The Jets made two waiver claims that could shape the early part of their roster decisions, adding kicker Blake Grupe from the Indianapolis Colts and linebacker Trevin Wallace from the Carolina Panthers, according to NFL insider Tom Pelissero.
Grupe arrives after Jason Sanders had a shaky preseason finale, giving New York another option at a position that still isn’t settled. The Colts recently settled their own kicking battle by choosing Spencer Schrader over Grupe.
In preseason action, Grupe was perfect on both extra-point tries but connected on only two of four field-goal attempts. He missed from 36 yards and 61 yards.
Over three NFL seasons, Grupe has appeared in 50 games. He has made 86 of 105 field-goal attempts, good for 81.9 percent, and 96 of 98 extra-point tries, which comes out to 98 percent. His longest field goal is 60 yards, and in 2025 he drilled seven kicks from 50 yards or longer, the ninth-most among kickers, while also missing five attempts from inside 50.
The move makes it clear the Jets weren’t ready to simply hand the job to Sanders. At the very least, Grupe gives them a fallback option, and the Week 1 kicker situation remains unresolved.
Wallace brings a different kind of value. A third-round pick by Carolina in 2024 out of Kentucky, he has played in 25 career games with 20 starts. His résumé includes 125 total tackles, 72 solo stops, 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, four pass deflections, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
Linebacker was already a spot the Jets needed to reinforce after the initial 53-man roster was set, especially with Mykal Walker out for the season.
That opens the door for Wallace to matter quickly in New York’s linebacker group. Jamien Sherwood and Demario Davis sit atop the depth chart, while Kiko Mauigoa and Marcelino McCrary-Ball are next in line.
Mauigoa, a fifth-round pick in 2025, is still largely untested. McCrary-Ball has proven useful on special teams, but his defensive ceiling is limited. That leaves a clear path for Wallace to seize the LB3 job if he performs.
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