The New York Jets‘ defensive line has a lot to prove heading into the 2025 season. Once considered a strength of the team, the 2024 campaign exposed the cracks. An early-year season-ending Achilles injury to Jermaine Johnson II left the edges without many proven assets. Interior defensive lineman Quinnen Williams also arguably endured a career-worst year.
Pro Football Focus recently ranked every defensive line in the league. The Jets clock in at No. 26 overall, seventh-worst in the entire NFL.
DEFENSIVE LINE RANKINGS 📊https://t.co/sGkFvUodvX
— PFF (@PFF) June 25, 2025
“A once strong and deep unit is no longer encouraging on paper,” Zoltán Buday wrote. “The star of the Jets’ defensive line is undoubtedly interior defender Quinnen Williams, who had a down season and ranked just 28th at the position in PFF overall grade in 2024. Even if Williams gets back to his elite ways, the unit could still be in trouble. Two Jets edge defenders logged at least 300 snaps in 2024 — Will McDonald IV and Micheal Clemons — but neither ranked among the top 80 edge defenders in PFF overall grade last season.”
Williams recorded six sacks last season, a far-cry from the 12.0 he accumulated in a career-best 2022 campaign. PFF was harsh on McDonald IV, who claimed 10.5 sacks in a breakout sophomore season. Point is, new defensive-minded head coach Aaron Glenn is tasked with getting this unit back on track. Williams and the defensive line must be a strength of Coach Glenn’s defense.
This article originally appeared on Jets Wire: Pro Football Focus: Jets have bottom-7 defensive line in the NFL