With the trade deadline around the corner, the Philadelphia Eagles know they have areas to improve in. Coming off their Super Bowl victory, they sit at 6-2 with a comfortable lead in the NFC East.
While they’re nearly a lock to win their division, the addition of this Pro Bowler could strengthen their defense enough to put them in contention for back-to-back Super Bowls.
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Philadelphia Eagles Asking The Jets About Jermaine Johnson
Linebacker Jermaine Johnson stands 6’5”, 254 pounds. He’s just 26 years old, but none of those things are what the Eagles are about. In her latest trade deadline piece, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini discussed the challenges Philadelphia faces in landing the fourth-year player who has recorded 100+ career tackles.
“The Eagles need an edge rusher and asked the Jets about Jermaine Johnson,” Russini said. “It makes sense, considering former Jets GM Joe Douglas drafted him in New York and is now Philly’s senior personnel director.”
Russini continued, “However, New York has held a high asking price of a second-round pick or better.” That price could be far too high for the Eagles, especially knowing he’s missed a few games this season. Johnson, at his peak, is absolutely dominant. He recorded 55 total tackles in 2023, playing all 17 games. That year, he finished with a career high of seven and a half sacks.
To put things into perspective, he has just 3.5 combined sacks in 2022, 2024, and 2025. His 2023 season produced monster numbers, but asking a second-round pick for someone who is injury-prone and due for a new contract is quite steep. Upon being drafted No. 26 overall in 2022, Johnson signed a four-year, $13,087,444 rookie contract.
In April 2025, the Jets picked up his fifth-year option. Next year, he’s set to earn a fully guaranteed $13.411 million. While a recent ESPN article from Rich Cimini discussed Johnson not expecting himself to be traded, the NFL is a rough business, and that’s ultimately not a decision that is up to him.
Johnson told Cimini he received “clarity” from the front office that he wouldn’t be going anywhere. Now, here the Jets are, less than a week later, fielding offers for him. Back in 2023, Johnson received a B- in PFSN’s EDGE Impact Metric. This season, his grade has fallen to a D+. He’s dropped 16 spots in the EDGE rankings in a two-year span, but the Eagles know his potential is there.
This season, Johnson has 19 total tackles in five games played. 11 of those are solo tackles, not including his lone sack, which came in London against the Denver Broncos.
