Garrett Wilson hated to see Jets trades, but trust team’s vision

The Jets have officially entered rebuilding mode after trading Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams.

Garrett Wilson was teammates of Gardner and Williams for the past four seasons.

But at 1-7, coach Aaron Glenn and general manager Darren Mougey are trying to turn around a franchise that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2010 and hasn’t finished with a winning record since 2015. Wilson says he’s confident in Glenn and Mougey’s plan for the Jets organization.

“I have to do my job,” Wilson told reporters Thursday. “I get paid to catch passes, block, help my teammates and make plays. They get paid to do that…I’m going to go play football and I’m excited, man. I’m excited to get into this thing and they have a vision. Like I said, I’m not paid to have a vision. They do. And, you know, they have one. And I have to trust them, man. I do.”

Even though Wilson wasn’t a fan of either trade, he understands the business of the NFL.

“Yeah, my emotions, my emotions, like that aspect of it, I hate it. I hate it,” Wilson said. I play football, I play with my brothers, I get to know my brothers. I hate it. But, but, you know, I get paid to play football.

“It doesn’t matter if I hate it. Go catch a ball. That’s the way I see it and that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to do my job to the best of my ability, so that kind of thing. They feel like they can keep us all together, because that’s the reality of this thing. You don’t win games. You know, things change.”

Given their record, the Jets were out of the playoffs even before their Week 9 absence. So, Glenn and Mougey decided to invest in draft capital for the future by trading away two of the Jets’ best defensive players. Gardner was traded to the Colts for two first-round picks (2026 and 2027) alongside wide receiver Adonai Mitchell. The Jets also dealt Williams to the Cowboys in exchange for a 2026 second-round pick, a 2027 first-round pick and defensive tackle Mazi Smith.

Gang Green has a total of five first-round picks in the next two drafts, giving them the option to draft a franchise quarterback for the future or trade for a veteran quarterback from another team. But that’s not going to help Wilson and the Jets win games in 2025.

Wilson and Gardner share a special bond after both being selected by the Jets in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft within hours of each other. They each won Offensive and Defensive Rookie of the Year awards in 2022, and both received contract extensions in July before training camp.

“I mean, it’s going to be an adjustment for me,” Wilson said. “I’m sure he’s going through that in Indy. It’s a game of change.”

Since being drafted in 2022, Wilson has been one of the Jets’ most productive players. Over his first three seasons, Wilson averaged 93 receptions for 1,083 yards and 4.7 touchdowns during that span.

However, Wilson missed the previous two games due to a knee injury he suffered during the Jets’ game against the Broncos in London. He watched from his home in New Jersey as the Jets earned their first win of the season against the Bengals on Oct. 26, after the team started 0-7.

“I felt like I saw them overcome, you know, what they went through early in the game,” Wilson said of the 15-point victory. You know, I feel like the offense was rolling.

“For me, that’s all I really wanted to see. Just offense, operations, and they were, and J. [Justin] Fields is back in his home state, not his home state, but Ohio, doing what he loves, man. You know, honestly, I kind of expected him to do like them. I can’t lie. I thought everything was going to come together that week and it did.

Wilson returned to practice Wednesday for the first time in three weeks, albeit on a limited basis. Although Glenn has not announced whether he will play against the Browns on Sunday, Wilson says he will be ready to go.

“Stuff like that, you know, keeps me up at night,” Wilson said. And sure, I stayed away from that, but the things that I was thinking about initially, that first day, I stayed away from until the end. I am grateful for that.

“I’ve never been injured in my whole career, man. Maybe it was good for me to realize that you’re not going to be out there every week, doing it the right way, every spot, it’s super important. Maybe I was taking it a little for granted, you know? I’m back to my old ways. I’m excited to get back out there.”