Jets pass rusher Jermaine Johnson 'excited' to face Aaron Rodgers and Steelers in Week 1

Antwan Staley, New York Daily News on Jun 10, 2025

Published in Football

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NEW YORK — Jets pass rusher Jermaine Johnson missed 15 games last season due to an Achilles injury he suffered in Week 2.

However, Jets coach Aaron Glenn says he will be ready for their Week 1 matchup against the Steelers at MetLife Stadium.

That happens to coincide with the return of Aaron Rodgers, who was Johnson’s teammate with the Jets for two seasons before he was released in March.

“We were just texting last night,” Johnson said. “But obviously, I’m excited, he’s excited.

“Yeah, it was a pleasure having Aaron around and stuff like that and I wish him the best. But, you know, when you get in between those lines, there’s no friends and I think he knows that.

“I’m excited. It’s just another game, but for me, it’s going to be my first game back with a lot of emotions. When my emotions are high, I tend to play pretty well.”

As a rookie in 2022, Johnson recorded 29 tackles and 2.5 sacks in 14 games after he was selected 26th overall in that year’s draft out of Florida State. The Jets organization has a lot of confidence that Johnson will return to form and maybe even exceed his 2023 level when he recorded 55 tackles, 7.5 sacks, and made an appearance in the Pro Bowl.

Otherwise, Glenn and Jets general manager Darren Mougey, who were both hired in January, wouldn’t have picked up his fifth-year option on his contract in April.

“I think it was only Aiden [Hutchinson] who got that same treatment, so to me, it is like a big investment,” Johnson said. “They’ve seen enough about me and heard enough about me that they are willing to dive into that for at least for another year.

“It means a lot to me and I’m always a man of my word and a man of honor, so to me that’s them lifting their end of the couch. Now, it is time for me to lift my end of the couch.”

Johnson tore his Achilles when he was pursuing Titans quarterback Will Levis. Johnson should be “close” to being cleared for contact by late July, according to Glenn, but he could begin training camp on the physically unable to perform list.

Since suffering the injury, Johnson has been rehabbing in attempts to return to the practice field with his teammates. During the Jets’ offseason program, Johnson has been working with a trainer off to the side. Earlier in the offseason, Johnson was splitting time rehabbing between Los Angeles and New Jersey.

The Jets certainly missed Johnson’s production during their disappointing 5-12 season, in which both coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas were fired.

“When I went down, I felt like I let the team down,” Johnson said. “I know injuries happen, but it is just how I’m thinking, I’m letting the guys down. They put a lot of stock into that and I know they did.

“I wasn’t there to hold up my end of the bargain or lift my end of the couch. Just watching that and seeing that and some of those games were close and I know I can just help. I know I’m just a plus to have on the field, I know this and it was hard for me to watch.”

With the youth movement Glenn and Mougey have spearheaded with the Jets, Johnson will be counted on for his production on the field. Glenn has been a fan of Johnson, dating back to when he and the Lions’ coaching staff were at the 2022 Senior Bowl.

“There are things that stand out going back to college that I saw in him,” Glenn said about Johnson. “Even at the Senior Bowl when I had a chance to coach him then, he’s a hard-nose, physical, violent player that’s very athletic that has the ability to win off the edge and make plays on the quarterback.

“You don’t get a lot of guys that have the athleticism that he does and be strong and powerful to be able to hold up against the run like he does. I’m excited to see that player get out there in training camp and going into the first game. So, he’s going to be a huge part of what we are doing, he knows that too, but he understands what he needs to get better at.”

Johnson will return to a Jets defense that features eight starters from last year’s unit, which finished third in yards allowed (313.8). However, the Jets’ defense struggled without Johnson and after they fired Saleh following a Week 5 loss to the Vikings.

In their final 12 games, the Jets’ defense ranked 28th (26.6) in points allowed and 18th in yards (337.9) allowed per game. In addition to trying to improve his play on the field, Johnson is also emerging as more of a leader this year.

“A lot of playmakers, a lot of athletic guys, a lot of leaders,” Johnson said about his earlier impressions of the Jets defense. “I’m one of those guys who likes to lead by example.

“Since I’m not out there with them yet, it’s hard for me to be too vocal. I was telling the younger guys, ‘This team is going to go how we go.’ If we play bad, we are going to play bad as a team. If we play good, we are going to play good as a team.

“You also want that pressure walk around like that, undrafted free agent or a first-round draft pick, I don’t care. So I mean, those guys respond to that.”