New York Jets Should Target Former Crosstown Rival Free Agent

The New York Jets have a solid secondary, but could still benefit from bringing in more players to battle for a roster spot.

One veteran that’s still on the open market is cornerback Adoree Jackson, who was most recently across town with the New York Giants.

Jackson was highly regarded coming out of college, winning a Jim Thorpe Award along with a Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Award with the USC Trojans.

He was a first-round selection by the Tennessee Titans, where he played out his entire rookie contract. While he hasn’t lived up to the first-round hype, he’s been at least solid throughout his career.

He signed his second contract with the Giants, spending three years as a starter but missing a few games each season with injury issues. The cornerback had two interceptions during his time with the Giants and had at least seven passes defended in each year.

Last season was indeed a bit of a step back from where he had been, but not bad enough for him to not sign a contract anywhere given his track record.

Pro Football Focus dropped his overall grade from 71.5 in 2022 to a measly 45.9 in 2023. To be fair to him, though, the New York secondary was mediocre as a whole so it’s not like it was just this fault.

The 28-year-old will be searching for a veteran minimum prove-it contract somewhere, making him a cheap option.

The Jets’ starting secondary is completely set with Sauce Gardner, D.J. Reed and Michael Carter II. Behind them, there is plenty of space to earn snaps for an incoming veteran.

Rookie Qwan’tez Stiggers and fourth-year veteran Brandin Echols are the top depth options on the boundary. Echols played 15 percent of snaps last season, but did come away with an interception in that limited playing time.

Stiggers was a fifth-round selection that has played in both the Canadian Football League and Fan Controlled Football league. At 22, the potential is there, but he shouldn’t be the best option if an injury were to happen, especially for a team looking to contend like New York.

Jackson has the experience to at least feel okay with him being forced into a bigger role. He seems like a prime training camp candidate.