The New York Jets made a flurry of roster moves on Monday, August 31.
The Jets were awarded placekicker Blake Grupe and linebacker Trevin Wallace off waivers. In a corresponding series of roster moves, they released former first-team All-Pro Jason Sanders and waived offensive lineman Kohl Levao.
Grupe is a direct replacement for Sanders. He will be the new starting placekicker when the Jets open the season on the road against the Tennessee Titans in Week 1.
Jets Secure Some Much Needed Linebacker Depth
During cutdown day, the Jets surprisingly placed veteran LB Mykal Walker on injured reserve with a calf issue. That knocked him out for the entire 2026 season.
Wallace will now fill that void in the linebacking corps. The former Kentucky product originally entered the league as the No. 72 overall pick in the third round of the 2024 NFL draft.
Across his two seasons at the NFL level, Wallace has appeared in 25 games and has made 20 starts. With those opportunities, he has collected 125 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, three sacks, five quarterback hits, four pass deflections, two forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery.
“Height-weight-speed prospect with explosive physical traits but major issues with consistency. Wallace looks the part and can run and hit when he’s locked in. However, he struggles to diagnose plays and execute his responsibilities at a standard NFL level. Teams will like the traits and his potential to play special teams, but he will need to prove he can play with better instincts and recognition to make it in the pros,” NFL draft analyst Lance Zierlein said about Wallace before the draft.
The Business That We Chose
The NFL is a tough business. On Sunday, August 30, offensive lineman Kohl Levao was informed that he made the 53-man roster. That is the first time during his NFL career that happened.
Less than 24 hours later, Levao was waived. If he clears waivers, the Jets would have interest in bringing him back on the practice squad.
Certainly not what Levao would have wanted, but still a job in the NFL nonetheless.
Trade Is Now Official
On the initial 53-man roster, the Jets announced that they curiously only had 52 players accounted for. The reason they were one player short is that their trade with the Las Vegas Raiders wasn’t official yet. It is now complete.
The Raiders received a 2027 sixth-round pick, and the Jets received a 2029 seventh-round pick and offensive lineman Jordan Meredith.
“He appeared in 1 game in 2022, playing as a guard after moving from the practice squad to the full roster signing a reserve/futures contract in January 2023. That season, as a backup guard, Meredith played in all 17 games for Las Vegas. He started 8 games (playing in 14 overall) at both guard positions. The Raiders named him the starting center for the 2025 season, where he snapped the ball to Geno Smith, the team’s quarterback at the time, and now the Jets’ starter. He started 11 games last season (playing in 13 games overall),” Jets contributor Jack Bell wrote.
“Overall, Meredith has 327 career pass blocking-snaps at LG, 306 at C and 233 at RG, according to Next Gen Stats. He’s one of only six players since 2021 to log 200-plus pass-blocking snaps at LG, C and RG,” Bell added.
Jets Sign Highly Thought of Linebacker, Cut Multiple Players