Jets Trade WR Mecole Hardman to Chiefs, per Report

Mecole Hardman is headed back to Kansas City.

The Jets’ Mecole Hardman experiment is coming to an early end. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, New York is trading Hardman back to the Chiefs in a deal involving a late-round draft swap.

New York will send Hardman and a 2025 seventh-round pick to Kansas City for a 2025 sixth-round pick, Schefter reports.

Hardman had only joined the Jets this offseason after spending the previous four seasons in Kansas City. In 2023, he has one reception on three targets and had featured on just 10% of New York’s offensive snaps. 

Hardman, 25, is a former second-round pick from the 2019 NFL Draft out of Georgia. Best known for his speed, he’s caught 16 touchdown passes and scored a touchdown on both a kick return and a punt return across 62 games since turning pro.

After struggling to carve out a role in the New York Jets’ offense, wide receiver Mecole Hardman is being traded back to the Kansas City Chiefs :: Denny Medley/USA TODAY Sports

Things didn’t work out in New York for Hardman, who struggled to get on the field with his new team after signing a one-year, $4 million deal during the offseason.

Earlier in October, it was reported by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that the Jets were looking into possibly trading Hardman, and it seems they managed to find a buyer in his former employer.