Quinnen Williams Trade Rumors Are Last Thing Jets Need

Over the next 11 days, there's going to be a lot out there ahead of the 2025 National Football League trade deadline.

That's a broad statement, to say the least. As we get closer to the deadline, we should start to see some swaps around the league, but we haven't seen anything significant yet. Rumors are growing, though. Including those involving the New York Jets. As the deadline has gotten closer and the Jets have continued their winless streak to begin the season, guys like Breece Hall and Jermaine Johnson II have dominated headlines. Johnson has made it clear that he spoke to the team and isn't getting moved, though.

We'll see about Hall, although Aaron Glenn has been clear all season that he doesn't want to trade the running back. Another name that popped up a bit is 27-year-old Pro Bowler Quinnen Williams. Early in the season, it was shared that the Dallas Cowboys had interest in Williams when looking to offload Micah Parsons but the Jets didn't budge. Now, SNY's Connor Hughes and The Athletic's Zack Rosenblatt spoke about Williams on "Jets Final Drive," and Hughes shared that he was told that the Jets would be looking for a second-round pick for Williams and that the perception is that Williams is unhappy.

"You mentioned Quinnen Williams, I thought the same thing, first-round pick-plus," Hughes said. "One and a three (or) one and a four. I was told by somebody very tied into this situation that the Jets are probably looking at a (second-round pick) for him. The reasoning for that is there is no real, substantial, guaranteed money left on his deal after this year. Teams know...there are rumblings around there that Quinnen Williams is unhappy that's the perception outside of Florham Park. We haven't talked to Quinnen to see if he's unhappy.

The Jets shouldn't trade Quinnen Williams

New York Jets defensive lineman Quinnen Williams (95) warms up before a game against the Carolina Panthers at MetLife Stadium, Oct 19, 2025, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. | Yannick Peterhans / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"He 100 percent would not tell the media the truth if he was unhappy or not. The perception out there is that Quinnen isn't necessarily happy. It's known that the Jets have rebuffed his desires to have his contract restructured and adjusted and more guaranteed money added. If he's going to be traded, it's because Quinnen wants out and the guaranteed money isn't necessarily there as they would expect."

Williams signed a four-year, $96 million extension with New York that has him under contract in 2026 and 2027 as well, but the guaranteed money on the deal is tricky. When the Jets signed Williams, his deal had the highest value among all interior defensive linemen, per NFL.com's Eric Edholm. It also gave Williams the second-highest salary behind just Aaron Donald, then of the Los Angeles Rams. That's how good of a player Williams is.

He is just 27 years old and is one of the best overall defensive linemen in football. He's a three-time Pro Bowler, a former All-Pro, and in a season of inconsistency has been one of the team's most reliable defenders in general. The season hasn't gone as planned with a 0-7 record, but trading a guy this talented for anything less than a first-round pick would make the perception around the season even worse.

Williams is a game-breaker. He's the kind of talent teams try to bring in to help expedite a rebuild. If he's moved over the next 11 days that certainly isn't a great sign.

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