The NFL trade deadline frenzy has kicked into full gear.
Early Monday morning, the Miami Dolphins dealt edge rusher Jaelan Phillips to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2025 third-round pick (the Eagles’ own pick, not the New York Jets’ pick via the Haason Reddick trade).
Apart from a division rival dealing one of its most talented young players, this trade carries further significance for the New York Jets.
New York has reportedly taken calls from teams interested in 26-year-old edge rusher Jemaine Johnson. Philadelphia was one of those teams; their trade for Phillips takes them out of the running for Johnson. Still, if the reigning Super Bowl champs wanted Johnson, other teams could also be interested.
The Jets’ reported asking price was a second-round pick. Philadelphia was able to land Phillips for a pick one round lower.
It sets a firm market for Johnson if teams are interested in making an offer.
It would make sense if Johnson were valued one round higher than Phillips. They are both 26-year-old edge rushers with first-round pedigrees, but Phillips is on an expiring contract, while Johnson has one more year of team control. Additionally, Phillips has a more significant injury history than Johnson. While the latter is coming off a torn Achilles in 2024, Phillips suffered a torn Achilles in 2023 and a partially torn ACL in 2024.
Given the reports surrounding Johnson and the Eagles, it wouldn’t be surprising if the Eagles started their quest for an edge rusher by calling the Jets about Johnson, only to move on after learning it would take a second-rounder to acquire him. This could have led them to settle for Phillips with a third-round pick.
With this trade in the books, the Jets have leverage to demand at least a second-round pick for Johnson’s services.
Trading Johnson would leave the Jets with one of the weakest edge units in football. But as Miami showed with its trade of Phillips, teams out of playoff contention are often willing to part with attractive pieces, even if it opens another hole to be filled.
It remains to be seen if Johnson actually gets traded, or if the Jets even have any interest in doing so, but his value has been set.
