The New York Jets' most underpaid player will surprise you.
In a column called "Every NFL Team's Most Underpaid Player Following Peak 2026 Free Agency," NFL analyst Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report named Will McDonald the New York Jets' most underpaid player.
Here's why: "McDonald has lacked consistency as a pass rusher and reliability as a run defender, but that doesn't change the fact the 2023 first-round pick has delivered 18.5 sacks the last two seasons combined. The talent and overall production is there for a high-ceiling 26-year-old due just $5.2 million in the final year of his rookie contract."
McDonald played in 16 games for the Jets last season. He finished with eight sacks, 19 solo tackles, 10 tackles for loss and 19 QB hits.
McDonald has been with the Jets since 2023. He enters next season with 21.5 sacks, 46 solo tackles, 25 tackles for loss and 48 QB hits in a New York uniform.
The Jets went 3-14 last season. They became the first team in NFL history to not record a defensive interception and lose five straight games by 23 or more points within a single season.
New York didn't fire head coach Aaron Glenn after one season. He will call the defensive plays next season.
"First and foremost is how I'm going to be with the defense and I will be the playcaller. To me, play-calling is my superpower," Glenn said. "I did it four years in Detroit and, man, just look at the maturation of how we improved every year and how I improved as a playcaller. I really missed doing that, and I think it's a huge part of helping us become the team that I and Mouge [GM Darren Mougey] see and that [owner] Woody [Johnson] sees us becoming."
The Jets have the second pick in this year's NFL Draft. They are expected to draft a QB despite acquiring Geno Smith from the Las Vegas Raiders.
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