Four days away from the opening of the NFL’s legal tampering window, the interwebs are shrouded in the smoky aroma of free agency hot takes.

Well, allow me to provide a take that isn’t too hot at all: The New York Jets should attempt to bring 29-year-old defensive end John Franklin-Myers back to Florham Park.

As the Denver Broncos standout prepares for free agency, here are a few reasons why a reunion in Florham Park makes sense for both sides.

Fit in Aaron Glenn’s scheme

Aaron Glenn confirmed at the NFL Scouting Combine that he will call defensive plays for the Jets in 2026, which he dubbed his “superpower.”

At defensive coordinator, the Jets have pivoted from veteran Steve Wilks to Brian Duker. Wilks was highly experienced, but his philosophies clashed with Glenn’s, resulting in a chaotic mess of a scheme that suffered from an identity crisis. Duker is a young coach with no play-calling experience, but his visions align with Glenn’s, as the two worked closely together in Detroit for three seasons.

It all points to one fact: This Jets defense should be expected to look a lot like the one Glenn ran in Detroit.

Under Glenn, the Lions prioritized big-bodied, sturdy defensive ends who were proficient at setting the edge. A few examples include Aidan Hutchinson (6-foot-7, 268 pounds), Za’Darius Smith (6-foot-4, 275 pounds), Josh Paschal (6-foot-3, 274 pounds), John Cominsky (6-foot-5, 285 pounds), and Levi Onwuzurike (6-foot-3, 290 pounds).

Cominsky and Onwuzurike were versatile pieces for Glenn’s defensive line, rotating between three-technique, four-technique, and even five-technique on run downs. Their versatility was a critical part of Glenn’s game plan.

That’s exactly what Franklin-Myers brings to the table.

At 6-foot-4 and 288 pounds, Franklin-Myers has a tweener frame, which has allowed him to make an impact in the NFL as both an interior pass rusher and an edge-setter against the run. He’s too quick for guards to mirror him in pass protection, and he’s too strong for tight ends to contend with him in the run game.

In both New York and Denver, Franklin-Myers would rotate between the interior and the edge, primarily playing the edge on early downs and then kicking inside in pass situations. His versatility affords the coach a plethora of options with the defensive line.

Not only does the Jets’ current edge unit simply lack bodies and production, but it is also extremely small in size and strength, especially after the trade of Jermaine Johnson. Glenn will aggressively covet size and versatility along the defensive line this offseason, and Franklin-Myers offers both in spades.

Can he still play?

After former Jets general manager Joe Douglas bafflingly decided to trade Franklin-Myers to the Broncos for a bag of peanuts (2026 sixth-round pick), the veteran’s production only improved.

In 2024, Franklin-Myers set a career-high with 7.0 sacks, and he beat it again with 7.5 in 2025 despite playing one fewer game.

It wasn’t just the sacks. Franklin-Myers remained a consistent force in terms of pressures and hits, which were his specialty in New York. Franklin-Myers racked up 33 quarterback hits over the last two seasons, tying for 31st among all defensive linemen. He also picked up 92 total pressures.

All the while, Franklin-Myers remained a plus against the run. This past season, his 65.4 run defense grade from Pro Football Focus placed 44th among the 126 defensive linemen to play at least 500 defensive snaps, good enough for the 66th percentile.

Franklin-Myers is durable, too. He has not missed a game due to injury since 2019.

Why would Franklin-Myers return?

It all seems to make perfect sense from the Jets’ perspective. But why would Franklin-Myers want to come back to the lowly Jets after sniffing the AFC championship game in Denver?

Well, the same reason any player is enticed to sign anywhere: the almighty dollar sign.

Franklin-Myers was underpaid relative to his production over the last two seasons. After the trade with New York, Denver ripped up Franklin-Myers’ previous contract and signed him to a new two-year, $15 million deal. The $7.5 million salary was a significant pay cut compared to the $13.8 million salary he earned from the Jets on the extension he signed in 2021.

Good defensive linemen earn eight-figure salaries with ease in today’s NFL. As of today, there are 64 NFL defensive linemen whose contracts are worth at least $10 million per year, according to Spotrac.

It’s safe to say that Franklin-Myers is a top-64 defensive lineman. His $7.5 million salary over the last two years was a major steal for Denver.

You can be certain that Franklin-Myers’ top priority this offseason will be to cash in, not to join a contender. As he approaches 30 years old in September, this may be Franklin-Myers’ last chance to fetch a multi-year deal on the open market, and he cannot leave any money on the table.

So, if the Jets are willing to be the highest bidder for his services, there’s a good chance he’d sign on the dotted line. After all, the regime in place is completely different than the one that kicked him to the curb two years ago.

Does an all-out pursuit make sense for the Jets?

Should the Jets be the highest bidders for Franklin-Myers, though?

The answer to that question, obviously, comes down to precisely how high the bidding goes for him. New York shouldn’t go overboard to add a player who will turn 30 this year.

In a vacuum, though, making an aggressive offer for Franklin-Myers seems like a wise way for the Jets to allocate their resources.

Sure, he will be 30 years old this season, but Franklin-Myers is a reliable free agent to invest in. He checks all of the boxes: a pristine track record of durability, consistent production in both phases of the game for the last six seasons, and a seamless fit in the Jets’ scheme. New York would feel extremely confident that Franklin-Myers will deliver an excellent return on investment over the next two years.

No, Franklin-Myers will not help the Jets win Super Bowls in the distant future. That may scare off the faction of fans who only want to see the fledgling franchise add players who might still be around five-plus years down the line. But the Jets cannot view every potential acquisition through that lens.

Before they can build a consistent winner that annually competes for titles over an entire decade, the Jets have to climb out of the NFL’s cellar by putting a respectable product on the field. Once they break free of the “here we go again” mentality that has quickly sunk every season over the past 10 years, then they can think about taking the next step and competing for championships.

First things first: Learning how to win. Seasoned veterans like Franklin-Myers can help them do that.

As much as the Jets are a rebuilding team with no expectations, there is a sneaky urgency to win games in 2026. No progress will happen within this organization until the wins come. Contrary to the “culture-first” narrative that has continually been pushed under Robert Saleh and Aaron Glenn, it’s actually the wins that create the culture, not the other way around.

For that reason, the Jets’ mountain of assets in the 2026 offseason—both the cap dollars and the draft picks—must be used with immediate winning in mind, not just long-term upside and flexibility.

Few free agents on this year’s market would offer a stronger boost to the Jets’ chances of winning games in 2026 than John Franklin-Myers.