Getty New York Jets general manager Joe Douglas speaking to the media at the 2022 NFL Combine.
The New York Jets made it abundantly clear that they wanted to be aggressive this offseason to surround their young quarterback with as much talent as possible.
Some of the almost deals have been openly discussed while others haven’t received the same amount of pub.
With that in mind, a near-blockbuster Jets trade was recently brought to light this week.
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What Could Have Been
NFL Insider Adam Caplan joined Will Parkinson on the TOJ Podcast and brought up an interesting Jets draft story:
“Tennessee in my reporting had issues with his knees, AJ Brown has had both of them repaired. One of them I’m told is better than the other knee. Some of the teams, in fact, the Jets were involved. They actually called the Titans leading up to the pick/trade. I’m told by a pretty strong source that the Jets did talk with the Titans on the day of the draft [about a deal].”
Jets did call on AJ Brown on the day of the draft per @caplannfl 👀👀, ends up an Eagle and Jets get Garrett Wilson but there was interest, more on the TOJ Pod with Adam
You can listen to the full episode of the podcast by clicking the link here.
For weeks there was rampant speculation that the Jets could make a deal for one of several wide receivers that could be available:
- Deebo Samuel, San Francisco 49ers
- Tyreek Hill, Kansas City Chiefs
- DK Metcalf, Seattle Seahawks
The #Jets are “keeping an eye” on AJ Brown (#Titans), DK Metcalf (#Seahawks), & Deebo Samuel (#49ers) in potential trade talks, per @RichCimini.
All 3 are entering the final year of their rookie contracts & with WR market blowing up (contract-wise) something could shake here.
Despite the Titans coming out publicly saying he wouldn’t be dealt, Brown ended up being traded in a blockbuster draft-day deal.
- Eagles received: Brown
- Titans received: No. 18 overall (first round) and No. 101 overall (third round)
After seeing the trade cost that Brown ended up going for, a lot of Jets fans were wondering why the Jets weren’t in on this.
Well according to Caplan, they were very much in on this but decided to go in a different direction.
Evaluating the Results
That direction was taking wide receiver, Garrett Wilson, with the No. 10 overall pick out of Ohio State in the first round.
While Brown is clearly a talented and more proven player than the rookie, the real difference is contractually speaking.
Part of his trade to the Eagles included a massive four-year contract worth over $100 million.
Wilson is set to make $20.55 million across that same four-year time span on his rookie contract.
The Jets are gambling that the former Ohio State product will be able to adapt to the NFL game quickly and give them plenty of bang for their buck while on his cheap rookie contract.
A player like Brown you don’t have to guess on, we know how talented they’re and what kind of impact they can make on a new team. With a young unproven player, you don’t have those same assurances.
Not spending big money at wide receiver granted a ton of financial flexibility to the Jets to make a variety of other moves to improve the roster.
If Wilson becomes a star, the Jets will be in an unbelievable position moving forward. However, if he flops the Jets may live to regret not coughing up the necessary beans to acquire a superstar wideout.
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