Following a disappointing 1-7 start to the season, the New York Jets chose to pull the plug on their once-stellar defense.
Moving on from stars like CB Sauce Gardner and DT Quinnen Williams was a tough pill to swallow, but one that could spearhead a rebuild that might be long overdue. Here we’re going to take a look at the stellar value they got in return.
What Did The Jets Get For Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams?
The Jets reportedly weren’t shopping Gardner. However, as reported by Stephen Holder of ESPN, the Indianapolis Colts were willing to give up whatever it took to land the Cincinnati star:
“While it came at a hefty cost — the Jets received two first-round picks (2026, ’27) and embattled Colts receiver Adonai Mitchell in the deal — Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard said it was one the team couldn’t pass on,” Holder wrote.
Gardner had been signed to a massive contract extension in the offseason. He had an 85.3 PFSN impact metric grade this season, which was good for 16th among eligible cornerbacks.
As for Quinnen Williams, the star defensive tackle, he reportedly wanted to be traded due to frustration with the team’s losing record, but he and the team chose not to make his discontent public.
The Dallas Cowboys were eager to fix their run defense, and they had a surplus of draft capital stemming from the Micah Parsons trade:
“The Jets traded star defensive tackle Quinnen Williams to the Cowboys in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick and DT Mazi Smith,” NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero, and Mike Garafolo reported. “New York will receive the higher of the Cowboys’ two first-round picks in 2027.”
Williams had the eleventh-highest PFSN impact metric among defensive tackles this season (82.8), and he should help fix the Cowboys’ run defense that’s giving up the fourth-most rushing yards per game in the league (143.0).
The Jets Are Stacked With Draft Picks
As a result of this haul, the Jets will now have two first-round picks in 2026 and three first-round selections in 2027.
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They will also most likely get a valuable compensatory draft pick if star RB Breece Hall leaves in free agency.
As things stand now, the Jets (2-7) are slated to have the No. 5 and No. 32 selections in this year’s draft. However, they could package both of them to trade up to get a potential franchise quarterback like Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza or Oregon’s Dante Moore.