Overview of the New York Jets Defense
Holy moly, what a mess. Several teams were in the running to be the worst NFL defense in 2025. The Jets won that ominous award hands down. Dallas gave up more points, but New York set two embarrassing records that tell the tale. No team, since they started keeping statistics in 1933, had ever gone a full season without intercepting a pass, and no team had ever totaled four or fewer takeaways. If those are not enough reasons to anoint them the worst in the league, throw in their 26 sacks, which ranked 31st, and the 72 plays of 20+ yards.
Of course, there was a change at defensive coordinator. Brian Duker was hired to hold that title. In reality, he will be an assistant to head coach Aaron Glenn, who will pull double duty by running and calling the defense. Glenn's scheme features an aggressive multiple-front approach that will show 3-, 4-, and sometimes 5-man fronts while rolling out a nickel look in the secondary roughly 80% of the time. Regardless of scheme, the biggest obstacle for this unit to overcome is the lack of talent.
The organization has gone full-blown rebuild. They started by digging the hole even deeper. New York traded away their elite corner Sauce Gardner, their star tackle Quinnen Williams, and their best edge defender Jermaine Johnson II. Then they jettisoned solid starting linebacker Quincy Williams, who had supposedly underperformed. The goal was to recoup money while collecting multiple early draft picks so they could rebuild from the ground up.
It's not like the defense was the only issue. There were big holes on both sides of the ball, so the offense got two of the three first-round picks and four of the team's first six. They landed edge David Bailey second overall and came back with corner D'Angelo Ponds in round two, and tackle Darrell Jackson Jr. in the fourth. That is a good young nucleus to build around, but it is just a start and will take some time.
Free agency and trades brought the team a collection of veterans to plug holes, but not many long-term solutions. One exception is safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who is signed through the 2030 season. Joseph Ossai inked a deal that will keep him there through 2028, but he is not a cornerstone player. Tackle T'Vondre Sweat, who came over in the Jermaine Johnson II trade, has 2 years left on his rookie deal. The rest of the guys, Nahshon Wright, Dane Belton, David Onyemata, Kingsley Enagbare, etc., are all on one-year deals. The real headscratcher was bringing back 37-year-old Demario Davis, who started his career with the team in 2012, to replace Williams at linebacker.
Sorry Jets fans, but this is going to take a while. It might even get worse before it gets any better.
New York Jets Defensive Line
In the rookie Bailey and 2023 first-rounder Will McDonald IV, New York has a pair of uber-talented young pass rushers. Notice that I said pass rushers, not edge defenders. Both players have the same issue: they don't stand up as point-of-attack run defenders. This is not to suggest that those skills can't be developed, but again, it will take some time.
McDonald reached double-digit sacks in his second season and had 8 of the team's 26 last year. His struggles as a run defender are reflected in the rest of his stats. He contributed 18 tackles and 10 assists in 2024. That means, outside of the sacks, he made 8 tackles and jumped on the pile 10 times on 758 plays. His tackle totals were virtually the same last year at 19-11. Considering he missed the last two games, leading to 109 fewer snaps, I guess we can count that as an improvement.
Maybe McDonald will be the next Trey Hendrickson, and his early-down production will steadily increase as his career moves along. McDonald reached double-digit points in four games last season. He put up 4 or fewer in nine of the other eleven. He might be worthy as a matchup-based bye-week gamble. If you need some semblance of consistency, McDonald is not your guy.
I fear that Bailey will be much the same as McDonald, though his production at Texas Tech last year leaves room for optimism. Blazing speed, athleticism, and ability to keep offensive linemen from getting their hands on him helped Bailey land 14.5 sacks and force 3 fumbles for the Red Raiders. If he can match the 32 tackles and 20 assists from his senior season as a pro, Bailey would end up being a quality option for us. If he produces tackle numbers closer to the 23-12 he averages as a three-year starter for Stanford before transferring, not so much.
I like Bailey as a taxi squad target for dynasty managers with the potential to make a decent contribution right away, but I don't see him becoming an elite fantasy option anytime soon.
Joseph Ossai started some games for the Bengals over the last two seasons. He is not a great pass rusher but may be the most complete edge on the roster. He had 46 combined stops in 2024 and 46 last year in 14 games, with 5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles in each of those seasons. He will be a dependable veteran presence for the Jets. Ossai has a limited ceiling, but he could have some fantasy value as quality depth if his role is big enough.
Quinnen Williams was a perennial top 12 option for us at tackle. There is no one on the current roster with that kind of potential. Harrison Phillips usually puts up decent tackle totals. He led the Jets tackles with 693 snaps and put up 60 combined stops in 2025. Phillips had 89 combined stops with 3 sacks for the Vikings in 2023. Those were the two most productive years of his career. He can be a contributor for us as a second or third tackle. Considering that he has 1 sack or fewer in five of his seven seasons, there is not much upside.
T'Vondre Sweat projects as the other starter. The former second-round pick of the Titans recorded 51 stops as a rookie in 2024 and has 3 career sacks. At 6'4" and 366 pounds, the Jets hope he and Phillips can change the team's fortunes on early downs. Sweat could give us decent tackle production if he stays on the field enough. Chances are, he will give way to Jowon Briggs in passing situations.
Briggs is a player to keep an eye on. He entered the league as a seventh-round pick of the Browns in 2024. The Jets picked him up last year, and he earned a job as the third man in the tackle rotation. When Williams was traded, Briggs took over as the starter. He went on to finish with 38 tackles and was second on the team with 4 sacks. He is expected to be part of the rotation. Don't be surprised if Briggs pushes Phillips for playing time, and sees a lot of action on passing downs.
David Onyemata spent six seasons as a starter for the Saints and the last three starting for Atlanta. There was a time early in his career when it looked as if he might become a fantasy factor, but he was never able to get over the hump when it comes to tackle production. His 31 career sacks include four seasons with 4 or more. Onyemata's best numbers came in 2023 when he was 25-25-4 with a couple of forced fumbles. Even at age 33, he can still be a contributor for the Jets and should at least have a significant role in the rotation, but he is unlikely to hold fantasy value.
- Edge David Bailey – Big upside as a pass rusher, concerns as a run defender
- Edge Will McDonald IV – Double-digit sacks are possible, good tackle numbers are unlikely
- Edge Joseph Ossai – Injury sleeper with a limited ceiling
- Edge Tyler Baron – Developing second-year guy
- Edge Kingsley Enagbare – No impact
- DT Harrison Phillips – Decent tackle production with no upside
- DT T'Vondre Sweat – No expectations
- DT Jowon Briggs – Watchlist deep sleeper
- DT David Onyemata – Marginal impact
- DT Mazi Smith – Not a lock to make the team
