NY Jets news: Lamar Jackson trade 'never been more likely,' Bobby Wagner interest

The NY Jets seem to have zeroed in on the likes of Aaron Rodgers and Derek Carr as their top two quarterback options, but Lamar Jackson remains the pipedream lurking in the distance.

As it stands, a Jackson trade seems more likely to happen now than ever before. That was the sentiment shared by ESPN's Jeff Darlington, who reported on Thursday that "anything is possible" regarding the future of the former MVP.

Darlington cited sources that suggested the Ravens won't be as desperate as the Cleveland Browns, who signed Deshaun Watson to a record-breaking fully-guaranteed five-year, $230 million contract. Jackson is looking for a similar deal.

It's still unlikely that the Jets are the ones to trade for Jackson if he's moved, but with the franchise tag window now open, this is absolutely a situation worth monitoring.

Other NY Jets news

Could the Jets have interest in Bobby Wagner?

The Los Angeles Rams agreed to mutually part ways with veteran linebacker Bobby Wagner on Thursday in a move that helped create cap space while allowing the 32-year-old to pursue more appealing options.

uSTADIUM reported that the Jets were one of the teams that showed interest in Wagner last offseason, although it's unclear if they would still have interest a year later. Given how good Wagner still is, they probably should.

The 10-time All-Pro was Pro Football Focus' No. 1 ranked linebacker in 2022 as he earned second-team All-Pro honors, the ninth consecutive season in which he was named an All-Pro.

Wagner might be an odd fit alongside C.J. Mosley, not to mention the financial ramifications of having both under contract, but perhaps the Jets consider releasing Mosley with a post-June 1st designation and replacing him with Wagner.

3 Jets make PFF's Top 101 players list

Pro Football Focus released its annual list of the top 101 players in the NFL on Thursday, and three Jets managed to make the list. The Jets also had three players on last year's list (Marcus Maye, Quinnen Williams, Foley Fatukasi), although only one even played for the team the following season.

This year, Sauce Gardner was ranked No. 18 overall, Williams was ranked 27th, and Garrett Wilson came in at No. 76. That means the Jets' two top picks in the 2022 NFL Draft are both among the NFL's elite players after just one season.

In fact, Gardner was the highest-ranked cornerback, which makes sense given that he was PFF's highest-graded cornerback in 2022. Williams was the third-highest defensive tackle behind Chris Jones and Dexter Lawrence. Wilson was the 10th-highest-ranked wide receiver.

Drafting the best cornerback in football and a top-10 wide receiver (as rookies!) seems like a pretty good haul to me. Throw in a dominant defensive superstar in Williams and that's a heck of a trio for the Jets to build around.