Jets may have found an unexpected answer to their Quinnen Williams problem

When the New York Jets traded for Jowon Briggs ahead of the start of the regular season, they thought they thought they were getting a rotational run-stuffer who could help their defensive tackle depth.

A 2024 seventh-round pick, Briggs spent much of last season on the Cleveland Brown's practice squad, leaving expectations low. The unit, at the time, was anchored by superstar Quinnen Williams, but not much else supported him.

Trading Williams was one of two blockbuster, franchise-altering moves the team made at the deadline. While the trade brings seismic potential for the future, it opened a huge hole right in the middle of New York's defense.

Coming back in that trade, however, was a player who, while no direct Williams replacement, had a pedigree to make an impact on the interior in Mazi Smith.

We're now games into the post-Quinnen Williams era, and a young defensive tackle is making an impact, just not the one you might have expected.

Jowon Briggs is becoming an unexpected answer to the Jets' life after Quinnen Williams question

Smith might have the first-round pedigree, but it's been Briggs who has stepped up in the void created by Williams' departure.

Smith had been a disappointment in Dallas, where his athleticism and size didn't translate to production thanks to poor technique and, at times, a questionable motor. Not much has changed as he's yet to record a stat so far in his Jets tenure.

Briggs, on the other hand, had played like a solid depth tackle through most of the season. On the season, the 24-year-old has two sacks, five QB hits, and three tackles for a loss despite playing just 40% of the defensive snaps.

Acceptable performance, no doubt, but in the Jets' past two matchups, he's started kicking it up a notch. His 20 total pressures on the season rank 31st out of 124 qualified defensive tackles, and that number is despite ranking 86th in pass rush snaps.

Of those 20 pressures, 11 have come over the last two games, with six against his former team, the Browns, and five more coming against the New England Patriots. In the Jets' Week 10 matchup against the Browns, Briggs also posted a PFF pass rush grade of 90, his highest mark of the season.

While Briggs was primarily expected to be a space-eater against the run, his 61.1 run defense grade on the season is a tick below average. Meanwhile, his 72.0 pass rush grade ranks in the top 20 percent of the league's defensive tackles. His 72.1 overall grade ranks 24th as well, showing that the youngster might be able to develop into a starting-caliber tackle.

A Quinnen replacement he is not, but, much like Jarvis Brownlee, he's proving to be a shrewd pickup as an undervalued, late-round draft pick that Darren Mougey has been able to steal and develop into a regular contributor on defense.

While what Mougey does with all the draft capital he's acquired will ultimately define his legacy, savvy pickups of promising but overlooked young players will go a long way towards breaking the Jets out of their seemingly infinite doldrums while the next cast of stars is rebuilt.