Jamien Sherwood is staying put in the middle of the New York Jets' defense.
The playmaking linebacker agreed to terms Sunday with the Jets on a three-year deal worth $45 million, a person with knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press.
The contract includes $30 million in guaranteed money, the person told the AP on condition of anonymity because the agreement wasn't announced by the Jets. ESPN first reported the deal.
The 25-year-old Sherwood is coming off a breakout season during which he was selected the team's MVP by his teammates after leading New York with 154 total tackles, including 95 solo.
Bringing back Sherwood was a top priority for new general manager Darren Mougey and head coach Aaron Glenn, keeping one of the Jets' primary defensive leaders in the mix before the NFL's free agency period begins Wednesday.
The Jets' new regime has begun making major changes to the roster, including telling quarterback Aaron Rodgers last month the team is moving forward without him and releasing wide receiver Davante Adams last Tuesday. Adams agreed to terms Sunday with the Los Angeles Rams on a two-year, $46 million deal. The 41-year-old Rodgers has not publicly said whether he plans to play a 21st NFL season.
But New York made sure to keep one of its homegrown young players in Sherwood, an ascending talent who became the Jets' defensive playcaller last season after linebacker C.J. Mosley was sidelined by a toe injury and later a herniated disk in his neck.
Sherwood was a safety at Auburn and drafted in the fifth round in 2021 by the Jets, who converted him to linebacker. He tore an Achilles tendon during his rookie season, but recovered in time to play all 17 games the next year, primarily as a special teamer and backup while continuing to learn the linebacker position.
Sherwood showed promise while starting three games in 2023 before developing into a reliable starter this past season.
“Every play I get or chance I get, the next play is never promised and, you know, nothing’s ever promised,” Sherwood said late this past season. "I go out there and strain my hardest and I do it for my teammates, coaches and everybody in the stands, my family as well. That’s just a testament to who I am as a person.
“I want to do nothing but win. And I’ll do whatever it takes.”
Sherwood played in all 17 games, including 16 starts last season, and was the only player in the NFL to have multiple games with 17 or more tackles — which he accomplished twice. He was the first Jets player to accomplish the feat since David Harris in 2007.
Sherwood finished with 10 tackles for loss, two sacks and three passes defensed last season.
The move to bring back Sherwood also further clouds the future of Mosley, who counts $12.8 million on the cap this year and could be a candidate to be released.
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FILE - New York Jets linebacker Jamien Sherwood (44) smiles as he walks back to the locker room during an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins, Dec. 8, 2024, in Miami Gardens, Fla. (AP Photo/Doug Murray, File)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela’s government accused the United States of attacking civilian and military installations in multiple states after at least seven explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard around 2 a.m. local time Saturday in the capital, Caracas.
The Pentagon and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Smoke could be seen rising from the hangar of a military base in Caracas. Another military installation in the capital was without power.
People in various neighborhoods rushed to the streets. Some could be seen in the distance from various areas of Caracas.
“The whole ground shook. This is horrible. We heard explosions and planes,” said Carmen Hidalgo, a 21-year-old office worker, her voice trembling. She was walking briskly with two relatives, returning from a birthday party. “We felt like the air was hitting us.”
Venezuela’s government, in the statement, called on its supporters to take to the streets.
“People to the streets!” the statement said. “The Bolivarian Government calls on all social and political forces in the country to activate mobilization plans and repudiate this imperialist attack.”
The statement added that President Nicolás Maduro had “ordered all national defense plans to be implemented” and declared “a state of external disturbance.”
This comes as the U.S. military has been targeting, in recent days, alleged drug-smuggling boats. On Friday, Venezuela said it was open to negotiating an agreement with the U.S. to combat drug trafficking.
Maduro also said in a pretaped interview aired Thursday that the U.S. wants to force a government change in Venezuela and gain access to its vast oil reserves through the monthslong pressure campaign that began with a massive military deployment to the Caribbean Sea in August.
Maduro has been charged with narco-terrorism in the U.S. The CIA was behind a drone strike last week at a docking area believed to have been used by Venezuelan drug cartels in what was the first known direct operation on Venezuelan soil since the U.S. began strikes on boats in September.
U.S. President Donald Trump for months had threatened that he could soon order strikes on targets on Venezuelan land. The U.S. has also seized sanctioned oil tankers off the coast of Venezuela, and Trump ordered a blockade of others in a move that seemed designed to put a tighter chokehold on the South American country’s economy.
The U.S. military has been attacking boats in the Caribbean Sea and the eastern Pacific Ocean since early September. As of Friday, the number of known boat strikes is 35 and the number of people killed is at least 115, according to numbers announced by the Trump administration.
They followed a major buildup of American forces in the waters off South America, including the arrival in November of the nation’s most advanced aircraft carrier, which added thousands more troops to what was already the largest military presence in the region in generations.
Trump has justified the boat strikes as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs into the U.S. and asserted that the U.S. is engaged in an “armed conflict” with drug cartels.
Meanwhile, Iranian state television reported on the explosions in Caracas on Saturday, showing images of the Venezuelan capital. Iran has been close to Venezuela for years, in part due to their shared enmity of the U.S.
Pedestrians walk past the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)
Residents evacuate a building near the Miraflores presidential palace after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Cristian Hernandez)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Smoke raises at La Carlota airport after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Pedestrians run after explosions and low-flying aircraft were heard in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
