New York Jets starting slot cornerback Michael Carter II is firmly on notice following the trade with the Tennessee Titans for Jarvis Brownlee Jr.
Brownlee is an aggressive run defender and a good tackler (the Jets could use one of those). He can play the slot — ‘his best spot,’ said one opposing coach, who has studied him. They wanted a viable backup for nickelback Michael Carter II, who tends to get banged up. If Brownlee works out, it could make Carter ($12.3 million cap charge in 2026) a casualty in the offseason,” ESPN’s Rich Cimini wrote in a column on Sunday, September 28.
Carter, 26, has two and a half years left on his $30.75 million contract.
An out in the Contract the Jets Can Take Advantage Of
If the Jets cut ties with Carter next offseason, they could utilize the out in his contract. According to Spotrac, the Jets would eat $8.18 million in dead cap by moving on from Carter in 2026.
When the former Duke product inked his extension ahead of the 2024 season, he became the highest-paid nickel defender in the NFL. However, since signing that deal, Carter has dealt with an array of injuries.
In 2024, Carter appeared in 13 games and made one start, but he was never right. Carter played in a career-low 32% of the defensive snaps as the Jets tried to manage his injury.
Pro Football Focus ranked him 183rd among cornerbacks in overall grade (50.7) and 188th among corners in coverage grade (47.9) this past season.
Things haven’t been much better this season for Carter. PFF ranks him 134th among corners in overall grade (46.5) and 129th in coverage grade among corners (44.5).
Brownlee Was the Steal of Steals for the Jets
This was a classic low-risk versus high-reward move for the Jets. They acquired a starting corner in the NFL for a late-round pick swap.
Brownlee, 24, has already started 16 career games in a season and change. He is young, feisty, and has another two and a half years of cheap team control on his rookie $4.3 million contract.
The upside is obvious; the downside is the reason Tennessee likely moved on from the talented corner.
“The knock on Brownlee is that he’s undisciplined — 11 accepted penalties in 19 career games. Only two corners in the league have more over that span. It should be an interesting marriage with the Jets, who are trying to curb penalties,” Cimini said.
What he lacks in discipline, he more than makes up for as a run defender.
They always say there aren’t a lot of corners in the NFL that love to hit or like contact. Me? I’m a different breed,” Brownlee told ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “I just love hitting. I love making the opponent feel me. … I feel like me missing a tackle just puts a grudge in my heart, and I feel some type of way about that.”
It’s unclear exactly when Brownlee will make his Jets debut this season. He was already ruled out for the team’s Week 4 road trip against the Miami Dolphins. Head coach Aaron Glenn described his ankle injury as a “week-to-week” situation.
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