Instant Grade: Jets Bring Back Xavier Newman in Free Agency

The New York Jets made yet another solid move on Thursday.

Aug 16, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets guard Xavier Newman (65) walks off the field after the preseason game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

The New York Jets have been one of the most active teams in the National Football League when it has come to free agency so far.

The Jets entered free agency with more salary cap space than most and certainly have been spending it. It's not like the Jets have made some sort of massive, nine-figure splash, but instead New York has been targeting areas of need and bolstering them with solid veterans on affordable contracts. Even the quarterback position. The Jets acquired Geno Smith from the Las Vegas Raiders and will be paying him just over $3 million.

On Thursday, the Jets struck again with another under-the-radar, but solid move. The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt reported that the Jets are re-signing veteran guard Xavier Newman after spending parts of the last three seasons in town.

"The Jets re-signed G Xavier Newman. They like him for depth on the OL," Rosenblatt wrote on X. "OL room: Olu Fashanu, Armand Membou, Joe Tippmann, Dylan Parham, Josh Myers, Max Mitchell, Xavier Newman. Still could use a swing tackle in FA. And would bet on at least one OL getting drafted, if not more."

Instant Grade: B

Aug 16, 2025; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; New York Jets guard Xavier Newman (65) following the game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Continuity, continuity, continuity. The Jets are returning four starters for the 2026 season in Josh Myers, Armand Membou, Olu Fashanu and Joe Tippmann. New York signed Dylan Parham to replace John Simpson at the other guard position. With Newman, the Jets are bringing back even more guard depth with experience already in New York. He has played in 21 games with the Jets over the last three seasons, including four starts.

At the end of the day, this move may not sound like much right now. He only played in five games in 2025. But the Jets' offensive line was extremely healthy. If an injury were to pop up, Newman would be an easy option to plug into the lineup with experience already on the team with Aaron Glenn running the show. You can never have too much offensive line depth with experience. This is yet another example of that at a spot that did see turnover this offseason.