What are Jets options with Quincy Williams’ injury?
Having dropped to 0-3 on a last-second field goal in Tampa Bay, the Jets were dealt another blow this week with the news that starting linebacker Quincy Williams is to be placed on injured reserve. While the severity is still unknown, Williams -- who went down with a shoulder injury just before halftime in Sunday's game -- will be sidelined for at least four weeks.
Head coach Aaron Glenn is used to dealing with injuries. He excelled last season at keeping a Lions defense together despite six starters including Aidan Hutchinson and multiple backups missing significant time. However, how is he going to handle an early-season loss to a key player at a position where the Jets were already light on depth and experienced options?
On Sunday, the Jets opted to move special teams captain Marcelino McCrary-Ball into a full-time role after Williams' injury. But to further compound matters, McCrary-Ball is also being placed on injured reserve after suffering a late game injury himself. The question as to who will start alongside Jamien Sherwood is therefore completely up in the air.
Rookie Kiko Mauigoa was the next man up on Sunday, taking over McCrary-Ball's role as the third linebacker on the rare occasions when the Jets operated with base personnel. However, this role would usually entail playing in obvious run stopping situations. He handled that role quite well on Sunday, but an every-down role that would require him to hold up in coverage would be a lot to ask of a rookie with less than 30 snaps of NFL experience.
Cam Jones was claimed off waivers from the Chiefs after final cuts but was primarily brought in for his special teams contributions and hasn't played on defense yet. At least he has started two NFL games, although both of these were meaningless Week 18 games where Kansas City was resting its starters for the postseason. He was productive, with 12 tackles in each game, but they lost one of those games, 38-0, which isn't particularly encouraging.
Other options available to the Jets could be the two linebackers currently on the practice squad: Jackson Sirmon and Mykal Walker. Sirmon is a youngster with no NFL experience, but Walker was likely bought in just in case this kind of situation arose. The 28-year-old has started 25 games in his NFL career, although he only played 77 snaps last season. Walker was a former fourth-round pick and had over 100 tackles for the Falcons in 2022.
Miami linebacker Francisco Mauigoa (LB17) participates in drills during the 2025 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images The Jets also brought in a couple more veteran options on Tuesday as they signed Mark Robinson to the active roster and Ben Niemann to the practice squad. In the long run, these could be good options, but having just arrived it may be unlikely for them to get involved for at least a week or two.
Robinson has limited experience, although he has started four games in his career, but for now could just be an option to activate immediately for special teams help. Niemann might be potentially closer to a role on defense because he was with Glenn last season in Detroit so could have some scheme familiarity. Like Walker, he has 25 career starts.
Ultimately, the Jets have several options, with varying degrees of experience and scheme familiarity. They have disparate skill sets too, which might compel Glenn to use more of a rotation alongside Sherwood in an effort to deploy players situationally to emphasize their strengths and mitigate potential weaknesses.
They could also look to employ more personnel packages that only have one linebacker on the field. These could involve a five-man defensive line, or six defensive backs. The athleticism of Will McDonald and versatility of Isaiah Oliver could enable the Jets to explore such options, even if it's just as an occasional change-up rather than a primary package.
The Jets are fortunate to have an extra day to prepare for Monday night's divisional clash with the Dolphins, which they will see as a winnable game that could get their season back on track. However, it will be all hands on deck as the Jets try to figure out who their best options are during the week.
The linebacker situation for Glenn is starting to look somewhat reminiscent of Adam Gase's first season as Jets' head coach. The Jets lost C.J. Mosley and Avery Williamson to early-season injuries that year and ended up relying on journeymen Neville Hewitt and James Burgess to start 22 games between them. Hopefully the outlook improves going forward because Glenn does not want his Jets tenure to play out anything like Gase's did.
Somehow managing to find a way to overcome this in the short and longer term will be a good way for Glenn to prove his coaching acumen. The Jets will hope he can emulate what he did with the Lions last year.