Top 5 Free Agent Targets in 2019

Discussion in 'New York Jets' started by DarrelleRevis.Human?, Jan 14, 2019.

  1. jonnyd

    jonnyd 2007 TGG.com Funniest Poster Award Winner

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    Also in the run game, there are only a few centers in the league that play like Mawae did......Bell is gonna running off tackle and off guards, not over the center;s back.
     
  2. ColoradoContrails

    ColoradoContrails Well-Known Member

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    I see your point, thanks, but I still maintain that Center is a harder position to play, and therefore fill. It's no coincidence that the best Jets OL all had great Centers.
     
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  3. jonnyd

    jonnyd 2007 TGG.com Funniest Poster Award Winner

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    from a physical stand point, center is by far the easiest on the line. From a cerebral stand point, its the most difficult. Perhaps the Jets brain trust believes Jonnothan whats his face did a decent job in calling out pressures towards the end of last year. I don;t recall Sam getting smashed all over the place when he looked really good the last 4 games or so.
     
  4. jonnyd

    jonnyd 2007 TGG.com Funniest Poster Award Winner

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    Yes but there are plenty of great O lines that dont have special centers but there anrent any great O lines who dont have great tackles and guards
     
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  5. NYJetsO12

    NYJetsO12 Well-Known Member

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    Yep, can you imagine the gasps.shock, and jaw dropping on TGG if somehow Bosa and Allen are gone????

    You have summed up the potential clusterf^ck Mac has set us up for...anything can happen if two teams are ahead of you!

    I am not sure how trade ups work come Draft Day ...do teams who want a trade up get an assurance from Ariz or SF they won't take a certain player?? Who knows...

    I posted before how prepared you have to be for the Q Williams name being called for NYJ late April....and looking for rationalizations at the same time

    Not signing a Edge or Center in FA will haunt Macagnan....Like NC said right now we are looking at some 3rd round scrub for Center ...get ready for more snaps flying over SD head..omg
     
    #1725 NYJetsO12, Mar 23, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2019
  6. BroadwayAaron

    BroadwayAaron Well-Known Member

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    As I said in another thread I’ve been out of the country for a week and missed pretty much everything that’s happened. Has it been discussed yet why we failed to move on Houston and are sitting here still with loads of cap space? We had two huge needs entering FA... we signed the two best players available but still came up completely empty in our two biggest areas of need. The amount of space we still have plus how little movement there’s been just doesn’t add up.

    Are we waiting for one of Clowney or Lawrence to shake free? Saving space for any potential player-for-pick draft day trade? It’s just not making sense. I’d take Shane Ray at this point.
     
  7. NCJetsfan

    NCJetsfan Well-Known Member

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    No,.nothing has come to light regarding Houston and the Jets. As far as we know, Mac never even talked to Houston or his agent. Wisniewski came in for a visit. Someone posted that Wisniewski declined to sign because it wasn't a good fit, but I saw no supporting link to an article, so don't know how accurate it was. There has also been no mention of whether Mac has contact John Sullivan or his agent.
     
  8. NCJetsfan

    NCJetsfan Well-Known Member

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    https://elitesportsny.com/2019/03/2...an-handle-center-position-heading-into-draft/

    How the New York Jets can handle the center position heading into the draft
    By
    Michael Nania
    -
    03/23/2019

    While the first few waves of free agency have already passed, there are still a few names floating around out there who possess the starting experience that porous teams like the New York Jets could potentially covet.

    One of the many holes that still remain on the Jets roster is smack in the middle of the offensive line, at center.

    With Spencer Long coming off of a horrendous season, the Jets made the no-brainer decision to cut ties with him, thus entering the offseason with a humongous hole at center. One would presume this meant the team would attack the position aggressively in free agency.

    Surprisingly, they came away empty-handed at the position. The top two options on the market headed elsewhere, as former Chiefs center Mitch Morse joined the Bills and former Broncos center Matt Paradis joined the Panthers.

    New York’s lack of aggressiveness at the center position is rather peculiar. This is a spot that has killed the Jets offense in each of the last two seasons. Due to the struggles of Wesley Johnson and Long, the Jets have fielded one of the worst running attacks in the league for two consecutive years, while dealing with far too much pressure allowed up the middle.

    For a team with a developing young quarterback, the importance of the center position is even greater than usual. A reliable leader in the middle of the offensive line that can act as a second coach on the field is extremely key for a young passer. In addition to that, it’s obviously important from a production standpoint to have a center who can anchor a strong run game and keep the pressure up the middle to a minimum.

    Constant flip-flopping between mediocre options at the spot is not going to be all that helpful for Sam Darnold.

    It seemed like the center spot would be a top priority for the Jets to address with their hoard of cap space, but as it turns out, that was not meant to be. Both Morse and Paradis, who the Jets were rumored to be in on, carry a lot of injury question marks. Perhaps the Jets were not comfortable with either of those two players due to uncertainty from a health standpoint, which is fair.

    So, the show goes on without one of the big-ticket free agent snappers agreeing to don the green and white. The Jets did re-sign Jonotthan Harrison, but as we learned in 2018, he is not good enough to be relied upon as a starter.

