The Jets stayed quiet at the deadline, and the only move they made was sending Andre Cisco to the Detroit Lions for a 2029 sixth-round pick. Even with pass rusher Will McDonald drawing interest, New York held firm and passed on offers that reportedly climbed as high as a prime Day 2 asset.
That decision has left McDonald right back in the middle of a messy season-long debate. He has been buried on the depth chart, and when he has gotten on the field, he has not looked anything like John Abraham as a pass rusher. Still, the Jets apparently saw enough upside to reject trade interest and keep waiting on a bigger payoff.
Head coach Aaron Glenn is buying into that vision. Glenn said McDonald, who had requested a trade after seeing his role diminish this season, has "second-to-none" pass-rush ability and has earned an expanded role on this defense. That’s a hard sell for a 27-year-old in his fourth season who still hasn’t clearly separated himself from Kingsley Enagbare.
And that’s the heart of the frustration here: McDonald’s profile hasn’t really changed. He remains a poor run defender, and while he can flash as a pass rusher, those flashes come in bursts with long quiet stretches in between. The talent is there in spots, but the consistency never seems to stick.
New York came into the year planning for McDonald to be part of a four-man edge rotation with No. 2 pick David Bailey and free-agent additions Joseph Ossai and Enagbare. Ossai has been hurt for nearly the entire season, and Enagbare has cooled off after a strong start.
From a pure football standpoint, there’s at least an argument for letting McDonald play and seeing whether something clicks. Unless Bailey goes on the kind of tear he showed against the Kansas City Chiefs, the Jets have made it obvious all season that their pass rush is limited.
But there’s another side to the roster picture. Harrison Phillips and Jowon Briggs have both slipped so badly that they are barely playable, and without T’Vondre Sweat, the run defense has gone from average to deplorable. In that context, giving McDonald more snaps looks like one of the least useful ways to try to improve the team.
So the bigger issue may not even be McDonald himself. It’s the fog around who is actually making these calls.
Does Glenn really believe in McDonald? Is Mougey trying to preserve pieces for the next regime?
Or did the Jets simply never get the offer they wanted? However it breaks down, the uncertainty is exactly what’s driving fans nuts.
In Other News...
Jets Fans Have A New Reason To Watch This Stretch Closely
The Jets have spent plenty of this season living on the edge, and Aaron Glenns recent comments about the teams close losses only sharpen that picture. There is also a little more movement around the roster, with Will McDonald seeing more playing time and Garrett Wilson back at limited practice, giving the stretch run a few more angles to watch as the team tries to sort out what it has.
There is also some off-field and future-facing news that keeps the Jets in the conversation. The compensation tied to the Andre Cisco trade has been adjusted, Rex Ryan is dealing with misdemeanor charges after a traffic incident, and quarterback prospect Drew Mestermaker has been climbing as a name to know in the draft picture, with his stock now strong enough to draw real attention. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Suddenly Have A Mike Tomlin Question Fans Can't Ignore
Mike Tomlins name is already floating through the usual coaching carousel, and the chatter has only grown since he stepped down as the Steelers head coach and moved into an NFL analyst role with NBC. He has not shut the door on returning to the sideline someday, but he also made clear that he has not spent much time thinking about it, preferring instead to stay locked in on broadcasting and getting better each week in that job.
Still, once a coach with Tomlins rsum is available in any form, the speculation tends to follow him everywhere, including to teams like the Jets, Cowboys, Eagles, Colts and Panthers. For New York, it is the kind of name that naturally gets attention whenever the future of the franchise comes up, even if Tomlin is not publicly treating a comeback as an immediate priority. [Read more 🡒]
Bills Just Added A New Problem For The Jets Secondary
The Bills have spent the season looking for ways to make life harder on opposing quarterbacks, and their latest move only sharpens that edge. By bringing in safety Amani Hooker from the Titans, Buffalo added a proven playmaker to a secondary that already had the Jets thinking carefully about every throw, and now the timing lines up for him to make his first appearance in a Bills uniform against New York in Week 10.
Hooker is no stranger to this matchup, either. He faced the Jets back in Week 1 while still with Tennessee, and he arrives in Buffalo tied for the league lead in interceptions, which gives the Bills another ballhawk to pair with a defense that has been difficult to navigate. For a Jets offense already trying to find clean answers in the passing game, the addition raises the stakes even more when these teams meet again. [Read more 🡒]