The New York Jets were the most active team at the NFL trade deadline, trading away Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams for massive draft hauls.
But, one of the more impressive in-season moves for the Jets came earlier in the year, and with the Tennessee Titans in the trade for Jarvis Brownlee Jr.
According to Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com, the reason why the Jets were able to land the promising 24-year-old cornerback is a baffling one.
The Jets were able to land Jarvis Brownlee Jr. for a baffling reason
"Jarvis Brownlee trade was controversial around here." Mike Borgonzi said, according to McCormick. "You're evaluating the fit. We don't have the culture around here right now to help guys develop. We thought some of the habits weren't conducive to helping Jarvis develop right now."
Borgonzi: Jarvis Brownlee trade was controversial around here. You're evaluating the fit. We don't have the culture around here right now to help guys develop. We thought some of the habits weren't conducive to help Jarvis develop right now.
— Terry McCormick (@terrymc13) November 5, 2025
This is a wild statement for a general manager to make. Trading away young talent is always questionable, but sometimes it can be justified by the team receiving value too good to pass up, as seen with the Jets and Gardner.
However, in this case, the Jets sent the Titans a 2026 6th-round pick and a 2026 7th-round pick for Brownlee. It only cost the Jets a late-round pick swap for a promising, young cornerback.
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If the trade wasn't bad enough, the reason that the Titans' GM shared for why such a trade was made is even worse.
The Titans traded Brownlee to the Jets due to the poor condition of the Titans' culture. Not only is making such a decision controversial, but admitting that the lack of a strong culture was the reason for the trade is a baffling thing to admit, especially as the GM of the team.
This malpractice by the Titans worked out great for the Jets. Not only did they get a cheap, young cornerback who's taken over their slot role for the next 2.5 years, but it also allowed them to trade Michael Carter II to the Philadelphia Eagles and, overall, save money.
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