Did a former New York Jets first-round pick just get the final dagger in his 2017 season? Here’s why Muhammad Wilkerson is done.
Todd Bowles announces Muhammad Wilkerson won’t make the trip. Not injury related. A coaching decision. #nyj
— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) December 15, 2017
The fact that New York Jets head coach Todd Bowles wanted to punish Muhammad Wilkerson isn’t puzzling, but the timing seems to be. Wilkerson was forced to miss a quarter of football a couple weeks ago due to his tardiness.
After that punishment was doled out, Wilkerson refused to talk to the media about it.
Then the Denver debacle happened where the Jets got blanked 23-0. The offensive coordinator admitted to quitting on his team, so I guess it works its way from the top down.
If Wilkerson’s career was a movie genre, it would be a horror film. I wish I could say that’s because he struck fear into opposing quarterback’s hearts, but that certainly isn’t the case with only eight sacks in 29 games.
According to Zack Braziller of the New York Post, the benching is due to him being late, once again. It was then reported by Brian Costello that Wilkerson informed them he would be late due to a personal matter.
Source confirms Mo WIlkerson was late to a meeting on Friday, which is why he won't be traveling to New Orleans. #nyj #jets
— Zach Braziller (@NYPost_Brazille) December 15, 2017
Bowles has been more of a disciplinarian this season. Is it because his cheeks were getting lukewarm on the hot-seat? Or did he have an epiphany that you can’t call someone a team captain and allow him to skip “mandatory meetings”?
Lets do a quick throwback Thursday on the program:
When asked earlier this season if he still considers Wilkerson a leader on the team despite his latest misstep, Bowles said, “Yes, he is”, via the New York Daily News. So a “leader” is someone who doesn’t show up to meetings and is a role model for the rest of his teammates?
Interesting. Because of course you pay guys like Wilkerson (five-year deal worth $86 million) to not be a leader and skip meetings, that’s cool. It’s time for this pathetic excuse of a player to be removed from the team. He’s a cancerous tumor and the Jets need to get rid of him, sooner rather than later.
“Wilkerson’s $16.75 million salary for next season doesn’t become fully guaranteed until the third day of the league year, next March. If the Jets cut Wilkerson before that guarantee kicks in, they would create $11 million in cap space, though they’d have to eat $9 million in dead money next season. Wilkerson’s cap hit if he remains with the Jets in 2018 would be $20 million, per Connor Hughes of NJ.com.”
