The New York Jets were massive sellers at the trade deadline, while the Chicago Bears just made one trade. Could the two come together in the offseason for a solid deal?
Chicago's only trade at the deadline was acquiring defensive end Joe Tryon-Shoyinka from the Cleveland Browns in exchange for a late-round pick. Tryon-Shoyinka will fill in for Dayo Odeyingbo, who tore his Achilles tendon in the Week 9 win over the Cincinnati Bengals.
There was a significant complaint within the Bears fan base that they didn't do enough off the edge to ensure they were secure in getting to the quarterback. This might lead to the Bears connecting with the Jets in the offseason for a trade for another edge rusher with a higher impact.
Could Bears pull a trade off with the Jets to get another pass rusher?
Bleacher Report writer Moe Moton named his top candidates that he is predicting will be traded in the offseason since they missed the deadline. Moton had Jets edge rusher Jermaine Johnson on his like, with the Bears being one of the three possible landing spots.
"On this year's deadline day, Mougey traded two recent All-Pro players in cornerback Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams for premium draft capital and wide receiver help. Johnson, who earned a Pro Bowl nod in 2023 but has struggled to stay healthy over the last two seasons, shouldn't get comfortable in New York.
If Mougey uses one of his early-round 2026 picks on an edge-rusher to complement Will McDonald IV, Johnson could be on the move late spring or in the summer."
Since being selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, Johnson has shown flashes of being a solid edge rusher, including his 7.5 sacks in 2023. The last two years, though, Johnson has dealt with injuries, as he missed 15 games last year and has so far missed three games this season.
During the five games he has appeared in, Johnson has racked up 19 tackles, two quarterback hits, one tackle for loss, one sack, and one pass deflection. It's been a rough start, but in his defense, the Jets are 1-7 and not showing any signs of improvement.
Moton said that a 2026 second-round pick and future Day 3 picks would be able to secure Johnson. Chicago may not be willing to pay that high a price unless he has a fantastic second half of the season, but possibly negotiating as low as a third-round pick might be able to get it done.
The Bears could use a defensive end to help Montez Sweat out, as Odeyingbo only had one sack in eight games this year. Austin Booker appears to be a promising talent, recording a sack and forced fumble in his first game back from injury against the Bengals.
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Adding Johnson to the picture would give Chicago stability off the edge for the next few years with some great young talent.