Getty New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh reacting in the middle of an NFL game.
The New York Jets have a surplus of pass rushers and they could hit the eject button on one of them ahead of the 2023 season.
Brad Spielberger of Pro Football Focus recently projected a trade, free agent signing, or extension for every team in the NFL. That included a potential trade ahead of training camp.
Chicago Bears receive: defensive lineman Bryce Huff
New York Jets receive: a conditional 2024 fourth-round draft choice
“The trade compensation here likely falls around a fourth-round pick, perhaps with conditions tied to his playtime or production that could elevate the value,” Spielberger explained in an article posted on June 28.
PFF Explains Rationale Behind Jets-Bears Trade for Huff
Spielberger labeled Huff as an “assassin on passing downs.”
According to the analytics, Huff was the No. 1 pass rusher in the league with a 25.6 percent pass rush win rate in 2022.
Spielberger said that was the best mark in the league by “more than three percentage points among edge rushers with at least 100 pass-rush snaps.”
He admitted that potentially moving on from a player with those kinds of metrics doesn’t make a lot of sense. However, Spielberger said, “It makes even less sense for Huff to be a fifth edge rusher when he has earned a larger role.”
Huff only appeared in 20 percent of the defensive snaps for the Jets last season and has never played more than 51 percent during his career. In 2022 the Jets coaching staff made the talented pass rusher a healthy scratch through the first three games of the season.
Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic shared in an article posted on June 20 that the Jets have taken trade calls on Huff this offseason from interested teams.
Weighing Pros and Cons of Jets Trading Huff in 2023
While nothing materialized from those trade discussions it raises some interesting questions.
Huff was a restricted free agent this offseason and the Jets placed a second-round tender on him. If another team would have signed him to an offer sheet, New York could have received a 2023 second-round draft pick in exchange for his services if they didn’t match the contract.
No team ended up making an offer and Huff signed his one-year RFA tender for $4.3 million.
If Gang Green traded Huff there would be no dead cap hit. The only reason that general manager Joe Douglas might want to trade Huff is if he has no plans on signing him to a long-term extension.
Huff is only 25 years of age and is set to be an unrestricted free agent in 2024. The Jets could potentially lose him for nothing next offseason.
Gang Green is overflowing with pass-rushing options having selected a pair of defensive linemen in the first round over the last two years (Jermaine Johnson and Will McDonald).
Moving on from Huff could provide the Jets with a future asset and it would open up additional playing time in the defensive line rotation.
However, you could also make a strong case to keep the talented pass rusher. The Jets want pieces that can help now, not later.
Exchanging one of the best pass situational pass rushers in the league for a future day-three pick hurts the team’s chances of winning a title this season. Keeping him would also provide more depth just in case an injury hits the room.