Just weeks before NFL free agency begins the New York Jets make a huge move on the defensive side of the ball, trading Edge Rusher Jermaine Johnson II to the Tennessee Titans for Nose Tackle T’Vondre Sweat.
Johnson, who was drafted in the first round of the 2022 draft by the Jets will be reuniting with head coach Robert Saleh in Tennessee. Johnson had 13 sacks in 47 games played for the Jets.
Johnson was a solid player but had an uninspiring 2025 coming off his torn achilles with only three sacks for the year.
Reports say that Johnson was expendable for New York because of the scheme fit. Johnson is more a traditional 4-3 defensive end while New York will run more of a 3-4 going into next season.
Therefore, New York goes and gets a nose tackle in Sweat. Sweat is a good run-stopping player who ranked fifth this season for PFF. Sweat is a 6-foot-4, 266-pound, massive frame player who can make an impact in stuffing the run, which is something the Jets desperately needed help in. Sweat is only 24 years old and was drafted in the second round of the 2024 draft.
This is a good swap for New York because not only do they get a needed interior defensive lineman but Johnson can easily be replaced at edge rusher. It would have been much harder for New York to build the interior of their defensive line this offseason. Where now a spot opens up at edge for the Jets which makes perfect sense for their number two overall pick in the upcoming draft.
With prospects like Arvell Reese, Reuben Bain Jr., and David Bailey Jr, the Jets will have their set of options to pick from to replace Johnson. So, from that standpoint not only do the Jets get another edge rusher who could potentially be a star for them but they upgraded their defensive line in the run game by getting Sweat. This was a productive move by the Jets especially if one of those edge rushers pan out to be a quality player.
This was a good first step in the Jets offseason, Johnson was a solid player who did bring a lot of passion to the Jets locker room but this was a player swap you couldn’t pass on. Sweat after all is probably the better individual player anyways between the two.
New York still has a lot of work left to be done if they want any chance of being competitive in 2026 but this was a productive first move; Johnson gets a fresh start with the Titans while the Jets get their new nose tackle to help stop the run, and they open up a spot for a new edge rusher which should come at the draft with the second pick.
