OK, I really believe we need this needs its own thread because it's being discussed more and more and I have 4 questions that are central to the debate: (1) Do the Jets need to have space to sign their 2015 FA's ? Other teams restructure; would using up most/all of that $20 MM make it more difficult to sign MW and other guys ? I never have heard of a team staying under the cap this long before they sign their own guys or other team's FA's. (2) What happened to the minimum payroll floor ? Does it not kick in this year or are the Jets right there ? I can't believe that either NY team would have qualified for a time waiver on getting payroll up, unlike Buffalo, Cincy, or other low-revenue cities. (3) What has Idzik SAID -- or Woody or Rex -- about why they have so much cap space ? Forget about us guessing why...what have THEY actually said (and if they haven't said anything or been asked, isn't it about time the NY sports media asked Idzik and/or Rex and/or Woody?). (4) Is this a financial dictate from the business side of the Jets (Woody) because of the PSL problems ? If not, are the Jets saying that if every PSL sold out like the Giants that their payroll would be no higher for 2014 ? Everybody is guessing or making speculation about why they Jets have all that cap space. I think John Idzik owes us an explanation. If it's because he absolutely needs all of it to sign the Jets own players in 2015 and a crop of 2015 FAs that he really likes, then he should tell us. If he makes up some bull**** excuse, then I think we can read between the lines and assume Woody told him to save $$$ (that presumes they don't tell us that directly which I would assume is not going to happen ).
This probably could have gone in the rollover thread. The 20m is what gets rolled over, it's added to the cap space for 2015, it's not the total. The Jets met the minimum payroll floor for this season. Idzik hasn't said dick about anything, he gives nothing to the media except party line. There's no way of knowing who decided to handle the money this way, but judging by Idzik's remarks about building through the draft, combined with him not spending anything in FA, as opposed to his predecessor spending like he was drunk in Amsterdam, I'd say that this is all Idzik at this point.
The other poster answered all of these. However for 4 I think it is a combination of two things none related to Woody. First Idzik had a plan to sign one of the top tier cornerbacks. Vontae Davis went back to Indy and the backup plan of DRC failed as he went to the Giants. The second reason is that Idzik is supposedly stubborn in contract negotiations. They said that is why DRC went to the Giants. Now I am not sure if that will end up being a good contract. With the chance to get Desean Jackson they didnt go after him. They also didnt seem to go after Tate and Sanders either.
The CB signings (non-signings) were a joke. How do you let DRC leave and go to your co-tenant when you have 2x the cap space that they had ? Who signed Patterson, a complete joke ? Same as with that Mike Goodson.....it looks like Idzik is trying to solve key positions by shopping at the dollar store when we need to spend $$$. If you had all this cap space, they should have kept Sanchez and given him 1 year with MM to see what could happen. As for Revis.....a 1-year deal has NO RISK and if he leaves after 1 year, he leaves. It's not another multi-year contract that he holds out during the term. Another Idzik clunker, though I suspect he was told by WJ not to even think about it.
Who can we sign ? If we can get a better player then what was out their ? Then maybe they can compete next season. Idk
If Idzik is using the "Slow Build" method, Rex is staying, Geno's learning curve is bigger and longer, and there will be plenty more players shuffled in and out until the roster is set and the team is in the playoff hunt every year. I had/have hopes for our team this year, but being a realistic fan I knew otherwise. Our schedule is very rough, with the end games being tough as well. We have too many holes in too many places to be laying the blame on one player even if his job is the most important. We are younger, we are gaining quality players here and there. For instance, I didn't mind seeing Jalen Sanders released. If he doesn't fit, that's better than hanging on, or worse yet, giving him a contract extension for if and when he pans out. (AKA Nacho!) I do hate that we have all this space and there isn't anything to spend it on to help the team. I'm sure a big portion of the space is being set aside for the guys on the team who are getting extensions. I hate that we have lost 3 in a row, especially like we have, but this team is definitely going in a different direction than the teams of 2011 and 2012. More patience for the team, not necessarily players, is in order.