    Mike Maccagnan and company will likely turn to the draft to address the long-term health of this position. Until then, the team could still use another experienced player in the building to at least provide competition for Harrison, and potentially hold the spot down until a draft selection is ready to take over. We could even see a three-way center battle similar to the quarterback showdown the Jets had in 2018, featuring Harrison, a draft pick, and a free agent addition.

    So, who should the Jets turn to for an injection of life at the center position? The higher-tier options are off the table, but there are a few names left with starting experience. These players are not going to be remotely near the All-Pro conversation, but they have a lot of experience and a good chance to represent at least somewhat of an upgrade over Harrison.

    One of them was a starter in Super Bowl 53. The 33-year old John Sullivan, an alum of Notre Dame, spent the last two seasons in Los Angeles as a weekly starter for the Rams. Following this year’s playoff run, he was not retained by the defending NFC Champions and remains on the market.

    The Mount Kisco, New York native was selected 187th overall by the Vikings in the sixth round of the 2008 Draft. He has started 132 games at center in his NFL career, mostly with the Vikings and including a quick pit stop for the Redskins in Washington, before heading to Hollywood prior to 2017. He did not miss a single game due to injury for the Rams over his two seasons there.

    As you can expect with a player still available at this stage of the market, Sullivan is probably not going to come in and provide a huge upgrade. He is going to turn 34 in August and was considered the weak link on the Rams line this past season. His outing in the Super Bowl was very rough.

    However, from an off-the-field standpoint, Sullivan has been praised as a major asset. He has received a lot of acclaim for his role in the development of Jared Goff. This alone could make Sullivan attractive as a stopgap for the Jets, even if he can no longer provide staggeringly high-quality play.

    In spite of his age and performance drop-off, Sullivan represents a perfect fit for what the Jets could use at this position right now, with his experience and reputation as a teammate.

    The other option and one that the Jets have been rumored to have interest in is Stefan Wisniewski, who spent the last three seasons in Philadelphia.

    Wisniewski, who just turned 30 years old, has a lot of experience starting at center in the NFL. He was selected 48th overall by the Raiders in the second round of the 2011 Draft and started 61 games for them from 2011-14. He spent one season as the starting center for the Jaguars in 2015 before joining the Eagles, where he spent the past three seasons.

    The Penn State product was a backup in Philadelphia, primarily playing left guard but sprinkling in some time at center as well. Circumstances threw him in for a total of 28 starts for the Eagles (all at left guard), including all three playoff games in their 2017 Super Bowl run.

    Like Sullivan, Wisniewski is not viewed as much more than a replacement-level player, but he carries with him a lot of experience in the league, highlighted by a recent Super Bowl run. He also has spent his past three seasons playing alongside a developing franchise quarterback in Carson Wentz, another parallel to Sullivan’s career and experience the Jets could see as valuable to have alongside Sam Darnold.

    At this stage of the offseason, it’s clear the Jets are not going to find their center of the future in free agency this year. They will either make an aggressive play at the position on draft weekend in Nashville or wait and see what the market has to offer in 2020 and go through this whole process again.

    For now, the Jets could use whatever competition they can find, to try and squeeze the most out of the position in the short-term. If that competition also brings experience to the table, both with the playoffs and playing alongside a young franchise quarterback, then that player can provide a lot of value in the locker room—specifically for Darnold and a developing young center.

    Sullivan and Wisniewski both fit that bill to a T. Neither player is going to come in and provide above-average performance, nor will be expected to hold the position down into 2020, but they can both offer the Jets a lot of positive value with the competition and experience they would provide to the locker room.

    In other words, each profiles as the quintessential bridge to the future.
     
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  9. K'OB

    K'OB 2021 TGG Fantasy Football Champ

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    Will they break his fingers on draft day or wait until the day of his first match before doing it?

    OMG :rolleyes:
     
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  10. mrjet80

    mrjet80 Well-Known Member

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    Yeah some of these posts are a little over the edge ......nobody thinks Mac is a great GM we are all pretty much in agreement over that. If he didn’t seem to be head over heels for those two centers in FA there must of been reasons. Nobody was in the room when Max and the rest of the head honchos discussed the pros and cons of what players to sign and not to sign . I am pretty certain he has at least two centers he is targeting in the draft - he’ll take whichever one is available when he picks probably in the third round .

    As far as EDGE he had an agreement with Barr - the guy wussed out. There’s nothing Mac can do about that. We don’t know the story with Houston - maybe he didn’t want to go to NY either . Rest assured EDGE is going be the pick at # 3. Bosa and Allen will not both be gone at that point . AZ is gonna take Murray .

    It’s been a slow rebuild with a lot of hiccups . Mac deserves blame for some but not all of the issues . He had a good FA but needs to hit on these draft picks . He has his QB, a play maker , and a pretty good defense that lacks an outside pass rusher . The Jets are about 5-6 players away from being a serious playoff contender . They are probably looking at 2020 with a lot of improvement this year .

    As a fan I’d much rather the Jets be in this current position than this time last year. There is light at the end of the tunnel ....
     
