The New York Jets’ first preseason game of the 2025 season is in the books. That means that NFL roster cutdowns are right around the corner.
Before we officially get there, Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic revealed his updated 53-man roster predictions. One of the notable cuts he predicted was veteran defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi.
“Injuries have complicated things for this group. Depth already was a concern outside of [Quinnen] Williams — and now both Williams (calf) and [Byron] Cowart (ankle) are sidelined. Nnadi has been invisible for most of camp; if everyone is healthy, I’m curious to see how secure his roster spot is (his veteran experience likely helps him),” Rosenblatt explained.
Nnadi, 29, joined the Jets this offseason on a one-year $1.42 million contract. He spent the first seven seasons of his career with the Kansas City Chiefs, where he won three Super Bowls.
Insider Warns That Surprising Cuts Could Be on the Horizon for the Jets
NFL teams must reduce their rosters to 53 players by August 26 at 4 pm.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini warned fans to “expect curve balls” when we reach this stage for the green and white.
“The Jets are a team in transition with a new coaching staff, which means there will be some surprises when the roster is pared to 53,” Cimini explained.
A “notable” player that Cimini said is currently “on the bubble” is defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi.
Nnadi Was Expected to Be a Big Piece for the Jets
The former Florida State product was a key cog for the Chiefs’ defensive line for six of his seven seasons.
From 2018 through 2023, Nnadi played in an average of 43% of the defensive snaps as a rotational defensive tackle. However, in his final season with Kansas City in 2024, he only played in 20% of the snaps.
Nnadi had been the Robin to superstar Chris Jones’ Batman. There was an expectation that Nnadi could serve in a similar role for Quinnen Williams.
Now, Nnadi could be on the chopping block.
More DT Jets Predictions From Insider
Rosenblatt predicted on Sunday, August 10, that the Jets would keep five defensive tackles on the 53-man roster.
That list included Williams, Cowart, Jay Tufele, Phidarian Mathis, and Leonard Taylor III.
Other DTs that ended up on the chopping block in his prediction, in addition to Nnadi, were Payton Page and Fatorma Mulbah.
Roster Gymnastics Could Be Coming for the Jets, Let It Play Out
Sometimes things aren’t as they appear.
During final roster cutdowns over two years ago, the Jets cut their starting punter Thomas Morstead. It raised eyebrows immediately on social media. However, they brought Morstead back a few days later.
The reason is the rules around vested players and young players in the league.
Non-vested veterans are players who have “less than 4 years of service time” in the NFL. Vested veterans are players who have “4+ years of service time.”
Vested veterans do not have to go through the waiver process. So a team could do a wink-wink deal with a vested veteran by cutting him, doing some other roster moves, and then deciding to bring that player back.
As opposed to cutting a non-vested veteran who would be subject to the waiver wire system. If one of the other 31 NFL teams in the league wanted that player, they could claim him, and the Jets would lose him.
Rosenblatt said the Jets could attempt to do that with Nnadi to protect some of the younger DTs on the roster.
“Page has flashed during camp, and there’s a decent chance either he or Taylor would be claimed on waivers if they’re cut. Taylor has the edge right now for his experience — and it didn’t hurt that Taylor had a strip-sack that led to a touchdown on Saturday,” Rosenblatt said.
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