9 NY Jets players who definitely won't be back in 2025

2. D.J. Reed won't be back with the NY Jets in 2025

D.J. Reed is the only player on this list to publicly acknowledge that he likely won’t return to the Jets in 2025, so I guess credit to him for his transparency. Reed isn't wrong — he's almost certainly played his final game with the Jets.

Unlike many of the others on this list, Reed's stint in New York should be remembered fondly. The Jets signed the veteran cornerback to a three-year, $33 million contract prior to the 2022 season, and it's safe to say Reed exceeded any and all expectations.

Reed helped form arguably the NFL's best cornerback trio in 2023 and played at a very high level for much of his Jets tenure. Unfortunately, the writing has been on the wall for quite some time now.

The Jets already paid Michael Carter II and are expected to do the same with Sauce Gardner in the near future. With so many other internal players to extend in the coming years, it would be difficult to justify paying top dollar for three different cornerbacks.

Reed seemed to acknowledge this when speaking to Go Long's Tyler Dunne following the Jets' Week 17 loss to the Buffalo Bills. “I’m ready to go to free agency, bro,” Reed told Dunne. “I’m ready to see what’s next for me.”

1. Allen Lazard won't be back with the NY Jets in 2025

The futures of Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams are still uncertain enough to avoid inclusion on this list, but the same can't be said about Allen Lazard. Even if Rodgers does return in 2025 (which seems highly unlikely at this stage), Lazard won't be there with him.

The Jets signed Lazard to a four-year, $44 million contract prior to the 2023 season, giving him more guaranteed money than any wide receiver signed that offseason. It didn't take long for the Jets to realize their mistake.

Lazard was a disaster in his first season with the team, leading all NFL receivers with an abysmal 17.9 percent drop rate (min. 40 targets). Former Jets head coach Robert Saleh even publicly suggested the team was counting down the days until they could get out of his contract.

Lazard returned from his benching this season and actually showed some signs of life early in the year before the inconsistencies returned. The former Packers wideout once again leads all qualified NFL receivers with a 19.0 percent drop rate in 2024. Yes, somehow he got even worse.

The Jets can save over $6.6 million in cap space by releasing Lazard this offseason, and while doing so would carry a dead cap charge of $6.5 million, that shouldn't affect that decision. The Lazard contract is the latest in a long line of free-agent failures for the Jets franchise.

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