Teams have called NY Jets about a potential Bryce Huff trade

The NY Jets added even more talent to an already stacked defensive end room this offseason in the form of first-round pick Will McDonald. The Jets hope McDonald could serve a valuable role as a situational pass rusher early in his career, but that's not necessarily good news for one of his teammates.

Former undrafted free agent Bryce Huff has developed into arguably the best pure pass rusher on the Jets' roster. In fact, he was one of the most efficient pass rushers in the entire NFL last season.

Despite this, McDonald seems primed to take Huff's role in the Jets' defensive line rotation. It's unclear what role, if any, Huff will have if everyone is healthy to start the year.

Perhaps that's why it shouldn't come as a surprise that the Jets have reportedly been receiving trade calls about the promising young edge rusher.

The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt reported on Tuesday that "teams have called the Jets about trading for Huff this offseason. Nothing has materialized to this point, but it wouldn't be a surprise if something did happen this summer.

The NY Jets could trade Bryce Huff this summer

Signed as an undrafted free agent following the 2020 NFL Draft, Huff made the 53-man roster out of training camp and has since gone on to become a staple of the Jets' defensive line rotation.

He's coming off his best season to date in 2020 as well, despite the fact that the Jets rendered him a healthy scratch early in the year. Huff's 25.6 percent pass-rush win rate, per Pro Football Focus, was the highest among any edge defender in the NFL last season.

He finished with a higher pressure rate than the likes of Myles Garrett, T.J. Watt, Nick Bosa, and numerous other star pass rushers. Of course, this was helped by the fact that Huff played exclusively on passing downs, but that shouldn't take away from his absurd efficiency.

Huff was, for all intents and purposes, an elite pass rusher last season. The Jets are obviously high on McDonald, but on a per-snap basis, it's hard for any player to be more efficient in a situational pass-rusher role than Huff was last season.

That doesn't matter, though. The Jets didn't draft McDonald for him to sit on the bench, and neither he nor Huff are seen as early-down players at this stage. There might not be enough snaps to go around for both of them.

In fact, in a fully healthy Jets defensive line room, Huff is likely going to be a healthy scratch once again. It's hard to imagine the Jets dressing six defensive ends and four defensive tackles. Huff is likely the odd man out.

That's why it might make sense for the Jets to explore trade offers this summer. That doesn't mean they should shop him. After all, Jets head coach Robert Saleh absolutely lives by the philosophy that you can never have too many pass rushers.

But Huff is set to be a free agent at the end of the year, and it seems unlikely that the Jets would look to bring him back at this stage. They seemingly don't value him as much as the numbers suggest they should.

Bryce Huff was one of the most efficient and effective pass rushers in the entire NFL last season, but he might not have a role in this Jets' defense. Don't be surprised if he's traded this summer.