Garrett Wilson’s Dynasty Stock Slips After Jets Add Pass Catchers in Round 1
New York Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson exits the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft with more help around him and less of the offense locked into his hands. The Jets used two of their three first-round picks on pass catchers, taking Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq at No. 16 and trading up to grab Indiana wide receiver Omar Cooper Jr. at No. 30. The picks join an offseason that already included the trade-deadline acquisition of Adonai Mitchell and the addition of John Metchie III, plus a March trade for quarterback Geno Smith. The cumulative effect is a deeper but more crowded passing game.
Wilson is healthy entering the offseason program after a knee injury cost him the final 10 games of the 2025 season. He sprained his right knee against Cleveland in Week 10 on November 9, was placed on injured reserve four days later, and was officially shut down on December 19. Surgery was not required. Coach Aaron Glenn said in December that Wilson would be ready when the offseason program opened. Wilson finished the year with 36 receptions for 395 yards and four touchdowns in seven games. All four touchdowns came in the first five weeks. Wilson is signed through 2030 on the four-year, $130 million extension he agreed to in July 2025.
The Jets traded Sauce Gardner to the Indianapolis Colts at the 2025 trade deadline. The deal returned Mitchell, the No. 16 selection in this draft, and a 2027 first-round pick. The Colts finished 8-9 after losing their final seven games, which pushed their first-rounder all the way up to No. 16 and gave Mougey premium ammunition. The Jets used that pick on Sadiq, then packaged picks 33 and 179 with the San Francisco 49ers to move up three spots and select Cooper Jr.
The depth chart now reads heavier than at any point since Wilson was drafted in 2022. Mitchell entered the offseason penciled in as the No. 2 receiver after a strong eight-game stretch with the Jets that included an eight-catch, 102-yard, one-touchdown game against Atlanta. Cooper Jr. caught 69 passes for 937 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2025 at Indiana, second-most receiving touchdowns in the Big Ten and tied for third in FBS. Sadiq led all FBS tight ends with eight receiving scores and brings 4.39 speed to the position. Mason Taylor, the Jets’ 2025 second-round tight end pick, started 11 games as a passing-game contributor before his season was cut short by a neck injury.
Smith took over as the starter through the March trade with Las Vegas. The Jets opened 2025 with Justin Fields, finished with undrafted free agent Brady Cook, and finished 32nd in passing offense. Smith inherits a deeper room and a clearer hierarchy.
For Wilson’s dynasty value, the math has shifted. He remains the alpha and the most accomplished receiver in the room, but the Jets are no longer leaning on a single primary target. Mitchell, Cooper Jr., Sadiq, and Taylor each project to draw a meaningful target volume. Wilson’s expected fantasy production is increasingly dependent on big plays and red-zone usage, rather than on the high-target totals he posted earlier in his career, when accurate, valuable targets were scarce in this offense.
The 2026 regular-season schedule has not been released by the league. Wilson’s Week 1 opponent is not yet known.