Defensive tackle Quinnen Williams wants to be with the New York Jets “for years to come.” But if the former Alabama All-American doesn’t have a contract extension by the time the NFL team starts its voluntary offseason program in April, he won’t be there.

“Everybody know I’m a team guy, man,” Williams said on Monday. “Everybody know that I believe in team and want to push team and different things like that. But I do want to get a contract done before the offseason program. I feel like I deserve to get a contract done before the offseason program just because I did everything right on the field and everything right off the field. And just having the organization behind me just like I’m behind them will show that they really support me.”

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Other than a three-day mandatory minicamp, attendance at each NFL team’s offseason program is voluntary, unlike training camp.

“We’ll just have to see when it comes down to that time,” Williams said when asked if he would hold out if he didn’t have a new contract by the time the mandatory dates arrive.

Williams said he wasn’t necessarily seeking to become the NFL’s highest-paid defense tackle. He also declined to reveal if he had a specific dollar amount in mind.

“I just want to be compensated for what I am,” Williams said.

Williams is scheduled to play the 2023 season for $9.594 million after the Jets picked up their option for a fifth season on his rookie contract during the offseason last year.

“I love this organization,” Williams said. “I been here four years, and I’ve been through the ups and downs. I believe in coach (Robert) Saleh and what (general manager) Joe (Douglas) got going on; the leaders, what they got going on. You guys can see this defense going to a new level from going from last last year to top five this year. I definitely want to be a part of that for years to come.”

But of the Jets’ eight first-round picks taken in the seven drafts before New York added Williams as the No. 3 choice in 2019, only one made it past four seasons with the team – and the Jets traded defensive end Leonard Williams during his fifth season.

“I definitely have faith in them,” said Williams, who is aware of New York’s history with first-rounders. “… To see where this culture’s going, to see where we going as a defense as a whole, I want to be a big part of that culture change. I want to be a big part of that New York Sack Exchange 2.0 type thing. That’s a big thing that means a lot to me and this organization.”

In his fourth season, Williams earned Pro Bowl selection in 2022. The former Wenonah High School star finished second among the NFL’s defensive interior linemen with 12 sacks. Williams also recorded career highs with 12 tackles for loss, 28 quarterback hits and four pass breakups and equaled career highs with 55 tackles, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.

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“I think it was a cool year,” Williams said, “full of excitement, fun, getting to where I want to be confident and where I want to be in my career in general and taking the next step to become the player that I want to be.”

That next step, Williams said, would be “learning how could I get that extra step, that extra burst, that extra thing to do to make the big plays, to make the closing plays when it’s time to be made like the elite of it.”

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The Jets have the longest current postseason drought in the NFL. New York lost its final six games of the 2022 campaign to finish at 7-10 and miss the playoffs for the 12th season in a row.

The New York defense finished fourth in points allowed and fourth in yards allowed among the NFL’s 32 teams for the 2022 season. But the Jets offense totaled only 15 points in the final three games of the season and finished 29th in points and 25th in yards.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter at @AMarkG1.