The Jets have signed OL Jake Hanson and LB Sam Eguavoen to the active roster and placed LB Zaire Barnes on injured reserve. The team also elevated TE Anthony Firkser and DL Jaylyn Holmes from the practice squad to the active roster for Monday night's game against the 49ers, and signed RB Kene Nwangwu to the practice squad.
Hanson (6-4, 303) re-signed with the Jets as a restricted free agent in March after spending the majority of the 2023 season on the team's practice squad. He signed with the practice squad after final cuts. Hanson was elevated two games last season, in Weeks 11 and 13 ,before being signed to the active roster on Dec. 9. He played in 7 games (4 starts) at right guard. In 2020, Hanson, 26, was drafted by the Packers in the sixth round out of Oregon. In three professional seasons, Hanson has played in 18 games (5 starts), primarily at right guard.
Eguavoen (6-0, 236) signed last offseason with the Jets and went on to appear in 15 games, primarily on special teams, before re-signing with the Green & White in May. He signed with the practice squad after final cuts. Prior to New York, Eguavoen, who went undrafted in 2015, played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL from 2016-18. The Texas Tech product went on to sign with the Dolphins and spend four seasons with Miami (2019-23) prior to joining the Jets. He's played in 71 career games and has 75 tackles, 4 sacks, 16 QB hits, 3 fumble recoveries and 2 pass defenses.
Barnes (6-1, 227) sustained an ankle injury in practice last week leading up to Week 1. He played in four games last season after he was drafted in the sixth round out of Western Michigan and took 32 snaps on special teams. Barnes' 16 tackles in the preseason tied for second on the team, in addition he had 1 special teams tackle.
Firkser (6-2, 246) joined the Jets for training camp five years after the Green & White first signed him as an undrafted free agent out of Harvard in 2017. During the preseason, he recorded 3 receptions for 34 yards. He most recently played with the Lions and appeared in 2 regular-season games and 3 postseason games last season. His first professional game action came with the Titans in 2018 where he played through the '21 season. Over his five-year career, Firsker has played in 71 games (4 starts) and amassed 115 receptions for 1,207 yards and 5 touchdowns.
Holmes (6-5, 283), drafted by the Vikings out of Ohio State in 2018, re-signed with Jets in March. He played 5 games for the Green & White last season and recorded 5 tackles and a QB hit. Prior to the Jets, he spent three seasons with Minnesota (2018-20) and accounted for a sack, 4 tackles for loss and 5 QB hits. He then did one-year stints with the Saints (2021) and Bears (2022). He signed with Chicago after spending training camp with the Giants. For his career, Holmes has played in 39 games (10 starts) and registered 2 sacks, 65 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 3 pass defenses and 6 QB hits.
Nwangwu (6-1, 210) has spent all three years of his NFL career with the Vikings after Minnesota drafted him in the fourth round out of Iowa State in 2021. A return specialist, he led the league with 2 return scores as a rookie. His 35 returns in the 2022 season also led the NFL. Nwangwu has 3 return TDs in as many seasons and has a career 27.6 kick return average. He's taken 60 snaps on offense in 37 games (27 carries for 88 yards) and 326 snaps on special teams.
