On Wednesday, the New York Jets released linebacker and team captain C.J. Mosley, per the team. If it’s a regular release, the Jets will lose $3.6 million in cap space but if it’s a post-June 1 release, New York will save $4 million.
Mosley was signed by former general manager Mike McCagnan in 2019. He only played two games, due to injuries that ended up plaguing his tenure with the Jets. From 2021-2023, he played every game, recording at least 150 tackles in each of those three seasons.
In 2022, he finished second in All-Pro voting and was named a Pro Bowler. Mosley elected to miss the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The 32-year-old was the team’s captain every season that he played and was the main leader not only on the defensive side of the ball, but for that entire locker room.
He helped mentor younger players like Quincy Williams, who has turned into one of the league’s best young linebackers, earning an All-Pro selection in 2023. Jamien Sherwood, who was just signed to a three-year, $45 million extension on Sunday, March 9, is a protege of Mosley.
When Mosley missed a majority of the 2024 season, Sherwood came in and took over the reins as the captain of the defense. The defense didn’t skip a beat, and Sherwood added an elite level of speed that Mosley lacked.
The 10-year veteran should have a solid market, considering teams with new head coaches are likely in a position where they need to build a new culture. The San Francisco 49ers is a potential destination for Mosley considering Robert Saleh is the team’s new defensive coordinator and 49ers’ linebacker Dre Greenlaw left in free agency and signed a three-year, $35 million contract with the Denver Broncos.
He spent the first five seasons of his career in Baltimore with the Ravens, so a potential reunion with John Harbaugh could be in the cards for the veteran.
Mosley played under two general managers and head coaches, but three different regimes during his five-year career in the green and white; McCagnan and Adam Gase – Joe Douglas and Gase – Douglas and Saleh.
While his stats don’t jump off the page and he never added any accolades other than a pro bowl selection, he was beloved within the organization and played a huge role in helping build Saleh’s dominating defense in 2022 and 2023. His leadership was second to none and a huge part of the development of the young talent around him.
