Adding Haason Reddick gives Jets defensive closer they covet.
A look at what’s happening around the New York Jets:
1. Loaded D: Coach Robert Saleh gushed so much about Bryce Huff at the NFL annual meetings that it made you wonder why the Jets let him out of the building. He actually compared Huff to a sports icon, saying, “[He] closes games. People want to say that all he does is rush the passer, but all Mariano Rivera did was close ninth innings.
Saleh, who needs pass-rushers for his defense almost as much as he needs oxygen, seemed to be sending a message to the front office.
General manager Joe Douglas responded Friday, delivering Haason Reddick — a prolific closer. In 2022 and 2023, he led the NFL with 12.5 sacks in the fourth quarter (Huff recorded five, but he had only 124 pass rushes, compared to Reddick’s 304).
The Jets’ defense, already formidable on all three levels, has a chance to be downright nasty. Huff was a big loss because of his age (25) and rising production, coming off a career year (10 sacks), but Reddick exceeds that on an annual basis. He averaged 12.5 sacks over the last four seasons.
Pro Football Hall of Famer Joe Klecko, who attended Reddick’s alma mater (Temple) and knows a thing or two about sacks, lauded the addition.
“He’s a player-and-a-half,” Klecko told ESPN. “I don’t care how good they were on defense last year; it wasn’t good enough. Reddick makes them a much better football team. The opposite of a great quarterback is having great guys to put the quarterback down. That’s how the NFL works. This is a big deal. I love it.”
There’s a lot to like about Reddick. He’s an every-down player (74% play time last season). He’s durable (only one game missed in seven years). He’s versatile, meaning he can stand up and play linebacker. That could allow them to disguise their fronts.
The Jets, who finished third in yards allowed and 12th in scoring, did a nice job of keeping what they had. They retained defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich, who was courted by the San Francisco 49ers. They kept linebacker and captain C.J. Mosley, who re-worked his contract. The big loss was Huff, but they responded Friday by trading with the Philadelphia Eagles, Huff’s new team.
