The No. 1 priority for head coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey this offseason will be finding the next starting quarterback for the New York Jets.
With all of their draft capital and cap space, they’ll have plenty of options to pursue to try to upgrade a position group that was arguably the worst in the NFL in 2025.
But New York’s brass has to make sure that whatever quarterback they acquire is the right fit and makes sense for the current state of the Jets.
Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox believes there’s one particular quarterback that New York should stay away from, thanks to his bloated contract and perceived lack of ability to elevate the players around him.
Jets Named Worst Landing Spot for Tua Tagovailoa
Knox tabbed the New York Jets as the worst possible landing spot for Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who is still under contract but is expected to find a new home this offseason.
With the Dolphins’ new leadership expected to start from the ground up on a rebuild, a Tagovailoa trade or release is likely coming within the next few months.
“Tagovailoa should avoid jumping right into another starting job unless it’s clearly a better situation than the one he had in Miami this past season. The Jets and Browns would both qualify as downgrades, for reasons we’ve already mentioned, and New York would be particularly problematic for Tagovailoa,” wrote Knox.
“Joining a former division rival would be difficult enough because fans won’t be quick to embrace a player they used to jeer. Tagovailoa would also face the challenge of ending the Jets’ ongoing parade of quarterback futility—while simultaneously trying to reinvigorate his own NFL stock. Doing all of that under the microscope of Jets fans and the New York media would likely end in disaster for Tagovailoa.”
Tagovailoa’s struggles have been well-documented throughout his six-year NFL career, and his inability to perform consistently at a high level in an offense tailored to his strengths likely proves he’s just not a high-caliber NFL starter.
But when it comes to the array of veteran quarterbacks available to the Jets this offseason, the former Alabama quarterback may be one of their best options.
The Inverse Chad Pennington?
While no one would expect Tagovailoa to leave the Miami Dolphins and find his fire again right away, the New York Jets experienced something similar with their own former first-round quarterback almost 20 years ago.
Former Jets quarterback Chad Pennington was with the Jets from 2000 to 2007, before they cut ties with him in favor of Brett Favre ahead of the 2008 season.
Sound familiar?
Pennington signed with the Dolphins almost a day later and hit the ground running in Miami.
The Jets’ fourth all-time leader in passing yards led the Dolphins to an AFC East division title in 2008, winning 11 games, finishing second in MVP voting, and even beat New York in the final game of the season to clinch a playoff berth.
Now, I’m not saying Tagovailoa is Pennington, but don’t you think the Jets are due for a little cosmic karma after all of the futility over the past decade?
Jets Named ‘Worst Landing Spot’ for $212 Million Quarterback