The New York Jets have been waiting for Jamien Sherwood to look like the player they paid for, and after a rocky start to 2026, the linebacker is finally giving them signs that the turn may be real.
Sherwood entered the season coming off a three-year, $45 million extension, but his first year on the new deal was a struggle. Early on this season, the play was so uneven that there was a legitimate argument he should have been benched.
Lately, though, the picture has changed fast.
Over the last three weeks, Sherwood has posted a 79.1 defensive grade from Pro Football Focus and piled up 11 defensive stops. PFF defines a stop as a tackle that counts as a failure for the offense, so those are the kinds of plays that actually swing downs and drive endings.
Compared with the rest of the league’s linebackers since Week 5, Sherwood has stood out in the right direction. Among 75 qualifying LBs, his 79.1 defensive grade sits well above the 62.0 average, and his 11 stops are also comfortably ahead of the 6.6 average.
That kind of jump matters because it suggests more than just a decent stretch; it hints at a player finding his footing again after a rough start. There’s also a case to be made that Demario Davis has helped lighten Sherwood’s load, letting him play with a little more freedom.
The coverage numbers back up the idea that Sherwood is trending up, too. A chart from NFL analyst Judah Fortgang shows linebacker efficiency in separation prevented and PFF’s on-ball grade, using qualifiers of at least 75 snaps. That data covers the full season, not just the last three weeks.
Sherwood sits around the 90th percentile in separation prevented, which is a strong sign that he’s keeping opponents from getting easy space. His on-ball grade lands around the 69th percentile, solid but not quite as eye-catching as his ability to stay attached in coverage.
Taken together, the signs are encouraging for the Jets. Sherwood looked excellent in 2024, then fell off badly in 2025, but this stretch suggests he may be moving back toward that level. The team’s defense as a whole was poor last year, so it’s fair to ask which player on that unit was really going to rise above the mess.
That’s part of why Sherwood’s extension mattered in the first place: the Jets believed he could be one of their defensive building blocks. If this recent run is the new normal, he can absolutely be a starting linebacker who fits next to someone like Davis, especially if Davis is handling the green-dot duties.
And if the Jets can keep getting this version of Sherwood, they’ll be in a better position moving forward. Kingsley Enagbare, Dane Belton, Azareye’h Thomas, and T’Vondre Sweat have also emerged as possible long-term defensive pieces.
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