Jets’ curse with Chiefs scraps continues after latest bust signing

With the 2025 preseason officially over, it’s time for NFL teams to get their rosters down to 53 players. The New York Jets have started their process of roster trimming by trading a veteran player away. On Sunday, New York sent defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi to the Kansas City Chiefs for a conditional 2027 sixth and seventh round pick swap.

This trade sends Nnadi back to the Chiefs, the team he was drafted by in the third round of the 2018 Draft, and for whom he spent his first seven seasons in the league. For the Jets, it gives them another failed experience with a former Kansas City player.

Back in 2023, New York signed wide receiver Mecole Hardman after he left the Chiefs, and ultimately traded him back to Kansas City not even halfway through the season.

Jets trade Derrick Nnadi to Chiefs ahead of roster cutdown

New York signed Nnadi to a one-year, $1.4 million deal this offseason, so he wasn’t a costly misfire. However, the Jets were hoping he could become an important contributor on the interior of their defensive line this season. In seven seasons with the Chiefs, Nnadi started 87 games and played in 115 total, recording 233 tackles, seven for a loss, five sacks, and an interception.

He also helped Kansas City win three Super Bowls, so New York was hoping for a big impact from him. Ultimately, things didn’t work out, and Nnadi is back at his NFL home, and the Jets are moving on with a different group of defensive tackles.

Earlier in the week, New York traded with the Minnesota Vikings for veteran defensive tackle Harrison Phillips and also acquired Jowon Briggs from the Cleveland Browns. The Jets now seem set on the group of interior defensive linemen they will enter the season with.

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