The Jets blew up the NFL’s quiet afternoon the moment they shipped Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams out the door, but the noise didn’t stop once the deals were done. When SNY rolled out the clip of Connor Hughes and Jeane Coakley from the latest episode of JetsMailbag, explaining the front office mindset, “Every player has a price, but the Jets were not going to move them unless they got their price, ” the fuse lit instantly. How does a 1–7 team preach in the future, trade two All-Pros, and still keep rentals? It didn’t sit well with anyone, from fans to analysts across New York.
"Every player has a price, but the Jets were not going to move them unless they got their price."@Connor_J_Hughes and @JeaneCoakley discuss the Jets' trade deadline and why they kept some of their rental players on a new episode of Jets Mailbag 📧 pic.twitter.com/GbelPJWwLU
— Jets Videos (@snyjets) November 7, 2025
Why the Jets’ Stance Sparked Backlash?
Aug 12, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; New York Jets helmet during the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 12, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; New York Jets helmet during the second quarter against the Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
The criticism didn’t come because the Jets were sellers. It came because they weren’t selling enough. Once they sent Gardner to the Colts for two first-round picks and AD Mitchell, and Williams to Dallas for a first-round pick and a second-round pick, it was clear the rebuild had begun. That’s why people expected the next wave: Breece Hall, Jermaine Johnson, maybe even other expiring pieces. Instead, New York slammed the brakes.
According to SNY’s Hughes, the front office took a firm, almost stubborn stance. If no offer meets their internal value chart, these two players will stay with the team. Gardner and Williams fetched massive returns, so they moved. Hall? The Jets wanted a third-rounder. They fielded offers, including at least one“reasonable” one, according to Jordan Schultz; yet, none met the threshold, so Hall remained. The same logic applied to Johnson.
That’s precisely where the backlash formed. Around the league, teams saw a club deep in a teardown, sitting at the bottom of the standings, yet acting as if they had leverage to negotiate from a position of strength. Critics argued that rentals rarely return premium picks, and holding them for the sake of principle only delays the rebuild they’ve publicly committed to.
Meanwhile, inside the building, the tone was different.Coach Aaron Glenn repeated that Hall is a “good football player” he didn’t want to lose. The staff also understood the practical hit: Braelon Allen’s injury left the backfield thin. That mattered. Hall remained the one offensive player keeping them afloat, especially for any quarterback the Jets may draft next year. But even Glenn admitted the day was “intense”, calling the entire deadline a blur of opportunity and hard choices.
Players felt the shift, too. Justin Fields said he was “surprised” as the locker room watched two foundational teammates pack up overnight. Hall denied requesting a trade, though he didn’t close the door on wanting a fresh start, telling reporters he was trying to “be where my feet are.”
Across New York media, though, the theme stayed the same: if you’re already ripping out the core, why protect rentals whose long-term futures are uncertain? The Jets Mailbag on SNY echoed that sentiment. Hughes openly noted that if the team didn’t see certain players as part of the 2027 team, they should have cashed in, unless they were genuinely willing to pay to keep them.
Instead, the Jets walked away with a half-measure. A massive haul for the two biggest names, followed by silence on depth pieces that other rebuilding teams would have moved without hesitation. That’s why the quote: “Every player has a price… unless they got their price” became the symbol of the backlash. It explained the Jets’ thinking, sure, but also exposed the rigid approach that frustrated fans.
In the end, New York isn’t wrong for valuing their roster. But they invited criticism the moment they declared the future had begun, then held onto players who might not be around to see it. The debate won’t die soon, especially with nine games left and Hall heading into a contract year. Either the Jets squeezed their assets perfectly, or they left value on the table while calling it strategy. Only the next two offseasons will tell.