New York Jets Beat Out AFC Contender For Jowon Briggs: Reports

There was some interest in the new Jets defensive tackle...

Aug 12, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Jets helmet on the sidelines against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | Eric Hartline-Imagn Images

The New York Jets clearly made it a point to bolster the defensive tackle room ahead of Week 1 and ended up pulling off two trades.

New York acquired Jowon Briggs from the Cleveland Browns and Harrison Phillips from the Minnesota Vikings. Both are on the Jets' active roster and could play a role as soon as Week 1 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Phillips has been the guy who has been talked about the most since the trade, but reports have come out stating that the Jets had competition for the 23-year-old former Browns defender. Matt Derrick of Chiefs Digest reported that the Kansas City Chiefs also spoke to Cleveland about a potential deal.

The New York Jets reportedly beat out the Kansas City Chiefs for DT Jowon Briggs

Jul 28, 2025; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns defensive tackle Jowon Briggs (97) during training camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

"The decision to move on from the 34-year-old (Mike Pennel) was made after the club acquired Derrick Nnadi in a trade with the New York Jets. Nnadi – who shares a May 9 birthday with Pennel – is 29 years old and played in 17 regular-season games the past four seasons," Derrick said. "The only game he’s missed in his NFL career is when he sat out the 2020 finale, a 38-21 loss to the Chargers in which most of the team’s starters were benched...

"Nnadi wasn’t the only acquisition the Chiefs attempted to make. The club had discussions with Cleveland regarding defensive tackle Jowon Briggs, but the Browns opted for the Jets’ offer of a 2026 sixth-round pick rather than Kansas City’s sixth rounder."

Briggs played in six games last year for the Browns after being selected in the seventh round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Although he didn't play much last year, he's just 23 years old and clearly did enough to get interest around the league. Defensive tackle has been a position of question for the Jets over the last few years. At least on paper, it seems to have been solved with just a few days to go until New York begins its 17-game regular season trek.

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