In case it wasn’t already clear, the New York Jets dodged a major bullet when they signed wide receiver Garrett Wilson to a four-year, $130 million extension.
There was a time early in the 2025 offseason when many believed that neither side would get to this point. Wilson had seemingly grown frustrated with the lack of winning with the Jets, and some even questioned if he would request a trade following the 2024 regular season.
With the arrival of Jets head coach Aaron Glenn, though, New York was able to re-committ their interest in having Wilson around for the long haul. Wilson, to his credit, felt the same.
A look around the rest of the league should show just how lucky the Jets are with that reality.
Jets Dodge Major Bullet
It’s important for Wilson to show his commitment to the Jets just as much as it was for New York to pay him as a top receiver in the game. No one blamed him for his frustrations, but standing behind the team was a major plus in the court of public opinion.
The Ohio State product has caught passes from eight different quarterbacks through his first three seasons. While he has recorded 1,000 yards receiving in each season so far, he hasn’t been given the kind of stability other receivers have gotten around the league.
Through it all, though, Wilson has been steadfast in his support for the team.
“I’ve always kept my faith that this thing is going to turn around and I’d be a part of why it was,” Wilson said Tuesday afternoon.
Wilson’s quarterback troubles are comparable to the likes of Washington Commanders receiver Terry McLaurin. Like Wilson, McLaurin is an Ohio State product who, over the course of his own career, has dealt with quarterback uncertainty in the nation’s capital.
Despite those issues, McLaurin has become one of the most dependable wideouts in the game.
Things turned around for the veteran last season with the arrival of second-overall pick Jayden Daniels. With the signal-caller’s emergence as a star, McLaurin put forth the best numbers of his career and was even given All-Pro honors as well.
Unlike what the Jets did with their star receiver, though, the Commanders have chosen to go into training camp with financial concerns surrounding McLaurin. The 30-year-old wideout is holding out from Washington’s training camp as he enters the final year of his current contract.
McLaurin has earned a lucrative contract extension. Washington doesn’t want to pay a 30+ year-old player the kind of money that would hurt them in the future.
Thus, a very expensive and hostile holdout for a Super Bowl contender.
New York could have been in this situation if it weren’t careful. While Wilson is significantly younger than McLaurin, he was eligible for an extension this offseason. The Jets were able to get a deal done a couple of weeks before camp began, but what if they weren’t?
Would Wilson have held out in the hopes of getting a long-term deal after three years in the league?
All of that seems unlikely, but the reality is that could have been New York’s big issue to deal with this week.
Now, it isn’t.
And the Jets clearly dodged a major bullet for having done so.
