Jets’ best-kept secret is finally ready to set the world on fire

Given all of the New York Jets’ trades last year, you’re forgiven if you missed the August addition of Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Jowon Briggs.

Briggs, a 2024 seventh-round pick, recorded four sacks and eight tackles for loss. He started eight games following the Quinnen Williams trade and played nearly 68% of the Jets’ defensive snaps.

If Briggs eventually becomes a household name, you can claim you knew about him before most other Jets fans.

Jowon Briggs could play a significant role for the 2026 Jets

Among the more intriguing parts of any rebuild is discovering if any smaller-scale moves later pay massive dividends.

Few likely batted an eye when the Jets sent a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Browns for Briggs and a 2026 seventh-round pick.

Clearly, Briggs did enough last season to warrant receiving the exclusive rights tender this past March; he’ll remain under contract and earn the league minimum.

Briggs isn’t flashy, but the Jets don’t need him to be, especially given their current state as an organization.

More than anything, the Jets need competence and steady contributors.

Barring injuries, Briggs will likely share snaps with Harrison Phillips and T’Vondre Sweat, the latter of whom the Jets acquired in the Jermaine Johnson trade.

In a pre-draft scouting report, NFL Media’s Lance Zierlein projected that Briggs would likely be a bottom-of-the-roster or practice-squad player.

“Briggs isn’t sudden off the snap but does play with good lateral quickness to hunt and tackle runners down the line,” Zierlein wrote in 2024. “He does a decent job of utilizing hand fighting to knock a blocker’s hands off him, but he’s more likely to stay engaged early on than find quick wins.”

“Briggs is active and plays with good hustle,” Zierlein continued, “but might not have the traits or one-positional advantage to stand out.”

Seeing as he played 17 games last season and worked his way into the starting lineup, it’s fair to say that Briggs is already exceeding expectations.

From the second that they began taking calls on Williams last year, the Jets knew that replacing the four-time Pro Bowler was far easier said than done.

Even if Briggs doesn’t stuff the stat sheet, he’s at least positioned himself to have a place in Aaron Glenn’s defense.

From there, anything is possible. Just ask undrafted rookie-turned-fan favorite defensive tackle, Damon Harrison.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow