Tuesday, October 4th at 4pm EST was the 2025 NFL trade deadline. To the surprise of many, the New York Jets were sellers. The team parted ways with two franchise cornerstones on defense.
Sauce Gardner was traded to the Indianapolis Colts for two first-round picks. Additionally, Quinnen Williams was traded to the Dallas Cowboys for a first- and second-round pick. A really great move by first-year general manager Darren Mousey. Mousey explained to the media on Tuesday that the Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams trades were not a “demolition” for New York.
Jets part ways with two franchise cornerstones at 2025 trade deadline
Jets GM Darren Mousey said the Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams trade was not a “demolition.”
via story @RichCimini:https://t.co/QV1wDYE5pV
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 5, 2025
On July 22, 2025, the New York Jets signed cornerback Seuss Gardner to a four-year contract worth $120.4 million. He was scheduled to sign a contract with the Jets through the 2030 season. But New York was offered a trade package for Gardner and couldn’t turn it down. The Jets traded Sauce Garder to the Indianapolis Colts on Tuesday, October 4th. In exchange, the Jets acquired WR Adoni Mitchell and first-round picks from the Colts in 2026 and 2027.
That wasn’t the only trade New York made before Tuesday’s deadline. General manager Darren Mosey has traded defensive lineman Quinnen Williams to the Dallas Cowboys. Williams was selected by New York State with the third overall pick out of Alabama in the 2019 NFL Draft. In the trade with Dallas, the Jets received a 2026 second-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick from the Cowboys. The 2027 pick will be the most lucrative of Dallas’ two first-round picks that year.
Jets future draft picks after today’s trade:
2026
🏈1st round pick (NYJ)
🏈1st Round Pick (IND)
🏈2nd round pick (NYJ)
🏈Second Round Pick (DAL)2027
🏈1st round pick (NYJ)
🏈1st Round Pick (DAL)
🏈1st round pick (IND) https://t.co/rea59x9G9h— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) November 4, 2025
Jets GM Darren Mousey had to answer a ton of questions when he spoke to the media on Tuesday. It’s clear from yesterday’s moves that the Jets are thinking beyond the 2026 season. However, Mousey said the team is not giving up on 2025. Additionally, Darren Mousey said Tuesday’s trade by the Jets was not a “dismantling” for the team.
New York became the first team since 1967 to make multiple trades during a season to acquire first-round picks. The Jets are currently at a turning point in their franchise. They traded away two defensive gems and are still looking for a franchise QB. The team has first-round draft capital to find their quarterback of the future.
