The New York Jets have found their replacement for Bryce Huff, and it comes from the team that took him in free agency.
The Jets have agreed to a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles to acquire two-time Pro Bowler Haason Reddick. The deal will cost the Jets a conditional 2026 third-round pick which could become a second-rounder based on play-time and performance.
The Jets were in the market for a defensive end to replace Huff in their rotation after he signed a $51.1 million deal with the Eagles on the first day of free agency.
The Jets then turned their attention to former number one overall pick Jadeveon Clowney, but Clowney took a two-year $20 million contract to join the Carolina Panthers.
With Clowney off the board, there was thought that Joe Douglas and co. could pivot to DE Yannick Ngakoue who the Jets have made overtures towards in the past. The Jets were in on Shaq Barrett before he ultimately signed with the Miami Dolphins.
Ultimately, New York wound up working the trade market to bring in Reddick who is coming off back-to-back pro bowl seasons for the Eagles. Reddick has at least 11 sacks in each of the last four seasons.
When asked about the possibility of signing Clowney at the NFL owners’ meetings in Orlando, head coach Robert Saleh said "You know me with pass rushers. The more the merrier."
Now they have one of the premier ones in the game and the Jets already know that he is an every down player, while that was the concern with the recently departed Huff. Reddick played 819 defensive snaps last season while Huff was only in for 468. Reddick has not missed a game in his career.
Another Joe Douglas Win
This move is an absolute steal for the Jets who are in win now mode. Reddick is a premier player at a premier position and will thrive in Robert Saleh and Jeff Ulbrich’s defense.
The Jets like to rush the passer in waves with several guys rotating in who are fresh and New York now boasts a defensive front that includes Quinnen Williams, Jonathan Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson, Javon Kinlaw, Solomon Thomas and Haason Riddick. Not mention last year’s first-round pick Will McDonald IV.
The fact that the Jets got Reddick for potentially a third-round pick in the draft two years from now is a huge win for Joe Douglas. The pick becomes a second-round selection if Reddick plays 67.5% of the snaps and has 10 sacks. At those numbers, I’m sure the Jets would be happy to pay the premium.
The Jets and Eagles might have saved everyone some time and paperwork if they would have just made this an official trade at the start of free agency. "GM" Sauce Gardner thinks the Huff deal might have helped Joe Douglas land Reddick.
With Aaron Rodgers returning to the offense this season, it is likely that the Jets will see great improvement on that side of the ball, but once again New York will be able to rely on it defense when it needs to win games.
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