Jets Team Leader Earns National Praise Ahead of 2023

Getty New York Jets linebacker CJ Mosley making a play during an NFL game.

A New York Jets veteran has earned the ultimate sign of respect.

On Saturday, July 8 Jeremy Fowler of ESPN released his annual rankings of the top-10 off-ball linebackers in football heading into 2023. He polled a panel of league executives, coaches, scouts, and players to formulate his list.

CJ Mosley earned the No. 9 spot on the rankings after being left off of the list in 2022.

“Mosley was trending downward after playing in just two games in 2019 because of injury and sitting out the 2020 season during the pandemic,” Fowler said.

“But last season, he demanded appreciation. He anchored a top-five Jets defense and was excellent against the pass. On 492 coverage snaps and 59 targets, Mosley allowed just 292 yards and had seven pass deflections.”

Scouts Rave About Jets’ Mosley

These rankings from Fowler are designed to rank the players as they’re right now, not past achievements and not a multi-year projection.

Mosley’s highest ranking among the voters was as the No. 5 best off-ball linebacker in football. However several of the voters had the former Alabama product off of their ballot completely.

Fowler said the linebacker position was one of the more difficult ones to rank because the voters believed that the “players are essentially interchangeable after the first two or three spots.”

“I don’t think people realize how good [Mosley] is since he’s not flashy and a bit of a throwback,” an AFC scout said via ESPN. “But he can do it all. Just a really [good] football player.”

The 31-year-old isn’t the same player he was in his earlier Baltimore Ravens days however he proved last season that he is still among the best in the league.

Mosley was voted a second-team All-Pro and earned his fifth Pro Bowl nomination in 2022. He appeared in all 17 games and registered 158 tackles, seven pass deflections, and an interception.

“Lots of intangibles and the glue guy as far as communication,” another AFC scout added via ESPN. “Just OK from a physical standpoint. He’s slowed down a lot since college.”

Mosley signed a record-breaking $85 million contract with the Jets during the 2019 free-agency period. In the first two years of that deal, Mosley only appeared in portions of two games due to injury and a COVID opt-out.

A lot of people gave up on him and threw him in the historical bucket of Jets free-agent flops. Players that signed big contracts but never lived up to the billing.

While he may never live up to that crazy contract, he has certainly given the Jets plenty of bang for their buck both on and off the field.

What Could Have Been…

A few rungs higher on the list featured a familiar name for Jets fans.

Demario Davis was the No. 6 ranked off-ball linebacker on Fowler’s list. Some voters placed him as high as No. 2 at his position in football.

Normally players that are 34 years of age start to decline yet somehow Davis has found ways to get even better.

Davis started his career with the Jets after being the No. 77 overall pick in the third round of the 2012 NFL draft.

He played out his rookie deal and then left as an unrestricted free agent. In 2017 the Jets made a rare player-for-player trade with the Cleveland Browns exchanging former first-round pick Calvin Pryor for Davis.

Demario delivered the best year of his career at that time (and still to this point) with 135 total tackles, 97 of those solo, and five sacks in 2017.

The Jets let Davis leave as a free agent one more time the following offseason and his career took off with the New Orleans Saints.

The former Arkansas product has been voted an All-Pro in four straight seasons and he made his first Pro Bowl in 2022.

Oh, what could have been?