Offensive tackle is arguably the top position of need by far for the New York Jets in 2024. Many mock drafts have the Jets taking one of Joe Alt, Olu Fashanu or Taliese Fuaga. But free agency is also a potential avenue for the Jets.
Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine recently made predictions for some of the top free agents at each position and connected the Jets to the offensive tackle market by projecting Trent Brown to New York.
The nine-year veteran spent the last three seasons in New England. Injuries have limited him over the years, but is coming off one of his better seasons, despite only playing 11 games. He was the 10th highest-graded offensive tackle for Pro Football Focus in 2023. He also earned incentives by keeping his weight down, so his next contract will be a fascinating one to see.
Pro Football Focus projects Brown to get a deal for two years worth $15 million with $8.5 million guaranteed.
Trent Brown has not been known for consistency throughout his career, but he dialed up his efforts this season.
Even on a fledgling Patriots offense, he stood out with a PFF grade that ranked him 10th among all the tackles in the NFL.
Now he’s about to collect the rewards.
The 30-year-old’s expiring contract included incentives for him to stay in shape, reportedly including bonuses for hitting certain weight benchmarks throughout the offseason and into the season. That included $25,000 for being 365 pounds or less each Thursday during the campaign.
Finding good offensive linemen on the free-agent market isn’t always easy. That should make Brown even more valuable to teams as he goes into the open market on the strength of a good season.
It also means the Florida product could look to go to a team that isn’t in the middle of a full-on rebuild. In some ways, a strong season in which he gave up just three sacks was wasted on a team that still gave up 48 total sacks.
A team with a better shot of contending is bound to throw the bag at Brown. The New York Jets have to get aggressive to fix their offensive line. Their cap situation doesn’t look great right now, but Over The Cap estimates they have the potential to get to around $45.4 million in room, which would give them enough to offer him a tempting deal.