What Does Jermaine Johnson’s Return Mean for the New York Jets?
The New York Jets have some reinforcements coming in for their defensive line rotation. One of their young defensive stars, edge-rusher Jermaine Johnson, has been activated off the PUP list and will begin practicing at some point this coming week. Johnson has been out of commission for nearly a year at this point, tearing his Achilles in Week Two of the 2024 NFL season against the Tennessee Titans. His return will breathe some much-needed life into a defensive line rotation that is sneakily thin for the Jets.
Jermaine Johnson’s return to form is paramount to the Jets’ success in 2025. One of the biggest issues for the team in 2024 was their defensive line, a jarring sight for Jets fans, who were used to a dominant front for the past two to three years beforehand. The Jets lost a few legitimate pieces on the line going into 2024 and were already pretty thin when Johnson went down in Week Two. The defensive line was routinely pushed around in the run game throughout the year, and their toothless rotation was a major reason why the entire defense took a major step back in 2024.
Fans, as well as the team, are hoping that with Johnson’s return, he can go back to being a key piece of the defensive rotation that was so great just a couple of years ago. Johnson has extra motivation to perform this coming season, as he just saw both of his fellow first-round picks, Garrett Wilson and Sauce Gardner, receive massive contracts this offseason and is hoping to cash in on his own second contract next offseason. Due to the nature of his injury, it may take him a little bit longer to get into the groove of things, since Achilles injuries tend to sap some speed and explosiveness from a player, especially if they play a position like edge-rusher. Jets fans have major trauma from Achilles injuries thanks to Aaron Rodgers’ 2023 season with the team and his not returning to his Green Bay form when he returned in 2024. Fortunately for them, Johnson is still young at just 26 and will hopefully bounce back better than a 40-year-old quarterback. If Johnson can bounce back and return to form in 2025, then the Jets will have a major piece back in their defensive rotation and should be able to do some serious damage to opposing offenses.