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  11. NYJetsO12

    NYJetsO12 Well-Known Member

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    I liked your post because of your last sentence...true dat
     
  12. ColoradoContrails

    ColoradoContrails Well-Known Member

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    Either of these guys would be good signings based on what we know. Of course Macc may know of issues like injuries, etc., or maybe they're asking too much - although at this point, I wouldn't think whatever they might asking would be prohibitive to a team that needs a capable Center.

    And just because two SB-contending teams let them go doesn't mean that they wouldn't still be an upgrade for the Jets since they aren't really a SB-contender yet.

    But going into the draft without at least a serviceable C seems like a gamble.
     
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  13. K'OB

    K'OB 2021 TGG Fantasy Football Champ

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    The serviceable C is the one that played the last 4 games of the season, the same 4 games that Sam showed a whole load of promise, we look for an improvement on him in the draft or via a trade maybe, if it takes the rookie C all season to then push him aside and be ready for next then also fine, we are not a play off team in the making but a team in year 3 of a rebuild, now that rebuild may have been giving the hurry up with the signing of Bell but we are long way from finished
     
  14. jonnyd

    jonnyd 2007 TGG.com Funniest Poster Award Winner

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    this is what I said earlier.....they apparently like Harrison and no one here really watched tape of the last 4 games to provide a full critique to argue against Harrison.
     
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  15. K'OB

    K'OB 2021 TGG Fantasy Football Champ

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    Hell, be careful what you ask for :)
     
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  16. mrjet80

    mrjet80 Well-Known Member

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    It is gamble - a big one . Harrison may be serviceable but a “ serviceable “ player usually means second string . He may have played well after Long moved to guard - and that’s good. That’s what you expect from a serviceable player - somebody who can step in and not hurt the team.

    With LT and C a playoff team requires cornerstones - like 2006 when the Jets selected Ferguson and Mangold . They anchored that line - a very good line for a decade . The guards can be rotated or changed every few seasons and don’t necessarily screw up the mechanics of the line. Therefore I still think they need to improve the center position .

    So the Jets still need a true starting center . I’m sure Mac is aware of this... get a new young starting center this draft and a new franchise LT next draft ....the O Line will improve drastically .
     
    #1736 mrjet80, Mar 23, 2019
    Last edited: Mar 23, 2019
  17. NCJetsfan

    NCJetsfan Well-Known Member

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    Yes, Barr wussed out, but what was Mac's plan if Barr hadn't agreed in the first place? Was his plan B just to take an edge rusher in the draft? If so, I don't think that's a good plan. I think the best GMs leave their options open going into the draft and don't force themselves to have to draft a player at a position of need. If he had another edge rusher as his Plan B, did he immediately turn to him? I haven't heard of Mac having interest in any other edge rusher that was available. I can understand why he went after Barr for the same reasons I think that if came to a choice between Bosa and Allen, Mac would take Allen. I don't have a problem with that. My problem is that we still need depth at OLB. Copeland had a nice year for us last year, but he's nothing special. Justin Houston and Shaq Barrett are both better. Shane Ray may be better. I get that Houston may have wanted to sign with a contender, and I can't blame him if that's the case. But I do think that Mac's interest should have turned immediately to Barrett and then Ray after Barr backed out, if Houston had no interest in playing for the Jets.

    If I were GM of the Jets signing a C and edge rusher would have been my top priorities in FA since they were our two biggest needs aside from LG, and once he traded for Osemele, that need was taken care of. If there was a question of whether Paradis was healthy, and I didn't want to wait, I would have gone after Morse. He has the longest streak of centers not giving up a sack in the NFL. He hasn't given one up in 4 years. He's had some injury issues the last couple of years, but the first two years of his career only missed one game. I would have had a Plan B that didn't involve waiting until the draft. If Paradis or Morse had no interest in signing with the Jets then I would have immediately started negotiations with John Sullivan.

    I think that could have been done while still going after Bell, Mosley, Crowder, and even Bellamy.
     
  18. mrjet80

    mrjet80 Well-Known Member

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    I wasn’t aware of the Morse streak of no sacks in four years - that’s pretty interesting. The Bills jumped on him pretty quickly ...

    I don’t know what to say about EDGE. Right now it appears that will be the pick at #3 if they don’t trade down. What you say is right in terms of depth. I’d like the Jets to have two guys coming off the edge. It would be nice to know what exactly Mac is thinking in those regards but we’ll never know we just have to wait and see what happens I guess .

    It seems the Jets are on the uptick though . I hope it continues with the draft - I’m tired of being let down . FA at least Seemed to go pretty well for a change.
     
  19. TonyFtLaud

    TonyFtLaud Well-Known Member

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    Sam was sacked more the last 3 games than any other 3 game stretch through out the season.
     
  20. K'OB

    K'OB 2021 TGG Fantasy Football Champ

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    But add the one other game he and Darnald played together and it doesn't make it the highest 4 game stretch of sacks, funny game when you play with stats ;)

    Weeks 1-4 10 sacks
    Weeks 6-10 10 sacks
    Weeks 14-17 9 sacks

    :p
     

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