For the first time this decade, The New York Jets will be without C.J. Mosley as a captain on defense. Mosley spent five seasons with the Jets, all of them serving as defensive captain, including a Pro Bowl season.
After years of great linebacker play on the inside, Mosley was released by the Jets as a post-June 1 cut. Despite looking for a new job in a different city, Mosley has remained close to the team's facility in Florham Park.
Mosley continues to be an asset to the Jets, as one particular player has been leaning on him for guidance during camp: Quincy Williams.
Williams is one of the premiere players on New York's defense. He has been partnered with Mosely on the inside for the past four seasons, including a First-Team All-Pro 2023 campaign. Williams has developed from a third-round flameout with Jacksonville to one of the NFL's best linebackers in New York.
Williams' development, combined with Jamien Sherwood stepping up as both a defensive disrupter and a leader helped soften the blow of the Jets losing Mosley.
Mosley's leadership will still be missing in the locker room and off the field, and it's up to Williams to take on that load. Williams has stayed in touch with Mosley, and has relied on him for help.
“C.J. came to my camp this weekend, so we had a conversation,” Williams said at Jets OTAs on Tuesday. “Also, he’s still in New Jersey, so we’ve grabbed lunch a couple of times. Right now it’s the mindset of picking his brain on how to be more of a leader. When he came to the Jets, to a new team, he actually sat out a year."
“So it was like what are the things that you worked on to come to a team that you really didn’t know? How did you become a leader to those guys?”
Without aging veterans such as Aaron Rodgers and Mosley, it's up to some of the younger Jets with tenure to pick up the slack. Williams fits the bill, as a six-year NFL veteran with accolades to boot.