With the New York Jets, nothing should come as a surprise. But parting ways with aging veterans was absolutely the right decision.
Coming into the 2016 offseason, the New York Jets had a laundry list of question marks. It was headlined by what direction the franchise would go in after six straight years of missing the playoffs.Sprinkled in there was the aberration of the 10-6 season that saw them control their own destiny in Week 17 in a game in Buffalo. Fans painfully remember what happened next.
With about a week until the official start of free agency, that plan doesn’t appear all that nebulous anymore. The Jets are in the process of undergoing a seismic makeover and it’s hard to argue this isn’t the right move.
They’ve already released fan favorites Nick Mangold and Darrelle Revis, who both fell victim to the cap casualty phenomenon. With limited financial flexibility and a ton of holes to fill, these transactions were no-brainers as the Jets were tasked with thinking with their heads and not their hearts.
The emotional attachment was warranted. It was their hearts that told them these were integral pieces that would forever be a part of the franchise’s lore. But they were also aging players who under-performed and weren’t worth they money being given them.
Brandon Marshall, who made his claim to fame both with a historic inaugural season in New York and with his inexorable public campaign of advocating for Ryan Fitzpatrick to be re-signed, became the latest purge fatality.
Marshall set two franchise records with 109 catches and 1,502 receiving yards — the model of consistency Gang Green desperately needed. But he followed that up arguably the worst season of his career with just 59 receptions and three touchdowns. Injuries stymied the soon-to-be 33-year old.
After clearing about $46 million in cap, the Jets now have $33 million to spend. And they might not be done making moves, as Rich Cimini reports Marcus Gilchrist, Calvin Pryor, Eric Decker, Buster Skrine and Sheldon Richardson could be cut.
This illustrates just how the front office views this team. Not only are they not ready to compete now, but they’re so far away from contention that they’d be willing to part with inexpensive young players.
If you thought last year was rough, next season could be much worse. Part 1 of a rebuild is hitting the reset button. So far, the Jets have done just that with the shedding of bad contracts.
Part 2 is spending the money wisely. This aided GM Mike McCaggnan in his first year when he earned the Executive of the Year award. The same will be required of him beginning next week when free agency commences. And Part 3 comes at the draft. The Jets will presumably (if they don’t trade the pick) select sixth.
Just 14 months ago, the Jets were so close to breathing postseason air. They were one quarter away from advancing to the playoffs to play an injury-plagued Bengals team. Now, that’s a distant memory. And it’s anybody’s guess as to what happens next.
