Jets' stunning trade spree sets up ultimate flexibility for the future

On Tuesday, the New York Jets franchise appeared to be one thing. Then, by about 2 p.m. ET, it appeared to be a completely different thing. Within the span of just a few hours, the entire organization was flipped on its head. Building blocks were ripped out from below the stack, causing everything to tumble down. Now what?

Now, the Jets rebuild. Again. But this doesn't appear to be the same kind of rebuild we're used to. Typically, we see it coming.

Not that it's a total shock that New York is pivoting toward draft capital vs win-now talent. It would be malpractice for the front office not to do so. The team is long since out of contention. But the few talented pieces left on the roster seemed likely to stick for the time being.

They didn't.

What was already a rebuild is now an ultra-rebuild. Trading away Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, two cornerstones of the defense, was a more aggressive move than expected. Maybe that's because this wasn't totally intentional.

It seems the Jets brass were given an opportunity they didn't see coming. As a result, the remainder of the season looks bleak. But also as a result, the Jets might have locked in their choice of franchise quarterbacks.

The Jets stepped into offers they couldn't refuse and now find themselves holding a golden ticket

Through six and a half seasons, Quinnen Williams has been the face of the Jets defense, and arguably its best player. He's recorded 213 run stops, 45 sacks, 287 total pressures, and a career Pro Football Focus defensive grade of 77.5. He's been a Pro Bowler, a success story, and now he is the newest addition to the Dallas Cowboys' defense.

Sauce Gardner shares a similar distinction to Williams, as a core member of the defense for the better part of a decade. Since his rookie season in 2022, he's been considered one of the best defensive backs on the planet. He has a career PFF grade of 79.5 and a PFF coverage grade of 80.7.

Although he dropped off substantially this season, with grades of 71.3 and 68.7, respectively, he's a mega-talented player who will be impactful for years to come. Only now, instead of green and white in New Jersey, he'll be doing it in blue and white in Indianapolis.

Going into Tuesday, with the trade deadline approaching, most of the rumors surrounding the Jets centered around Breece Hall. It would have made plenty of sense to move him. His value is at an all-time high, given his health and recent performance.

There's also never a better time to sell high on a running back than right as he hits his mid-20s. However, most in the know would have bet on Williams and Gardner being excluded from any deals.

Darren Mougey sees the writing on the wall. If the Jets are ever going to be good again — and that’s a big if — it won’t happen anytime soon. Keeping talent is ideal, but by the time New York is ready to truly compete, much of that core will already be past its prime.

And Mougey certainly never expected Dallas to put a first-round pick, a second-round pick, and young defensive tackle Mazi Smith on the table in exchange for Williams.

He also never expected the Colts to throw two more first-round picks and wide receiver Adonai Mitchell on the negotiating table in exchange for Gardner. But against all odds, both of those things happened just before the buzzer sounded at the deadline.

With two separate general managers doing their best Don Vito Corleone impression by presenting the Jets with offers they couldn't refuse, their hands were tied.

With more first- and second-round picks than they know what to do with over the next few seasons, the Jets are set to begin another full-scale reshaping of the roster.

The clear priority will be finding a franchise quarterback. And with the team already trending toward a top selection, they may have just positioned themselves for the best pick in the entire draft.

Make no mistake, Aaron Glenn did not enter 2025 with any intention of tanking, nor did he enter last week with that goal. But after the moves the Jets made, they’ve stumbled into an even weaker roster than before. At this point, reaching two wins by season’s end would be a miracle.

So if the Jets decide that a quarterback is the direction they want to go in, which they absolutely will, they should have their choice of who they want. Now, it's a matter of hitting on the right guy.

That is where the Jets have failed for over 50 years now, unfortunately.