Jets GM Downplays 'Teardown' Notion After Sauce Gardner, Quinnen Williams Trades

The New York Jets aren't tanking, according to general manager Darren Mougey, despite the trades of star defensive players Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams ahead of Tuesday's NFL trade deadline.

"I wouldn't call it a teardown," he told reporters when asked why running back Breece Hall wasn't dealt as well. "Breece is a talented player and he is going to help us win games the rest of this season."

"The goal is always to win," he added.

Granted, the Jets seemed to prioritize winning in the future more than they prioritized winning the rest of the season. Gardner and Williams are each multi-time Pro Bowlers and two of the best players at their respective position, and the return for dealing them was a first-round pick from the Indianapolis Colts in 2026, a 2026 second-rounder from the Dallas Cowboys, a 2027 first-rounder from the Colts and a 2027 first-rounder from Dallas (the better of the selections between the Cowboys and Green Bay Packers), alongside wideout Adonai Mitchell and defensive tackle Mazi Smith.

The team also traded slot corner Michael Carter II and a 2027 seventh-round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for wideout John Metchie III and a 2027 sixth-rounder last week.

From the outside, the deals make sense. The Jets started a new regime with a first-year general manager (Mougey) and first-year head coach (Aaron Glenn) in 2025, and a 1-7 start did little to suggest that the current group was capable of a quick turnaround. The Jets haven't made the playoffs since 2010, haven't had a winning season since 2015 and offseason addition Justin Fields hasn't proven to be the solution at quarterback—it was time for a massive overhaul.

Trading two of their best players perhaps isn't the route many expected them to go in that rebuild, but the Jets brought in quite the haul of future picks.

"We got to today and we had these offers that we felt were too good for the team (to pass up)," Mougey told reporters.

Mougey isn't going to outright say that the Jets are starting from scratch in their rebuild. It isn't the sort of thing the team's current players or coaching staff want to hear in the middle of a season.

But the Williams and Gardner trades speak louder than words. A new era of Jets' football began on Tuesday.