Throughout the preseason, NewYorkJets.com reporters Eric Allen, Randy Lange, Susanna Weir and Jack Bell will give their responses to a series of questions regarding the Jets.
Today's question:
What Are Your Thoughts on the Jets' Initial 53-Man Roster?
EA: The roster is never final. Fewer than 24 hours after the Jets reduced their roster to 53 players at 4 p.m. Tuesday, they were awarded three players off waivers -- LB Cam Jones, T Esa Pole and TE Jelani Woods -- and subsequently waived LB Zaire Barnes and G Marquis Hayes, and released WR Tyler Johnson in corresponding moves. There weren't a lot of surprises on offense. FB Andrew Beck made that strong early statement against Green Bay and HC Aaron Glenn expressed his belief in the use of a FB in today's NFL, RB Kene Nwangwu provides excellent special teams value, and the Jets elected to go the veteran route at receiver surrounding Garrett Wilson and rookie Arian Smith. The trade acquisitions of DTs Harrison Phillips and Jowon Briggs changed the landscape at defensive tackle. GM Darren Mougey was also able to get 14 young players back to his practice squad including QB Brady Cook; WRs Jamaal Pritchett, Brandon Smith and Quentin Skinner; and DL Eric Watts and Payton Page. The roster hunt will probably take a pause Labor Day Weekend and then it will turn back on come Monday. Each Tuesday, teams can designate four PS players as protected, so they can't be placed on another team's active roster until kickoff. And we'll see if the Jets promote any PS players next weekend before Week 1 action against the Steelers.
RL: Aaron Glenn has said it a few times: You can't be afraid to play the young guys. And AG and Darren Mougey have "unwrinkled" the Jets' roster. It's green apples vs. green oranges, but just for the sake of comparison, the average age of the 53 players on the Jets' current active roster is 25.7 years. Unofficially, the last time they had a younger roster for all players for an entire season was 2014 (25.2), then before that 1980 (25.0) and '81 (25.6). It's believed the most 21 year olds who started in the same Jets season is two (most recently Breece Hall and Zonovan Knight in '22), but this year it's at least conceivable that four 21 year -olds will get at least one start — drafted rookies Armand Membou, Mason Taylor and Azareye'h Thomas, along with precocious pummeler Braelon Allen, the youngest player in the NFL last season at 20 years of age. Yet each level of offense and defense has its young, talented veterans as well. Not every team that entertains such a youth movement becomes a winner immediately, but are Glenn's Jets one of those rare teams that will? We're about to find out.
JB: In the word used by both DM Darren Mougey and HC Aaron Glenn, the initial 53-man roster is "fluid." What began in free agency with the notable signing of QB Justin Fields; a contract extension for LB Jamien Sherwood; continued to the Jets' seven-player draft (all of whom are still around); and featured new deals for both WR Garrett Wilson and CB Sauce Gardner remains and will remain a work in progress. Only a day after Tuesday's release of the initial roster, the Green & White was awarded three players from the waiver wire -- LB Cam Jones, OT Esa Pole and TE Jelani Woods. On Thursday, Mougey talked about the puzzle-making process employed to cobble together a roster when he said: "I feel really good about the roster right now. As mentioned, I think throughout training camp we were able to evaluate and see the pieces that fit and add some guys here late at the end. So, I feel really good about the roster today." In their first year in their positions, Mougey and Glenn have gone about adding to an emerging O-line (drafting Armand Membou and signing Josh Myers), adding starters and depth to the defensive backfield (signing S Andre Cisco and CB Brandon Stephens; drafting promising S Malachi Moore and CB Azareye'h Thomas) and bolstering the D-line with a couple of late trades (Harrison Phillips and Jowon Briggs). Then, after Tuesday's cutdown frenzy, the practice squad puzzle came into focus with the retentions/addition of WR/KR Jamaal Pritchett, WRs Brandon Smith and Tyler Johnson, OT Carter Warren, DT Payton Page and QB Brady Cook. Potentially adding more depth to the depth chart. And now ... let the games begin.
SW: This roster feels like a healthy combination of working with home-grown talent and bringing in proven players who can be key pieces of the puzzle. The Jets solidified the future of CB Sauce Gardner, WR Garrett Wilson and LB Jamien Sherwood during the offseason -- all players drafted by the Green & White that are eager to be part of turning the tide with New York. Going outside the building to bring in DL Harrison Phillips -- who expressed his belief that "the arrow is pointing up" for this team -- is valuable for both on-field production and from a leadership perspective. Something that stands out is the youth of the roster -- all seven 2025 draft picks made the initial 53 and 32 players have four or fewer years of NFL experience. Young and hungry teams can be dangerous and fun to watch, especially when sprinkled with valuable veteran experience across the roster. GM Darren Mougey and HC Aaron Glenn have expressed that this roster is not final, and they will continue to evaluate players inside and outside the building, including the practice squad. While no undrafted rookie free agents made the initial 53, eight returned on the practice squad, including WRs Jamaal Pritchett and Quentin Skinner, who both made noise during preseason competition.
