and rookie Malachi Moore are both in the mix for snaps next to Minkah Fitzpatrick, which could leave Cisco fighting for a role as camp opens.
The appeal with Cisco has always been easy to see. In four seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars, he built a reputation as a safety who could find the football, piling up eight interceptions, 24 pass breakups, and three forced fumbles.
That’s the version of Cisco the Jets thought they were getting. Last season, they barely saw it.
He finished 2025 without an interception, and the entire Jets roster went the season without one. Cisco managed just one pass breakup in eight games, and his only takeaway came on a fumble recovery in Week 7 - the Jets’ first takeaway of the year.
Cisco didn’t hide from how disappointing that was. In an exclusive interview with Newsday after re-signing with the Jets this spring, he said he wasn’t happy with the way he played and pointed directly to the areas he needs to clean up.
"I didn’t stay healthy; I didn't play to the standard I want to play to; I didn't help us stack wins and take the ball away. All the things that I kind of pride myself on."
Tackling has also been a problem. Cisco missed more than 18 percent of his tackle attempts last season, and his career missed tackle rate is now above 14 percent. That issue has followed him since he entered the league in 2021.
For Cisco, success in 2026 doesn’t have to mean reclaiming a starting job. If he can carve out a steady defensive role, rediscover the playmaking that made him such an intriguing free-agent target, and contribute on special teams, he can still give the Jets useful depth at a position that looks stronger than it did a year ago.
That special teams piece matters, too. Cisco didn’t play a single snap there last season, but that could change if he opens the year as the fourth safety. He hasn’t been a regular special teams contributor since his rookie season.
Cisco grew up on Long Island as a Jets fan, and he’s getting another crack at making that childhood connection mean something on the field. This summer will help determine whether that chance lasts beyond one more season.
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