It won't get to that. If the new GM can't sign Mo Wilk he'll trade him before 2015. He'll probably do it before the draft this year. The Jets aren't going to get caught in a stare down with a player who is looking for a huge contract again. With Revis it was inevitable because he was the best CB in football and wanted to be the best paid defensive player overall. Mo Wilk is an excellent player but he hasn't made a Pro Bowl yet. He's not going to get paid as if he's JJ Watt or Ndamukung Suh. If it turns into that kind of staring match the Jets will go get a high 1st for him and probably another pick as well.
What's all this "trade Wilkerson" talk? The Jets actually have a talent surplus and people are quick to get rid of it because of cash concerns??
I hear you, but there are a lot of shitty head coaches in the NFL. Mike Smith, Tressman, Joe Philbin (who we beat twice as a sub .500 team on the road, to finish a season, with us having a shitty offense- two pretty inexcusable losses. God damn did that team of his play today like their bags were already packed). I don't think Rex is a top coach. But he is better than many of the guys out there. I hope that we can replace him with someone better. I don't want us to be mediocre, but how many years have we all spent with Herm Edwards, and Rich Kottite, and Bruce Coslet out there running our fucking team into the ground? I do not want: a) some coordinator who has never coached in the NFL and has to spend a year or two learning on the job. b) some college coach who has never coached in the NFL, and has to spend a year or two learning on the job. c) some Lovie Smith-type re-tread who is worse than Rex. If we can avoid those, fine, by all means, replace Rex. Yes, some college coaches do ok, but most fail. Because most coaches fail. If we could get Mike Tomlin, or someone really good- fine w me. My feelings are that we can't, and that's worrying. The only thing worse than keeping Rex, is replacing him with someone who is worse. If we are lucky, 2015 is a rebound year where the breaks that went for us in 2013 and against us in 2014 go for us again, and with some improved QB play (from whomever), a good draft and some quality free agents, we are able to get back to 8-8 or better, and then be a contender in 2016. Even that is a lot of "ifs", but it is unrealistic with the holes on this roster to expect more than a +4 in wins next year. So, if you can find a coach that will be solid in 2015 and ready to contend in 2016, sure, hire that guy. But don't give me two more years of some Chan Gailey, Jim Schwartz kind of crap. I'd rather keep Rex than sit through that bullshit. If we're sitting here watching 2015 roll off the rails with an 0-4 start under Mike Singletary, the "we should've kept Rex" threads are going to be unbearable.
Great coach? You're kidding, right? FOUR consecutive non-winning seasons, no playoffs and 4-12 this year and you brand him as not good, but a GREAT coach. I would hate to see what you consider a bad coach. I wish Rex all the luck in the world but I hope they fire him tomorrow because he is not an NFL head coach--he is a first class cheerleader. He instills no discipline, he lets the players do whatever they want, he befriends every player instead of coaching them, and MOST of all he is TERRIBLE with decisions made IN THE GAME. Rex Ryan wasted more needed timeouts this year than most coaches waste in a career. Rex Ryan would call a timeout to think about whether to call a timeout. He even called a timeout before the jets attempted a field goal (most coaches try to ice the OTHER TEAM'S kicker, not their own). His game management sucks and his lack of discipline leading to penalty after penalty shows that his team is not scared of him. You think Vince Lombardi would put up with a penalty machine like Willie Colon on the OL? No way.
The surplus is all in one area, the defensive line. The Jets have many needs at this point. If they're going to have to give Mo Wilk a 5 year $80M contract with $40M up front they're much better advised to move him now while he still has a full year on his deal plus the franchise option for the acquiring team. That's the best value they're likely to see for him. JJ Watt got 6 years for $100M with $54 million effectively guaranteed. That's the problem. It's not getting rid of Mo Wilk, who is a fine player. It's finding a more effective way to spend the $16M a year against the cap that he's going to cost in light of the fact that the Jets have Sheldon Richardson, Damon Harrison, Quinton Coples and several roleplayers behind them. It's doing it in light of the fact that as good as he is Wilkerson is not a great edge pass rusher and the Jets need one of those. It's doing it in light of the fact that they really need a QB more than they need their second best defensive lineman right now.
And yet JJ Watt plays on a team with Aaron Rodgers and numerous other quality talent. Why can't that happen on the Jets?
JJ Watt is probably the second best player in football right now, even including his position in the calculation. That the Texans haven't managed to get a good enough QB to make the playoffs is their crisis. They need to fix that fast. If Mo Wilkerson was as good as JJ Watt the Jets would just gulp and pay him like JJ Watt and hope things worked out. Aaron Rodgers is the best player in football right now. I'm not sure that anybody else is better than Watt at this point. Certainly he's the best non-QB in the NFL.
The point being that I wouldn't be so quick to trade a franchise player when the jets have 40 million in cap space simply because you MAY need to get creative down the road. The Packers have found a way to pay two franchise players and a cast of other quality talent. why would the Jets have to trade their ONLY franchise player?
You and I have a difference of opinion on this. I'd call Sheldon Richardson our best player and Mo Wilkerson our 2nd best player at this point. And the answer to your question is that the Jets only have to trade Wilkerson if he wants one of the top non-QB contracts in football at this point. He's a very good player but he's not $14 or 15M a year good. Not unless the cap really explodes upwards from here. If that happens lock him up.
I think Richardson is great BECAUSE the Jets have a talent overload on that DL. Once you start depending on ONE GUY on the DL, you'll likely see him neutralized more and injured more. I'm not saying Wilkerson is as good as Watt. But I think he's been patient and might be willing to accept a fair offer. And you also still have Richardson on a rookie contract for a few more years. Shit, after the first two years of a contract, restructuring becomes easier.
What's a fair offer? Richardson is great because he has Klecko's motor and Gastineau's legs on a DT's body. He could be really special. Wilkerson is an excellent player with a huge frame for his athleticism and if the Jets could keep him and Richardson together for their entire careers it would be great but I think the economics are going to argue against it.
Via Mort Jets owner Woody Johnson will move swiftly Monday to fire both John Idzik and Rex Ryan, per sources. Johnson won't keep Ryan hanging on fate.
I'm not sure...But I think when the team has $40 mill in cap room, it would seem like a front-loaded contract could be worked out, especially since you have most of the DL on rookie contracts and nobody else you have to pay a ton of money...
Via his Twitter but here's a link. BREAKING: Rex Ryan and John Idzik to be fired, per @mortreport http://t.co/P2HCvomozS
I thought that this year but it never came to pass so I'm assuming that the Jets and Wilkerson couldn't agree on a figure. I'm guessing that's because of Watt's deal. The economics of Watts deal are pretty much off the scale given the current salary cap. They assumed the cap was going up quite a bit when they made the deal. If it does then the Jets can give Wilkerson something approximating (like 15-20% less) Watt's deal and be really happy with that. If it doesn't, well as good as Watt is the deal will go sour in Houston eventually. They're either going to have to find a great QB or build an excellent team to compete with Luck and the Colts over the next half decade.
Yep, and thanks for letting my confusion over Watt and Clay Matthews slide... I think part of the Wilkerson situation is that Idzik was a little gun shy about spending money this year. At least I hope so...
I transpose players now and then. It happens, especially on the internets in the heat of a discussion. I remember half a dozen people calling me out when I said David Rivers was the second best QB drafted in 2004.
"OVER. Did you say OVER. Nothing is over until we decide it is." "Was it OVER when the German's bombed Pearl Harbor." "Germans?" "Forget it. He's rolling."
