New York Jets Linebacker Named Team's Biggest Surprise This Season

The New York Jets have had a surprise linebacker break out this season, answering the call of a bigger role than expected.
Oct 6, 2024; Tottenham, ENG; New York Jets Linebacker Jamien Sherwood (44) in the 4th Quarter against Minnesota Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Oct 6, 2024; Tottenham, ENG; New York Jets Linebacker Jamien Sherwood (44) in the 4th Quarter against Minnesota Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. / Shaun Brooks-Imagn Images
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The New York Jets had to call on an unexpected linebacker early in the season and he answered the ball with better play than anyone expected.

As Bradley Locker of Pro Football Focus found each team's most surprising player this season, Jamien Sherwood was the obvious choice for the Jets.

"New York's defensive factory has another piece ready to fix the puzzle. Sherwood, who had only played 357 snaps in his first three years, has already experienced 544 snaps in 2024," said Locker. "The results have been promising: his 76.9 overall grade ranks 12th among qualifying linebackers."

Sherwood is a homegrown talent from the previous staff that seemingly turned out defensive talent after defensive talent. While most, if not all, of the people that led his development will be gone after this season, he was one of their successful experiments.

The Florida native played his college ball with the Auburn Tigers after building some hype in high school. He was a four-star safety and followed the normal in-state route of being a supreme athlete.

He was a defensive tool that was moved around for most of his time with the Tigers. He played the slot and free safety a fair amount, but spent a large majority of his time in the box.

His strength was his sure-tackling approach and he clearly struggled to keep up with shiftier players in coverage.

Given his playstyle, it is no surprise that he has become a linebacker at the next level. He's always had the same build, actually being listed four pounds lighter with the Jets than he did with Auburn, but has finally come into his own with his new role.

Sherwood played small role in the New York defense over his first three seasons, mainly working in special teams.

Now, in a contract year, he was faced with a bigger role in the defense and has looked more than ready to step up.

An early injury to C.J. Mosley opened up a lot of playing time for Sherwood, even though the younger linebacker was already seeing increased snap counts.

Even though Mosley is coming back to full strength, Sherwood has been good enough to cause a conversation to be had about who to play.

The 24-year-old has a career-high 80 tackles so far, by far teh most on the team. He also has two sacks and a pass broken up.

Giving him a new contract has surprisingly become a top offseason priority for the Jets.


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Dylan Sanders
DYLAN SANDERS

Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders