One of the big lingering questions for the New York Jets heading into training camp revolves around the defensive tackle position.
Quinnen Williams remains the straw that stirs the drink on the Jets’ D-Line.
This offseason, he has received plenty of praise for good reason. Williams was ranked as the No. 87 player in the NFL’s annual top-100. ESPN NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler put Williams as the No. 5 best defensive tackle in the league based on a panel of scouts, coaches, and league execs.
Williams, 27, was named a Pro Bowler for the third straight season in 2024. However, when you look at the rest of the depth chart, there aren’t proven commodities lining up next to him this season.
Breaking Down the Veteran Bodies the Jets Have at DT
General manager Darren Mougey described the players they added at defensive tackle as players who have played in the NFL before.
Technically, that is true. However, that isn’t an overly inspiring bar to cross.
Derrick Nnadi, 29, is a three-time Super Bowl champion and was the Robin to Chris Jones’ Batman with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Can he now be the Robin to Williams’ Batman with the Jets? Time will tell.
Nnadi has appeared in 115 games and has made 87 starts. The big man has never been a dynamic pass rusher, only has five career sacks, but he has contributed as a run stuffer.
Another veteran the Jets added is Byron Cowart. Cowart, 29, has bounced around the NFL since entering in 2019.
The former Maryland product has appeared in 51 games and has made 21 starts. He is the favorite to start next to Williams, based on how the spring went, according to Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic.
Jay Tufele, 25, has appeared in 34 games and has made five starts. He entered the league as the No. 106 overall pick in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL draft.
He is another player who has proven to be a dynamic pass rusher (only has half a sack in his career), but will be another cog in the Jets’ run-stuffing machine.
Joe Douglas served as the Jets’ general manager for the majority of the 2024 season before he was fired. However, in the brief time between Douglas getting fired and Mougey getting hired, Phil Savage served as the interim GM.
There wasn’t a lot of meat on the bone in terms of moves to be made at such a late stage of the season with a poor record, but Savage worked the waiver wire.
One of the sneaky moves he made was scooping up Phidarian Mathis off waivers from the Washington Commanders. Mathis, 27, was the No. 47 overall pick in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Mathis hasn’t worked at the NFL level so far because of injuries. He is an interesting dart throw for this regime.
Breaking Down the Youngsters the Jets Have at DT
Leonard Taylor III, 23, isn’t in short supply of talent. He was an early projection to be a first-round pick, but for a variety of reasons, he ended up going undrafted in 2024.
The Jets were the beneficiary, scooping him up as an undrafted free agent last offseason. He showed flashes, finishing with 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits.
It’s now or never for the big man. There isn’t a ton of competition on the interior defensive line, so if there was ever a time to make a move, it would be now.
The other two youngsters were undrafted free agents from this offseason.
Payton Page, 22, spent all four of his collegiate seasons at Clemson. He was buried on a talented defensive line, but there is potential beneath the surface.
Finally, Fatorma Mulbah stands in at 6-foot-3 and tips the scales at 305 pounds. He spent time at both Penn State and West Virginia during his college tenure. Mulbah garnered a ton of interest as a free agent after the draft, but chose the Jets because his representation believed it gave him the best path to a 53-man roster spot.
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