Some Names Worth Considering if Jets Look to Free Agents in Wake of Lawson Injury

As you probably know by now, New York Jets defensive end Carl Lawson suffered a season-ending achilles injury during a joint practice with the Green Bay Packers yesterday which is a huge blow to the Jets defense.  While the Jets aren’t going to be adding anyone of Lawson’s caliber if they look at the pool of remaining free agents, there are some a couple of names worth considering.

Olivier Vernon: The 30-year-old Vernon spent last season with the Cleveland Browns where he picked up 9 sacks.  He has experience as both a 4-3 defensive end and as a 3-4 outside linebacker.  He would obviously play the former in Jeff Ulbrich’s scheme.  You could do a lot worse at this point in time.

Everson Griffen: Longer in the tooth than Vernon at 33-years-old, Griffen would bring another veteran presence who has had some success in getting to the quarterback.  His six sacks last season which was split between the Lions and Cowboys came in 14 games.

Vic Beasley: A former first-round pick, Beasley saw his production come crashing down to earth after tallying 15.5 sacks in his second pro season.  After a 2019 season that saw him come away with 8 sacks, he didn’t get to the quarterback at all in 2020 while being limited to just 10 games.

Of course the team could opt to stand pat and hope for the likes of Bryce Huff or Jabri Zuniga to pick up some of the slack.

Glenn Naughton

Glenn was Born in the Bronx, New York and has followed the Jets religiously despite being stationed in several different countries and time zones around the world. He now resides in England and has been a JetNation member since 2005. Glenn will bleed green with the rest of us through the highs and lows.

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