May is usually the dead zone for the NFL. The draft and free agency have come and gone, and for the most part teams are just counting down the days until training camp opens in a couple of months. That said, every now and then a team can still find a useful contributor lingering on the free-agent market. Let’s take a look at a few names that could still make some sense for the Jets.
Joel Bitonio
There are actually quite a few veteran guards still available as they wind down their careers. Kevin Zeitler and Greg
Van Roten both came to mind, but the best player of the bunch is probably Joel Bitonio.
Bitonio is set to turn 35, but by most accounts he’s still a capable starting-caliber guard. The Jets appear set along the offensive line, but in my opinion it would be a mistake not to bring in at least one veteran interior lineman on a one-year deal.
Josh Myers signed a modest two-year, $11 million contract with the Jets. This is money that shouldn’t guarantee him a starting spot, but enough to suggest the team at least views him as a high-end backup option.
Adding Bitonio, or one of the other veteran guards mentioned above, would likely allow Joe Tippmann to move back to center full-time while upgrading the guard spot over Myers. Myers could then slide into the high-end backup interior offensive line role he’s probably best suited for.
It feels unlikely the Jets make a move like this, but it’s something they should strongly consider.
Thayer Munford Jr.
Diving a little deeper, the next name is soon-to-be 27-year-old swing tackle Thayer Munford Jr.
Munford has played sporadically over the last few years, most recently seeing time as a swing tackle with the Patriots. Despite the inconsistent playing time, he’s graded out fairly well throughout his career all things considered.
The Jets are set at tackle with high expectations for Olu Fashanu and Armand Membou, but the depth behind them still leaves a lot to be desired. Right now, Max Mitchell and Chukwuma Okorafor are penciled in as the primary backup tackles.
Munford posted a solid 68.1 PFF grade in 2025 with New England, and the last time he received extended snaps at left tackle was back in 2024 with the Raiders. He turned in an impressive 74.1 PFF grade that year showing that he at least belongs on an NFL roster.
The Jets are one injury away from having a pretty concerning situation at tackle. Munford is still young enough that he could potentially develop into a quality long-term swing tackle for whichever team signs him.
Elijhah Badger
Okay, now we are going even deeper. Let’s look at a player who isn’t even in the NFL right now.
Elijhah Badger is a 24-year-old former undrafted free-agent wide receiver currently playing in the UFL. A productive college receiver, Badger originally signed with Kansas City after the draft but failed to make the roster last year.
Badger built a reputation in college as a legitimate deep threat. He posted an impressive 2.25 career yards per route run, peaking during his final season at Florida as an older player where he averaged 20.7 yards per catch along with an elite 2.96 yards per route run.
That downfield ability has translated to the UFL, where he currently ranks near the top of the league in both yards per catch and total receiving yards.
For a Jets team with very little depth at wide receiver, Badger feels like the type of low-risk dice roll worth bringing into training camp.
At this point we’re admittedly grasping at straws a bit… but beggars can’t be choosers.
