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EspañolThe New York Jets were dealt a blow when Dante Moore opted to stay at Oregon. Suddenly, the team with the second overall pick was staring down a one-quarterback draft. With a depth chart of Justin Fields, Brady Cook and Bailey Zappe, the door that led to a potential franchise cornerstone slammed shut.
This week, the Jets began opening windows.
New York has been largely tied to a pass rusher after Moore decided he liked the Ducks' NIL money better than a potentially too-early jump to the pros. But their path back to prosperity got a lot clearer at the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine. First, the Jets traded Jermaine Johnson to the Tennessee Titansfor defensive tackle T'Vondre Sweat. Then, this year's crop of front seven talent went out and assured the Jets it contained multiple saviors.
The player most mocked to New York at No. 2, Arvell Reese, went out and ran 2026's fastest 40 time among front-seven defenders, recording a 4.46-second time to beat out... well, almost everyone. Tied with him was a familiar face; teammate Sonny Styles. The off-ball Buckeye measured out slightly bigger and stupidly athletic to cement his place as a top 20 selection -- and maybe even a top 10 presence.
Styles' big performance won't be enough to push him into consideration for the second overall pick. Despite solid college production -- 17 tackles for loss and seven sacks his last two seasons at Ohio State -- his place as an off-ball linebacker puts him at a relatively low-value position. The Jets need stars, but they also need low-cost starters who create the surplus savings to lure veteran free agents to a franchise that hasn't been to the playoffs in 15 years.
But his and Reese's combine performances -- as well as solid showings from guys like David Bailey and T.J. Parker -- reinforce New York's flexibility this spring. The Jets could grab Reese at No. 2. Or they can hope a needy team fell in love with his speed in Indianapolis and is willing to throw a ransom their way to trade up, sliding to a spot where they can select a player like Styles while banking a future first round pick that could finally lead them to a franchise quarterback.
New York undoubtedly needs defensive upgrades. The team ranked 21st in expected points added (EPA) allowed in 2024, then 30th in a lost 2025 season in which stars Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams were traded away. A 29.9 percent pressure rate was lower than the club's blitz rate and ranked 29th in the league. That was before trading Johnson, a 2024 Pro Bowler who underwhelmed last fall.
The Jets have the leverage to make fixes under Aaron Glenn, who could not contain his excitement watching workouts on Thursday.
The Gardner and Williams trades led to four picks in the first two rounds this year. The Jets have three first round picks in 2027. They don't need to slide backward and amass more draft assets if owner Woody Johnson thinks it's time to harvest rather than continue cultivating. But setting a contingency plan for next spring isn't the worst idea after Glenn's first season as a head coach ended with three wins and a mass firing of the assistants around him.
Thursday's combine performance added a little added incentive to trade back. Either Styles, Reese, Bailey or guys who didn't shine as brightly at the combine like Miami's Rueben Bain or Clemson's Parker (who looked pretty good out there, even if it wasn't a star turn) could make sense in green and white. The 2026 NFL Draft is filled with elite defensive athletes, even if it's not chock full of guaranteed All-Pros. That won't fix the Jets' quarterback concerns, but it could create the excess value that finally, mercifully, gets New York back to the postseason.
And so, the biggest winner from Day 1 of the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine just might have been the team whose head coach appeared to fall asleep during it.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Sonny Styles and Arvell Reese conducted a combine symphony for the Jets