"The Jets decided against selling off auxiliary cogs at the trade deadline, opting instead to gut the core of their team by trading Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams in barely an hour. While the team collected three first-rounders and more from the Colts and Cowboys in those swaps, the current regime will be tasked with high-profile efforts to replace two All-Pros."
"Williams fetched a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 first and former Cowboys first-round defensive tackle Mazi Smith in the blockbuster deal. The Jets had discussed Williams with the Cowboys as part of the Micah Parsons trade, but no deal commenced then. Dallas circling back required the team to agree to a condition that could prove valuable for New York. The Jets will receive the higher of the Cowboys' two first-round picks in the 2027 draft, one believed to be teeming with top-end talent."
"Months before Williams was dealt, he had made it known on multiple occasions he would like to be moved. The seventh-year veteran's tweet about another rebuilding year being likely - a social media salvo launched after the team's plans to release Aaron Rodgers became known - did not go over well with some in the organization, Cimini adds. Williams later admitted a mistake there, but the three-time Pro Bowler made no secret about his frustration with the Jets' losing ways."
The Jets executed rapid, high-profile trades that sent All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner and All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams out of New York within about an hour. The team collected three first-round picks and additional assets from the Colts and Cowboys, including a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick, and former Cowboys defensive tackle Mazi Smith. The Cowboys agreed to give New York the higher of their two 2027 first-round selections. Williams had publicly expressed a desire to be moved and acknowledged a regrettable tweet, while the Jets face the task of replacing two elite defenders amid a prolonged playoff drought.
Read at Pro Football Rumors
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