NEW YORK — The Jets locked up one of their star players a week before the start of training camp.
Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams and the Jets have agreed to a four-year, $96 million contract extension, according to sources. Williams will make $66 million in guaranteed money.
Shortly after the news of his extension became public, Williams voiced his excitement on social media.
“Let’s kick some ass this year,” Williams said in a tweet. “Thanks so much.”
The Jets rewarded Williams following the best season of his career. Last year, Williams recorded 55 tackles, 12 sacks and 12 tackles for loss while forcing two fumbles. He was named to his first Pro Bowl and was also a first-team All-Pro.
At the end of the 2022 season, Williams announced he wouldn’t participate in the Jets' optional offseason program unless he received a contract extension. So, that is why Williams was absent during OTAs in late May and early June. His wife Maranda also recently gave birth to a daughter, so that kept Williams away from Florham Park.
Williams was set to enter the final year of his rookie contract, worth $9.6 million. Now he will have some extra security for the next few years. In March, his brother Quincy Williams also received an extension (three-year, $18 million) from the Jets.
Williams is now the second-highest-paid defensive tackle in the league. His contract is more than the $94 million, $66 million in guarantees the Titans’ Jeffery Simmons received earlier this year. Rams’ Aaron Donald is the highest-paid defensive tackle in terms of average yearly salary at $31.67 million.
This offseason has seen its share of defensive tackles get paid. Simmons, the Giants’ Dexter Lawrence and the Commanders’ Daron Payne all received contract extensions.
With the return of Williams, the Jets are hoping for more improvement from their defense that finished fourth in the league in yards and points allowed. That was an improvement from a Jets unit that finished 32nd in 2021.
Williams was initially selected by the Jets third overall in the 2019 draft. During his first four seasons in the league, Williams has recorded 191 tackles and 27.5 sacks.
