The Jets’ quarterback room has taken another turn, and this one comes with plenty of intrigue.
A few days after New York’s Week 2 loss to the Green Bay Packers, the team is making a move that reshapes its depth chart. Geno Smith remains the starter barring injury, rookie fourth-round pick Cade Klubnik is set as the backup, and the opening at third quarterback is now being filled by a familiar name from outside the building.
According to Tom Pelissero of The Ringer, the Jets are signing former Titans quarterback Will Levis to the practice squad. To make room, Bailey Zappe is being released.
"Former Titans QB Will Levis is signing with the Jets' practice squad, sources tell @ringer @netflixsports," Pelissero reports.
Levis arrives in New York after missing the entire 2025 season because of a shoulder injury. Before that, he had already built a reputation as one of the league’s more polarizing young passers, and the Jets are taking a swing on that profile now.
He has made 21 starts in his NFL career, going 5-16. In those games, Levis has thrown 556 passes and completed 339 of them for a 61.0 completion percentage. He has 3,899 passing yards, 21 touchdowns and 16 interceptions.
The mistakes have been part of the package, too. Levis has taken 69 sacks over two seasons and has fumbled 17 times in his career.
Drafted 33rd overall by the Titans out of Kentucky in 2023, Levis is now 27 and joins the Jets as their third-string quarterback after this move. New York had spent much of the offseason looking for quarterback depth and eventually stayed with Klubnik as its No. 2, but the team is now adding a player whose upside has clearly kept him in the conversation.
For the Jets, it’s a low-risk bet on a boom-or-bust arm. Levis may not get on the field this season, but he’s in the building now, and that alone makes this one of the more interesting quarterback additions of the year.
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