Insiders Get Honest About Jermaine Johnson Issue Post Jets Trade

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Former New York Jets pass rusher Jermaine Johnson reacting ahead of an NFL game against the Miami Dolphins.

The New York Jets traded defender Jermaine Johnson to the Tennessee Titans in exchange for nose tackle T’Vondre Sweat.

Since that move, new details have started to leak out about what really happened.

“The Jets, I’m told, had zero inclination and there was a ‘zero chance’ that the Jets were going to re-sign Jermaine Johnson. While they did have an opportunity to trade him for a third round pick to the [San Francisco] 49ers at the deadline last year, they chose to hold out for a second round pick. Again they didn’t know if they were going to be running a 4-3 this year or not. Once they made the decision to go 3-4, it was a fish out of water, lets’ just get whatever we could for him. They did not have any offers for third round picks [and] they did not have any offers for fourth round picks,” NFL Insider Connor Hughes of SNY explained on “Jets Final Drive.”

“Yeah, I think it’s a trade that makes sense for both sides. Like you said, there really wasn’t any interest in him outside of Tennessee, and that was always a destination that made sense. I think it’s fair to retroactively say, and I think we even talked about this if you go back and look at our old podcasts, are they going to regret not accepting a third-round pick for Jermaine Johnson? I think there is an argument to be made that they may regret it a little bit … This trade just makes sense for both sides. Like you said, you get rid of a player that you were not gonna sign anyway, so you get an asset for him now as opposed to losing him for nothing later,” Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic added.

One of Those Handshake Kind of Deals

It is fairly surprising that Johnson had teams interested in him for as much as a third-round value four months ago, and now, nothing?

Yet the more we learn about this trade, the more it seems like it featured two teams willing to swap out players with warts.

Johnson hasn’t been the same player since blowing out his Achilles. He is in the last year of his deal. The Titans desperately needed a pass rusher.

I spoke to multiple sources, including Titans beat writer Easton Freeze on “Boy Green Daily”, who explained that Sweat has had problems maintaining his weight, and the team hasn’t loved how he has handled himself in the locker room. Yet the Jets needed another piece on the interior defensive line.

Titans analyst Drew Beatty told me on “Boy Green Daily” that sometimes location changes can spark players going down the wrong path. He called the trade a “win-win” for both sides.

Betting on Coaches to Get the Most out of Talent

Sweat’s talent is undeniable. The former Texas product entered the league as the No. 38 overall pick in the second round of the 2024 NFL draft.

“When he is on the field, he is a dominant player. He is a big-bodied, nasty, true nose tackle, who is not only going to be a space-eating run stuffer but does have some ability to rush the passer … The problem and this is talking to sources in Tennessee now, and those who actually coached him previously, so the old Tennessee Titans staff, there is a reason that this team gave up on him in spite of the fact that they’re going 3-4 to 4-3,” Hughes said on “Jets Final Drive.”

“Weight is a major issue because at times last year he ballooned close to 400 pounds, I was told. There are some questions with effort. There are some questions about practice habits, and there is a big concern about how much he actually loves the game,” Hughes bluntly stated.

While there are plenty of warts, the Jets are betting on the talent of the player and on their coaching staff to get the most juice out of the orange. Karl Dunbar is considered to be one of the best defensive line coaches in the league. If he can’t get the most out of Sweat as a player, who can?

Paul Esden Jr. covers the New York Jets for Heavy.com. A New York native, he co-hosts a morning show, “The Manchild Show with Boy Green Digital.” Before joining Heavy in 2021, Esden Jr. covered both national and New York sports for FanSided, Elite Sports NY, and The Score 1260. More about Paul Esden Jr.