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The New York Jets are exercising the fifth-year options of all three eligible players ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft.
Jets General Manager Darren Mougey announced that cornerback Sauce Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson and edge rusher Jermaine Johnson – the Jets' three first-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft – will all play on their fifth-year option in 2026.
As former first-rounders, all three players were qualified for an additional fifth year added to their four-year rookie contracts, which would kick in after this year. The move is one of the final big roster decisions for Mougey and his staff ahead of the regime's first NFL draft, and it establishes the future of several positions on the roster.
NFL FIFTH-YEAR OPTIONS: What they are and which players are eligible in 2025
Gardner was the 2022 Defensive Rookie of the Year and a first-team All-Pro after leading the league with 20 passes defensed. He earned a second straight All-Pro nod in his second season, but his hot streak snapped in 2024 with career lows in passes defensed (9) and tackles (49) and a career high in completion rate against (56.9%).
Wilson won the 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and has put together three straight 1,000-yard seasons to begin his career. He set career-high marks in receptions (101), receiving yards (1,104), and receiving touchdowns (7) in 2024 while playing and starting all 17 games.
Johnson played in 14 games his rookie season and recorded 2.5 sacks and 29 tackles. His second season featured 17 starts from Johnson and an uptick in production: 7.5 sacks, 55 tackles, an interception (which he returned for a touchdown) and a forced fumble. In 2024, Johnson missed nearly the entirety of the season after rupturing his Achilles tendon in Week 2.
All three players are now set to remain in New York for at least the next two seasons. With each player having played for three seasons, all three players are also permitted to negotiate contract extensions.
Edge rusher Will McDonald is the Jets' lone first-round pick from 2023. He's coming off of a 2024 season with a team-leading 10.5 sacks, three passes defensed and two forced fumbles, and he'll be eligible to have his fifth-year option exercised next year.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jets fifth-year options: Gardner, Wilson, Johnson's all exercised
Continue reading...
Jets General Manager Darren Mougey announced that cornerback Sauce Gardner, wide receiver Garrett Wilson and edge rusher Jermaine Johnson – the Jets' three first-round picks in the 2022 NFL Draft – will all play on their fifth-year option in 2026.
As former first-rounders, all three players were qualified for an additional fifth year added to their four-year rookie contracts, which would kick in after this year. The move is one of the final big roster decisions for Mougey and his staff ahead of the regime's first NFL draft, and it establishes the future of several positions on the roster.
NFL FIFTH-YEAR OPTIONS: What they are and which players are eligible in 2025
Gardner was the 2022 Defensive Rookie of the Year and a first-team All-Pro after leading the league with 20 passes defensed. He earned a second straight All-Pro nod in his second season, but his hot streak snapped in 2024 with career lows in passes defensed (9) and tackles (49) and a career high in completion rate against (56.9%).
Wilson won the 2022 Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and has put together three straight 1,000-yard seasons to begin his career. He set career-high marks in receptions (101), receiving yards (1,104), and receiving touchdowns (7) in 2024 while playing and starting all 17 games.
Johnson played in 14 games his rookie season and recorded 2.5 sacks and 29 tackles. His second season featured 17 starts from Johnson and an uptick in production: 7.5 sacks, 55 tackles, an interception (which he returned for a touchdown) and a forced fumble. In 2024, Johnson missed nearly the entirety of the season after rupturing his Achilles tendon in Week 2.
All three players are now set to remain in New York for at least the next two seasons. With each player having played for three seasons, all three players are also permitted to negotiate contract extensions.
Edge rusher Will McDonald is the Jets' lone first-round pick from 2023. He's coming off of a 2024 season with a team-leading 10.5 sacks, three passes defensed and two forced fumbles, and he'll be eligible to have his fifth-year option exercised next year.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jets fifth-year options: Gardner, Wilson, Johnson's all exercised
Continue reading...
