Jets turn to practice-squad kicker Jason Sanders for Week 1

The Jets will open the season with Jason Sanders handling kicking duties Sunday at Tennessee, ending a competition that had run through the final week of practice.

Sanders is technically on the practice squad, so the Jets will elevate him for the game while continuing to carry Blake Grupe on the 53-man roster. That arrangement is unusual, and the New York beat treated it as a mild surprise given that Grupe was the kicker who had been claimed off waivers last week.

Aaron Glenn explained the decision at his Friday press conference, pointing to workload and familiarity. "Jason will kick this week. He's had most of the reps," Glenn said, adding that he wants to give Grupe a fair look after arriving so recently and not getting many opportunities with long snapper Thomas Hennessy and holder Austin McNamara.

Sanders, who kicked for the Dolphins from 2018 through 2024, missed the entire 2025 season with a hip injury and has been with the Jets since June. Grupe signed last week, and Glenn made clear the job is not closed: he wants the competition to play out over the coming weeks rather than declaring a permanent winner based on one game.

For now the Jets have a veteran they trust taking the kicks in a road opener, with a second option already on the roster behind him.