New York Jets pass rusher Will McDonald IV had a breakout season in his sophomore campaign. McDonald, the Jets' first round selection in the 2023 NFL Draft, did not play a whole lot during his rookie campaign, logging just 184 defensive snaps.
In 2024, the former No. 15 overall pick posted 10.5 sacks and 24 quarterback hits, while also picking up three pass deflections and forcing two fumbles. McDonald's defensive snap percentage skyrocketed from 19 percent to 66 percent between his first and second NFL seasons.
McDonald has mostly found success as a speed rusher in his time in the NFL, but made a big change in the offseason, hoping it will lead to him earning even more snaps in 2025.
McDonald has gained 15 pounds from his listed playing weight of 236 pounds last season, putting him at 251 pounds on his 6-foot-4 frame. Jets head coach Aaron Glenn seems pleased with the change for the time being.
“We never want to take that away from him. That’s his superpower,” Glenn said. “But I think he understands, for him to be able to max everything out of his potential, he needs to get stronger, he needs to get bigger.”
The hope is that McDoanld's added weight and strength will make him a more complete product on the edge. If that is the case, and McDonald can both power through and scoot around tackles, he could be primed for an All-Pro third season.
However, the concern with added weight is it may diminish the speed that has made him so successful in his career. Even dating back to his college career at Iowa State, where he had a pair of 10.5 sack seasons, including leading all of FBS in 2020.
If McDonald can maintain his weight and be even more productive than last season, the weight is a home run addition for the Jets. NFL linemen have had a long history of players who added weight and struggled to maintain production.
While McDonald isn't lugging around 350 pounds of playing weight like former All-Pro Albert Haynesworth, Haynesworth does serve as a cautionary tale. After making two consecutive All-Pro teams, Haynesworth inked a contract worth over $100 million with Washington, but struggled to meet team fitness marks and struggled to remain on the field, playing his last snaps at the age of 30 just three years removed from an All-Pro campaign.