Jets' Updated Depth Chart, Salary Cap, Draft Picks After Reported Geno Smith Trade with Raiders

Heading into the first year of a rebuild in which they have four draft picks in the first two rounds, the New York Jets are going back to their past to give Geno Smith a second chance as their starting quarterback.

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Jets will send a 2026 sixth-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for Smith and a 2026 seventh-round selection.

Schefter added that Smith agreed to restructure his deal, with the Raiders taking on the bulk of his money and the Jets paying him "just over" the veteran minimum salary of $1.3 million.

New York entered the day with $49.9 million in available cap space, so this doesn't have significant impact on that figure.

Here is what the Jets' updated offensive depth chart looks like with Smith at quarterback:

QB: Geno Smith, Justin Fields, Brady Cook

RB: Breece Hall, Braelon Allen, Isaiah Davis

FB: Andrew Beck

WR 1: Garrett Wilson

WR 2: Adonai Mitchell

WR 3: Isaiah Williams

TE: Mason Taylor, Jeremy Ruckert, Jelani Woods

LT: Olu Fashanu

LG: Kohl Levao

C: Josh Myers, Gus Hartwig

RG: Joe Tippman, Marquis Hayes

RT: Armand Membou

The Raiders were reportedly planning to release Smith if they were unable to find a trade partner, so this way they were at least able to recoup a draft asset and some financial savings one year after they gave up a third-round pick to acquire him from the Seattle Seahawks.

This move gives the Jets some semblance of stability at quarterback as part of their ongoing roster overhaul that has given them arguably the best collection of draft assets over the next two years.

The Jets own five first-round picks between 2026 and '27, including Nos. 2 and 16 this year. When you add in their second-round cache, they will make four selections in the first 44 picks in 2026.

Prior to the start of free agency, the Jets were rumored to be in on virtually every quarterback who might become available via release rather than try to pursue someone like Malik Willis due to the difference in cost.

The Jets were able to get the Raiders to eat most of Smith's remaining money in a shrewd piece of business. They now have a capable starting quarterback who can get them through next season as they look ahead to a 2027 draft that looks much stronger in signal-caller talent than this year.

Another bonus for the Jets is if Smith plays well, he could potentially end up as a trade target either late in training camp or during the season if another team's starter suffers a significant injury and they need a replacement.

Winning games is likely not the primary focus for the Jets in 2026, but they still needed someone who can make them more competitive after the Justin Fields experiment failed spectacularly.

Smith, meanwhile, will be looking to rebound after a rough 2025 with the Raiders. He threw for 3,025 yards, 19 touchdowns and 17 interceptions in 15 starts.

The Jets originally drafted Smith with the 39th pick in 2013. He started 30 games over four seasons before stints with the New York Giants, Los Angeles Chargers and Seahawks before landing in Las Vegas.

It was his three-year stretch with the Seahawks from 2022 to '24 that proved Smith can be a quality starter. He threw for 12,226 yards, 71 touchdowns and completed 68.5 percent of his attempts in 49 starts.