Will McDonald IV had the best game of his career in the Jets' win over the Browns.
The New York Jets came away with their second win of the season on Sunday over the Cleveland Browns. Will McDonald IV was a major reason behind New York's win.
McDonald received interest on the trade market ahead of the deadline, but the Jets held onto him.
The decision turned out to be wise, as he had the best game of his career. McDonald had four sacks in the game, tying a Jets record for the most sacks in a game with Mark Gastineau and John Abraham.
"I told [Glenn] I was going to keep being relentless," McDonald said. "I was just taking advantage of those opportunities that I had... You've just got to take advantage of that one rep because maybe that one rep is going to change the game."
The 26-year-old pass rusher could be the core piece for the Jets to build around after trading away cornerback Sauce Gardner and defensive tackle Quinnen Williams at the trade deadline.
McDonald was New York's first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and has proven to be a productive pass rusher. In the 2024 season, he finished with 28 total tackles, 10.5 sacks, 11 tackles for loss, and 24 quarterback hits.
He is on track to surpass these numbers if he continues to play at a high level for the rest of the season.
"I have a lot of belief in that player, and for him to come out and do exactly what he said he's going to do during the week is be relentless and go make plays," Glenn said of McDonald. "He went out there and he did that, and to get four sacks in the game, that's a huge deal, actually."
Glenn has seen a lot of changes to his defense in his first year as New York's head coach, but McDonald remains a constant presence as a pass rusher.
As they continue their rebuild under general manager Darren Mougey, McDonald should be a core piece of their defense.
McDonald and the Jets will look to win their third straight game on Thursday night against the 8-2 New England Patriots.