The New York Jets came out of the 2026 trade deadline with one move on the books and a handful of questions hanging in the air.
Their lone deal came the day before the deadline, when they sent safety Andre Cisco to the Detroit Lions for a sixth-round pick that was first reported as a 2028 selection before being updated to a 2029 choice. Cisco fit the profile of a movable piece: a veteran backup on an expiring contract, with younger safeties already waiting behind him on the depth chart.
Rookie VJ Payne is also close to making his debut after missing the first nine games with an injury. At 2-7, the Jets made the practical call by taking something for a player they could afford to lose.
Grade: B+
The bigger swing-and-miss came with Will McDonald, or at least with the possibility of moving him. Reports suggested the Jets drew interest for the edge rusher, and the New York Post said they were offered a second-round pick for the 27-year-old.
If that was the real offer, passing on it looks brutal. McDonald has slipped into a backup role, his production has fallen off from last season, and the organization doesn’t appear committed to him long term.
He is under contract through 2028 on his fifth-year option, but there has been no talk of an extension. With David Bailey already on the roster and Joseph Ossai ideally healthy, McDonald’s path to meaningful snaps could get even tighter.
The Jets also had to weigh the risk of an injury dragging his value down even further. If the return really was a second-rounder, this one is hard to defend.
Grade: F+
The Geno Smith situation was the opposite. Minnesota reportedly checked in on the quarterback, but the Vikings ultimately reunited with Kirk Cousins, landing him from the Las Vegas Raiders for a 2027 third-round pick.
That gives the Jets a useful reference point, especially since Las Vegas got Smith for the same package last year. Even so, New York was right to hold firm.
Smith is an above-average veteran starter, and that matters more than a third-round pick for a team sitting at 2-7. He gives the Jets a chance to properly evaluate and develop their young weapons now, and he also makes sense as a bridge quarterback for the future, whether that means mentoring a first-round passer or keeping the seat warm until that player is ready.
Keeping Smith also gives the Jets a head start on a new deal, with the chance to sell him on a starting job, a strong contract, and likely a new head coach and offensive system. Grade: A
Beyond those two names, the Jets’ quiet deadline was a little surprising. There wasn’t much reporting on other possible moves, but it still stands out that Cisco was the only player they managed to move.
Harrison Phillips, Nahshon Wright, and Tim Patrick all fit the description of expendable veterans, and in a more active seller’s market, one of them probably could have brought back a conditional late-round pick. That said, it’s possible no one around the league had real interest.
Still, for a 2-7 team, the Jets looked like they should have been more willing to sell. Instead, they held onto more pieces than expected, and it raises the possibility that the coach was trying to chase wins now in an effort to protect his job.
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