The New York Jets are landing a new safety in J.J. Wilcox after he jilted the San Francisco 49ers at the proverbial free agency alter.
You don’t see this happen to often. A player who could have gone another direction decided to sign with the New York Jets. J.J. Wilcox, a 27-year-old safety who played for both the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Pittsburgh Steelers last season, is reportedly leaving the San Francisco 49ers at the alter to sign with Gang Green.
Wilcox isn’t one of the bigger names in the league, but he’s a valuable part. The former Dallas Cowboys star can play both in the box and as a traditional strong safety in the passing game, and should have been an immediate starter for the 49ers. Instead, he goes to the Jets where he’s likely the third option at safety behind second-year men Marcus Maye and Jamal Adams.
In his five-year career, Wilcox has played in 70 games and started 39 of those, with 38 coming in Dallas. All told, the Georgia Southern product has six career interceptions and a trio of fumble recoveries. He left Dallas after his rookie contract expired in 2016 and signed with the Buccaneers but never appeared in a regular-season game before being traded to Pittsburgh. The veteran then signed with the Steelers and played in 12 games.
Next: Best NFL player from each state
New York still has some work to do before being considered a contender, but the Jets have put together a nice offseason. The team was able to land Sam Darnold in the first round of the NFL Draft, after signing top-end cornerback Trumaine Johnson to a five-year deal back in March.