With Halloween less than 48 hours away, NFL front offices are gearing up for a busy week before the trade deadline. As November 4th draws near, one team taking advantage of the opportunity has been the New York Jets. Despite their 1-7 record, general manager Darren Mougey has been active in deals. Most recently, the success of acquiring cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr from the Tennessee Titans has led to another deal.
After spending five seasons in New York, the Jets agreed to a trade to send longtime cornerback Michael Carter II to the Philadelphia Eagles. Last offseason, Carter II agreed to a three-year contract extension worth $30 million with $13 million guaranteed. Since then, his play has regressed to where the newly acquired Brownlee was seeing more snaps at nickelback. In return, the Eagles will send the Jets former second-round pick, wide receiver John Metchie. In addition, the Eagles will receive a 2027 seventh-round pick from the Jets in exchange for Philadelphia’s 2027 sixth-round pick.
Sources: The #Eagles are trading for #Jets versatile CB Michael Carter II to fill a need for them, with WR John Metchie III heading to NYJ in the deal.
In all:
— Philly gets Carter and a 2027 7th rounder.
— New York gets Metchie and a 2027 6th rounder. pic.twitter.com/PAVGNwLL1k— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 29, 2025
Jets Trade Longtime Cornerback to the Eagles for WR Depth
During the 2021 NFL Draft, the New York Jets drafted defensive back Michael Carter II out of Duke University in the fifth round. A member of the rookie general manager Joe Douglas’ inaugural draft class, Carter was a promising but undersized safety for the Blue Devils. Carter took off early, becoming the Jets starting nickelback in head coach Robert Saleh’s defense within weeks.
However, he really took off the following season. Starting at nickelback next to Sauce Gardner and DJ Reed proved to be beneficial to Carter. Eventually, he recorded his first career interception against the Pittsburgh Steelers in a 24-20 victory in October. Carter played in all 17 games in 2022 and earned a PFF grade of 73.5, for the 18th-best in the league. His success continued in 2024 despite missing two games with a hamstring injury. He played in 15 games with nine pass deflections in seven starts, earning him the 12th-highest PFF grade among cornerbacks. His early success was parlayed into the previously mentioned three-year extension he signed in the 2024 offseason.
Lost in the Shuffle
However, since signing that extension, Carter has dealt with setbacks. During a disappointing 2024 season for the team as a whole, a back injury forced him to miss four games last year. This has also led to a drop in play, having his PFF grade in 2024 falling all the way to 50.7, which is ranked 183rd among cornerbacks. The arrival of Jarvis Brownlee made it a matter of time before Carter II was to be dealt with. However, there’s hope for Eagles general manager Howie Roseman that Carter can provide good depth at nickelback behind star Cooper DeJean. Through this trade, Michael Carter reunites with Joe Douglas, who is currently working in the Eagles front office again.
The Jets acquire former second-round pick Wide Receiver John Metchie
To complete the trade, the Philadelphia Eagles sent the Jets wide receiver John Metchie. While only having four catches for only 18 yards this season, New York can use Metchie in their wide receiver room. Acquired by the Eagles earlier this season, Metchie was drafted by the Houston Texans with the 44th pick of the 2022 Draft. A promising wide receiver at the University of Alabama, Metchie was important to the Crimson Tide offense. Between 2020-2021, Metchie had 151 catches for over 2,000 yards and 14 touchdowns. His best season came in his junior year in 2021. Before an ACL tear suffered in the SEC Championship game, Metchie had 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns.
Soon, Metchie would be placed on hold after being diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia. In summary, APL is a form of white blood cell cancer. Due to the diagnosis, Metchie sat out his entire rookie season in 2022. Fortunately, his recovery was successful, and he returned to training camp in 2023. It was a quiet year in his first full season, with 16 catches on 30 targets for 158 yards. He improved in 2024, having 254 yards on 24 catches, including his first career touchdown. Coincidentally, Metchie earned that touchdown in a 26-23 loss vs. the Detroit Lions. In that game, Metchie had a career-best 74 yards on five catches against current Jets head coach Aaron Glenn’s defense.
Stroud. Metchie. TOUCHDOWN!
That’s his first career TD catch
: #DETvsHOU on NBC/Peacock
: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/OrlPB7UHjE
— NFL (@NFL) November 11, 2024
John Metchie’s fit in New York
The acquisition of Metchie adds some promising upside at wide receiver in the Jets offense. It’s optimistic to hope Metchie can help Tanner Engstrand stretch the field for quarterback Justin Fields until Garrett Wilson’s return. In addition, Metchie is a restricted free agent after the season, which gives the Jets another year of team control in 2026. A key detail here for the Jets is the Mcap savings. Thanks to the trade, the Jets will save up to $8.6 million next year in cap space. As a result, the Jets projected cap space could jump to the sixth-highest in the league. Jets fans will appreciate the effort Michael Carter II put in the past five years. Thankfully, the trade gives New York a promising young wide receiver for depth and financial freedom long-term. A trade that should hopefully help both sides.
Main Photo: [Morgan Tencza] – Imagn Images
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