The New York Jets might not be done shipping off key pieces to the puzzle.
Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report revealed each team’s “Most Valuable Offseason Trade Chip” in a column. For the Jets, he listed defensive tackle Harrison Phillips.
“They may have something in the younger and less expensive Jowon Briggs, and it makes sense to address the interior defensive line in the draft. Phillips has a good track record, but he would have more value with a 2026 contender in his age-30 contract year,” Gagnon explained.
The NFL trade deadline has already passed for the 2025 season. The next time teams can officially execute trades is in March after the start of the new league year.
Analyst Has the Right Temperature on the Jets
Phillips, 29, will turn 30 before the start of the 2026 season. He is closer to the end than he is to the beginning of his career.
If he has desires of playing for a contender, it is more likely than not he will find that outside of the Jets building. The green and white are 2-8 and have no short or long-term QB answer on the roster.
Perhaps that’ll change during the offseason with some splashy trade, free agent signing, or draft pick, but right now that is a big unanswered question. If you don’t have a quarterback, you can’t compete in the NFL.
Briggs, 24, will turn 25 before the start of the 2026 season. He has been impressive this season for the Jets since being acquired from the Cleveland Browns.
However, we don’t know if Steve Wilks is going to keep his job as defensive coordinator. So we don’t know what defensive scheme the Jets will be running: 3-4? 4-3? The answer to that question could indicate how big a need defensive tackle is for the Jets.
Jets Just Might Want to Keep Phillips
Right before the start of the 2025 season, the Jets struck a trade with the Minnesota Vikings to acquire Phillips.
Phillips had signed a two-year $15 million contract. If the Jets wanted to cut Phillips after this season, there is an out built into the contract. They could part ways without taking on any dead cap for that decision, per Spotrac.
However, his $7.5 million cap hit for 2026 is super reasonable. According to Over The Cap, Phillips’ $7.5 million annual salary ranks 38th among the highest-paid defensive tackles in football.
In other words, the Jets shouldn’t be in any rush to dump Phillips. He has been a good player for the Jets and has stepped up to fill the leadership void left by Quinnen Williams, who was traded to the Dallas Cowboys.
The former Stanford product has started in all 10 games for the Jets this season.
In his eight-year NFL career, he has appeared in 106 games. With those opportunities, Phillips has collected 8.5 sacks, 30 quarterback hits, 17 tackles for loss, 11 pass deflections, two forced fumbles, five fumble recoveries, and has 344 tackles.
I spoke with Buffalo Bills analyst Anthony Prohaska on “The Manchild Show with Boy Green Digital.” After the Phillips trade, Prohaska told me that Phillips will never be a true No. 1 defensive tackle, but he can be that consistent No. 2 guy forever.
Phillips spent the first four years of his NFL career with the Bills in western New York.
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