PFF Analysis: The 5 Lowest-Graded Jets Defenders in a Disappointing 2025 Season

The 2025 New York Jets season was framed as a potential turning point, a year where a talented roster would finally coalesce into a contender. Instead, it devolved into a familiar dirge of frustration, culminating in a dismal 3-14 record. While the offense’s struggles often grabbed headlines, the defensive performance was a tale of two units: a formidable, star-driven core and a collection of glaring weak links that opponents ruthlessly exploited. Using Pro Football Focus (PFF) grades—a sophisticated metric evaluating every player on every play—we can move beyond traditional stats to identify the specific breakdowns. Here, we analyze the five lowest-graded Jets defenders from 2025, examining how their performances contributed to the team’s downfall and what it means for the future.

Deciphering the PFF Grade in a Season of Struggle

Before naming names, it’s crucial to understand the lens through which we’re viewing this struggle. A PFF grade isn’t about sacks or interceptions alone; it’s a performance-based evaluation from 0-100 that assesses a player’s execution and impact on each snap. A grade in the 60s suggests a replacement-level player, the 50s indicate poor performance, and anything below is considered a liability. For a Jets defense boasting All-Pro talent on its defensive line and in the secondary, having multiple players grade in this bottom tier created fatal imbalances. It rendered the unit’s strengths neutralizable and turned apparent depth into a critical vulnerability.

The List: Jets’ Defensive Low Grades in 2025

The following players, despite the efforts of their more celebrated teammates, posted the lowest defensive grades for the Jets in 2025 according to PFF’s tracking. Their seasons, marked by inconsistency and exploitation, became symbolic of a team that could not get out of its own way.

1. CB Michael Carter II: The Slot Specialist Who Lost His Grip

This is perhaps the most surprising and impactful name on the list. After establishing himself as one of the league’s more reliable slot corners, Michael Carter II endured a brutal regression in 2025. His PFF grade plummeted, primarily due to a severe dip in coverage consistency. Carter II, traditionally strong in run support, was targeted relentlessly in key passing situations. He struggled with quicker separation out of breaks and was uncharacteristically penalized at critical moments. For a defense that relies on its secondary to hold up in man coverage, having its trusted slot defender become a weak link had a cascading effect, limiting the defensive playbook and forcing safeties into overcompensation.

2. LB Jamien Sherwood: The Coverage Conundrum

The Jets’ long-standing quest for a three-down linebacker continued to be a sore spot, and Jamien Sherwood’s 2025 season underscored the issue. While his physicality near the line of scrimmage had moments, his PFF grade was torpedoed by abysmal coverage marks. In today’s NFL, linebackers must be able to match up with running backs and tight ends in space, and this became a glaring liability. Sherwood frequently looked a step slow in zone drops, was manipulated by quarterback eye movement, and gave up several key touchdowns in seam and flat routes. His low grade highlights a positional group that, beyond Quincy Williams, failed to meet the modern athletic demands, leaving the middle of the field dangerously exposed.

3. DE Jermaine Johnson II: The Disappearing Pass Rush

Following a breakout 2024 campaign, expectations were sky-high for Jermaine Johnson II to form a devastating edge duo. Instead, his 2025 season was defined by inconsistency. His PFF grade reflected a player who won with athleticism at times but failed to develop a reliable counter arsenal. His pass-rush win rate dropped significantly, and he was too often sealed out of plays in the run game, losing contain at inopportune times. While the raw sack numbers weren’t catastrophic, the grading reveals a player who failed to provide consistent pressure opposite a dominant defensive line, allowing offenses to focus their protection schemes elsewhere. For the Jets’ defense to reach its ceiling, they need the 2024 version of Johnson, not the 2025 enigma.

4. S Tony Adams: The Boom-or-Bust Backstop

The safety position next to Jordan Whitehead was a revolving door of uncertainty, and Tony Adams failed to solidify his claim to it. His PFF grade painted the picture of a high-variance player whose aggressive mistakes outweighed his occasional splash plays. Adams was occasionally caught out of position in deep coverage, leading to explosive gains, and his tackling efficiency was below standard for a last-line defender. While he possesses the athletic traits teams covet, his low grade indicates a continued issue with play recognition and disciplined execution. In a system that asks its safeties to be versatile and reliable, this inconsistency created communication breakdowns and costly errors in the secondary.

5. DT Solomon Thomas: The Diminished Interior Presence

Brought in as a veteran stabilizer for the defensive tackle rotation, Solomon Thomas saw his effectiveness wane dramatically in 2025. His PFF grade ranked among the lowest at his position league-wide, a stark indicator of his struggles. Thomas provided little as a pass-rush threat from the interior and was too often moved off his anchor in the run game. With Quinnen Williams commanding constant double-teams, the opportunity was there for Thomas to capitalize on one-on-one matchups, but he failed to do so with any regularity. His low output forced the Jets to overwork their top linemen and left the run defense susceptible up the middle when Williams needed a breather.

Looking Ahead: Roster Reckoning and 2026 Predictions

The presence of these five players at the bottom of the PFF rankings is a clear roadmap for General Manager Joe Douglas this offseason. It is not merely about adding talent, but about addressing specific, graded failures.

• Secondary Shakeup: The poor grades of Carter II and Adams will likely force the Jets to aggressively pursue a starting-caliber safety and potentially add competition for the slot corner role, either in free agency or with a premium draft pick.
• Linebacker Investment: Sherwood’s coverage woes scream for an upgrade. Look for the Jets to target a fast, instinctive linebacker in the draft’s early rounds to finally solidify the second level of the defense.
• Pass Rush Priority: Johnson’s step back means edge rusher remains a critical need. Expect the team to sign a proven veteran to either start or push Johnson, ensuring the pass rush doesn’t become a one-man show.
• Interior Reinforcements: The defensive line needs a reliable, disruptive partner for Quinnen Williams. Solomon Thomas’s role should be filled by a younger, more powerful defender capable of collapsing the pocket.

Prediction for 2026: The Jets’ defense has too much high-end talent to repeat this level of dysfunction. However, its success hinges directly on how the front office addresses these specific low-grade positions. If they successfully replace or inspire drastic improvement from two or three of these players, this unit can quickly return to top-10 status. If they stand pat, they risk wasting another year of a championship-caliber core on one side of the ball.

Conclusion: A Blueprint in Failure

The 2025 Jets season was a failure on nearly every level, but within that failure lies a data-driven blueprint. The PFF grades for these five defenders are not just criticisms; they are diagnostic tools. They pinpoint exactly where the seams burst on a defense that was supposed to be the team’s backbone. For head coach Robert Saleh, a defensive mastermind, these grades represent his most pressing coaching challenges. For Joe Douglas, they are a shopping list. The path out of the AFC East cellar isn’t just about Aaron Rodgers or a new offensive weapon; it is about fortifying these precise points of collapse. The Jets’ defensive identity depends on it, and the 2026 season will be judged by how decisively they respond to this stark, statistical reality.

Source: Based on news from Yahoo Sports.