Guys.....$64,000 Question....has anybody ASKED Idzik this question ? Where is he ? This is the question that everybody wants to know, more so than Geno vs. Vick.
I thought we were sick of coaches/front office people talking too much? Pretty sure Idzik's mentality when it comes to answering the media's question is exactly what the fans wanted.
it's almost insulting to fans to watch this inferior product take the field on sunday when you know they could've spent a little more money and put a better team out there. The next time a WR runs wild in the secondary, like in the crushing deep passes given up at least once in the last 3 games, remember "rollover money"...right guys?
Again....I'm not 2nd-guessing him...I want an answer. If he tells me he didn't want to spend the $$$ because nobody was worth it...if he says he needs the $$$ for Jets 2015 FA's...if he says he likes the 2015 FA class and wants lots of $$$$.....FINE !!!!!!!! BUT HE HAS TO LEVEL WITH THE FANS !!! I have NEVER heard of a team that goes 8-8...almost makes the playoffs.....and then cuts payroll by 15% the next year while not saying they are rebuilding.
Joe Namath wants to know, too: http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/jets/post/_/id/43967/namath-why-is-idzik-saving-his-money
The Jets are rebuilding. We are saving our money for when we have a roster that can compete on the elite level and then using that money to get some icing on the cake FA signings. The management of the team however, can't just come out and say 'sorry guys the plan is to just be mediocre for the next 1-2 years so that we can great after that. Just hang in there and keep spending your money on us...' There has to at least be an illusion that they are trying to field the best team possible, which in all honesty they are...It's just going to take a few seasons
Exactly this is my whole problem with everyone getting all high and mighty over this grand plan to have rollover money and how it's so essential. It's not like we know whether it was really the plan to have so much cap space or whether the money's actually going to be spent (especially since we don't know for a fact Mo's going to sign an extension). If they wanted rollover cap space soooo badly why the hell did they bother with Chris Johnson? Might as well have signed a CB and gone with another year of Ivory/Powell/cheap pickup/draft pick at RB.
Like the Knicks saving all their cap space and getting turned down by Lebron ? Or the Bulls getting turned down by everybody, except 2nd-tier players they overpay ? How can we predict who will be available in a year let alone two ? This isn't like baseball 10 years ago, when the small teams couldn't EVER pay their young stars and the Yankees or RedSox could gobble them up in FA. This is the NFL, where you have salary cap parity and plenty of revenue to pay ALL your players. Whatever happened to being up against the cap NOW and then RESTRUCTURING in a year or so ???
Everyone is reading into this too much, its very simple... Rex was setup to fail, period. Idzik didn't want him, he wants his own guy and wants to spend the $ on that coaches team. With that said I think its absurd to miss out on Davis and DRC, then not even go after Revis, Captain, Verner, or even Cro. Then knowing the issues we had WR for the past several years we sign only one guy and draft a few middling picks that he knew wouldn't be an impact this year. Regardless of how we were perceived by Idzik, analyists, or fans, coming into the year we have proven that even with a patchwork CB situation and a WR core excluding Decker is bar none THE worst in the league we're still still competing. We've been in the last 3 games down to the wire over coming our secondary, WRs, and the referees. These are three of the best teams in the NFL and one of them has the #1 defense. But you're still telling me we're playing for 2 years from now?...
Then he should have parted ways with Rex or told Woody that. You don't waste a year because you want the f****** coach out. Again....did Woody tell Idzik to stay $20 MM under the cap to make up for PSLs ??? Great, we'll go 5-11 and be competitive in most of the losses. Then we rebuild with a new coach and are target date for the playoffs is 2017.
Sanchez is god awful and he had his time here and had no business being brought back. No matter how much cap was available. Everything else was spot on though....
Question: Has a team ever been $20 MM under the cap and won the Super Bowl ? Made it to the Super Bowl ? Made the playoffs ???
