Can Jets Trust Former Patriots Lineman Who Abandoned Team?

The New York Jets made a signing in March that left many fans scratching their heads.

With offensive tackle Morgan Moses departing for the New England Patriots, the Jets pivoted and signed a 27-year-old OT who spent 2024 with New England: Chukwuma Okorafor.

As Jets X-Factor’s Joe Blewett recently described, “Okorafor’s tenure in New England was short and anything but sweet.”

“(Okorafor) started at left tackle in the season opener (marking his first career start at the position), but he performed so poorly to begin the game that he was benched after 12 snaps,” Blewett continued.

“The following week, Okorafor refused to show up to practice, and the Patriots placed him on the exempt/left squad list. This meant he was not allowed to play for the rest of the season.”

Can the Jets trust Okorafor? The good news is, New York won’t be relying on Okorafor in a starting role, especially with the Jets snagging Armand Membou with the No. 7 overall pick of the 2025 NFL draft.

That being said, evaluating Okorafor’s value is still important, given potential injuries to New York’s line. In wondering how Okorafor might impact the Jets, Blewett wrote the following:

“Okorafor brings plenty of starting experience to the Jets’ second-string offensive line. A 2018 third-round pick of the Steelers, Okorafor started 59 of his 77 appearances across six seasons in Pittsburgh. He was the team’s primary starting right tackle from 2020 until midway through the 2023 season. However, Pittsburgh did not view Okorafor as a viable long-term starting option, as they used a first-round pick on Broderick Jones to replace him.”

Pittsburgh cutting ties with Okorafor led to his joining New England on a one-year, $4 million deal. The Jets signed Okorafor for much less: a one-year, $1.34 million deal.

Hopefully, Okorafor can write a different story in New York than the legacy he left behind in New England.