Jets wide receiver fix sounds awfully familiar (and not in a good way)

It feels like the New York Jets are in a weird spot right now. They might be better than last season, but they might also be worse. The once-hyped “Jets are AFC East contenders with Aaron Rodgers” experiment blew up in record time. It took four snaps for instant regret to set in. Rodgers is gone. So is Davante Adams. And now the team is trying to reset—again.

To their credit, the reset started off strong. Justin Fields is a legitimate reclamation project and a nice flyer at quarterback. But the offense still needs work—especially at wide receiver. Garrett Wilson is back as the No. 1 option but after that? Things get bleak quickly.

Adams was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise miserable season. In just 11 games, he put up 854 yards and seven touchdowns. He was productive. But once Rodgers was out, so was Adams. He got his wish to return to the West Coast and signed with the LA Rams. That leaves a very real void in the Jets’ WR room—and now we’re starting to see some questionable names surface as potential replacements.

Recent rumor gives Jets underwhelming Davante Adams replacement

Former NFL quarterback Kurt Benkert recently weighed in via Bleacher Report and threw out a suggestion that should concern Jets fans:

"I put the New York Jets on this list because, one, Davante Adams is gone. Two, right now their No. 2 receiver is Allen Lazard, and their No. 1 receiver is Garrett Wilson. Garrett Wilson did not thrive when he was the only true vertical receiver in their offense.”

Benkert explained that Wilson can’t do it alone—and that New York needs to add someone with real value if they want to compete. Going into the season with Lazard as WR2 is a massive no-no.

“I really, really think that the Jets — if they want to have a chance this year at all in their division — need to bring somebody to the table, whether it’s through the draft (maybe they draft somebody) or someone like Amari Cooper, that at least for this year can go bolster them up a little bit, bring them a little bit more value, and kind of get them going. So I see the Jets as a potential landing spot for Amari Cooper.”

Cooper would be one of the more room-temperature additions of the offseason. He’s not the player he once was. He struggled in Cleveland. He faded in Buffalo. He’s about to turn 31 and coming off arguably the worst season of his career. Even the idea of “buying the dip” feels like wishful thinking.

If the situation feels familiar, it's probably because it is. Jets fans literally sat through this exact thought process last year.

The Jets already tried adding a “solid veteran” to boost the receiver room last year when they brought in Mike Williams. It flopped. Williams lasted nine games, caught just 12 passes, and didn’t score a single touchdown. He was eventually traded to Pittsburgh, where he caught one touchdown the rest of the season. That was it.

The 2025 NFL Draft has several intriguing options. Perhaps they go that route instead. Tet McMillan (Arizona), Tre Harris (Ole Miss), and Emeka Egbuka (Ohio State) are three names that could be very interesting players alongside Wilson.

If Cooper signs in New York, it'll feel like deja vu. It’s the same profile. A name-brand wideout who isn’t capable of filling the WR2 role anymore. It didn’t work last time. It’s hard to imagine it working now.

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