New York Jets May Be Ready to Move On From Former First-Round Pick

Let’s be honest, the New York Jets haven’t always made the best decisions. It’s part of why they ‘earned’ the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Last offseason, they settled on signing Justin Fields to a two-year, $40 million contract, hoping the former first-round pick could develop into the NFL’s next star quarterback after his original team gave up on him. Only, Fields didn’t find success.

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The 11th overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft led the Jets to a 2-7 record before being pulled for Tyrod Taylor. Now that the Jets have traded for a former Pro Bowl quarterback in Geno Smith, Fields’ time with the organization may have run its course after one season.

According to ESPN’s Rich Cimini, Fields’ “status is very much up in the air” with the Jets.

That was the expectation heading into the offseason. Some are surprised that the Jets haven’t already moved on from the five-year pro. Yet, the only other quarterbacks on the Jets’ roster are Brady Cook (an undrafted rookie signing from 2025) and Bailey Zappe. In other words, if the Jets do move on from Fields, they’ll want to find another quarterback or two to help take his place.

If the Jets do move on from Fields this offseason, he won’t get another chance to compete for the starting job this offseason. But perhaps he can find a role where he still sees the field as a situational player capable of helping teams with his legs on gadget plays.

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