New York Jets release veteran DL Henry Anderson

The New York Jets have released defensive lineman Henry Anderson, who was already projected to be a cap casualty.

You can never own enough cap space, especially in a year when the cap is lowered due to a pandemic-related loss in revenue. The New York Jets are certainly implementing that mindset ahead of the 2021 campaign.

According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the organization has released veteran defensive lineman Henry Anderson, who was slated to carry a cap hit of $9.53 million next season. Cutting Anderson saves the Jets $8.2 million, which was supposed to be the amount of his base salary. The dead cap will be $1.33 million.

The #Jets have released DL Henry Anderson, who was due $8.2M this season. It saved them nearly that against the cap.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) March 3, 2021

Anderson was one of the team’s projected cap casualties this offseason. He notched a career-high 42 combined tackles this past year, but it’s clear it would be better for the Jets to build around Quinnen Williams, who carries the potential to be a more dominant down lineman.

The Jets own over $70 million in space at the moment, so they’ll possess a number of options in free agency should they choose to break the bank on someone. General manager Joe Douglas prefers to build through the draft, but impatience is growing among the fanbase after a tenth consecutive season without a playoff berth. The clock is ticking, and the Jets should definitely consider utilizing that space on at least one big-name free agent to help build around whichever starting quarterback they choose.

Positions to target will be wide receiver, cornerback, edge rusher, and potentially tight end.

Anderson may not be the only cap casualty for the Jets this offseason — a number of additional guys could be cut in order to save money.

Wide receiver Jamison Crowder is set to count $11.4 million against the cap but only carries a $1.0 million dead cap, so $10.4 million could be saved by cutting him. Parting ways with tight end Ryan Griffin would save the organization $1.8 million while releasing offensive guard Alex Lewis would save $5.2 million.

Whether you like Anderson or not, cutting him is a beneficial move from a financial standpoint, and the Jets definitely have a multitude of options in regard to how they could move forward.