The New York Jets had their eyes on three dynamic wide receivers leading up to the Oct. 31 NFL trade deadline, none of which the team dealt for.
Jets Fail to Boost Receiving Corp For Second-Half Surge
NFL.com’s Nick Shook detailed the Jets’ trade targets that wound up staying with their respective franchises:
“The New York Jets worked the phones in the lead-up to Tuesday’s 4 p.m. ET deadline in search of a major addition at wide receiver. New York checked on the availability of three notable names: [Las Vegas] Raiders receiver Davante Adams, [Tampa Bay] Buccaneers pass-catcher Mike Evans and [Cincinnati] Bengals wideout Tee Higgins, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Wednesday on The Insiders.”
A Frustrated Davante Adams Created a Prime Opportunity For Jets at Deadline
Adams, 30, has voiced discontent with the standard the Raiders have held themselves to through eight games of the 2023 season. At 3-5 overall, the Raiders have underachieved despite Adams putting up strong numbers behind 534 receiving yards and three receiving touchdowns.
The Raiders fired their general manager and head coach and demoted starting quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in favor of rookie Aaron O’Connell. The Jets were not able to take advantage of the situation and acquire Adams from the spiraling franchise.
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Buccaneers Held on to Mike Evans and Their Playoff Hopes
Evans, 30, has also excelled with the Buccaneers. Behind 507 receiving yards, Evans’ five receiving touchdowns are fourth-most among all wideouts in the league. He has consistently been an elite deep-ball threat throughout his prime and has been overshadowed by an average 3-4 Bucs team increasingly removed from their 2021 Super Bowl run.
Bengals Did Not Answer the Call on a Deal Involving Injured WR Tee Higgins
As for Higgins, the 24-year-old wideout is having a down year as he’s battled a fractured rib since Week 4 and is not on pace to record his third straight 1,000-yard season.
Higgins is on the final year of his four-year, $8.68 million deal with the Bengals and will be available for the Jets to recruit when he hits unrestricted free agency in 2024. Higgins has been instrumental to the Bengals’ offense next to JaMarr Chase and would have come at a large asking price from New York.
Jets Will Continue Playoff Push With Receiving Corp. as is
The Jets will rely on Garrett Wilson, Allen Lazard, and Tyler Conklin to continue shouldering the load down the field as Zach Wilson’s primary receiving targets. Wilson has put up solid numbers as the Jets’ WR1, yet he and the rest of their pass-catchers have only found the end zone five times this year, worse than every team in the NFL save the New York Giants.
