Nope. Q is a proven All Pro in the making and a position we don't need to think about upgrading (Thank god! I can't take yet another 1st round DL pick!). I don't think it's smart to weaken one part of your starting team to upgrade another even if that upgrade is at QB.
Yeah, but the Jets don't want to make the same mistake twice. If the deal was the #2 overall pick and next year's 1st round pick, I would do it. The other is too much due to all the holes the Jets have. I am starting to feel that way too. It is the right path for the Jets to go on.
I doubt Quinnen is a possibility to trade. He's probably one of the main reasons Saleh wanted this job in the first place. He's going to be the lynchpin of the defense a la Donald in LA and Sapp in Tampa. When you have an interior lineman that can penetrate that well in a 34, it gives you a ton of flexibility behind him.
Yes at that point we can afford to send away many picks but they cannot start including core players. If they want a guy like Denzel Mims well okay but no way they trade Quinnen.
I'm slowly getting off the Watson bandwagon. It's a bit of a boom or bust move. Yeah he's great and all but it also doesn't just set the team up for having a long term FQB to have a long SB window. You have to figure that even with him next year we're probably still 7-9 to 8-8 or around there. So it really creates a three year window where we need the roster to develop rather quickly to build from .500 into a SB contender before he has the ability to dip his toe into the free agent market again. Three first round picks is an awful lot of cheap talent infusion into this roster especially when you considering we can take a premium-rated QB at 2. This is also the perfect draft for us in terms of what we need at 23 & 34 (OL, Edge) and there's a lot of good middle round skill talent at runningback and receiver.
Absolutely agree. There is nothing more valuable in the NFL than a good QB on a rookie contract. If we were a team like the Dolphins I'd feel more strongly about acquiring Watson. We're a long way from that, though.
I think you posted something similar a couple days ago but I was too lazy to find it. Echoing what you said though.
I understand where you're coming from, and there is indeed some point where it becomes harder for the team to improve. I'm not worried about next year however, or building thereafter if we trade for Watson. I trust that JD is not going to give Houston something stupid like King is suggesting. For certain, it would make it more important that he not miss on any 2nd or 3rd round picks and would need to find a steal or two in the 4th-6th rounds, but if we traded 3-1sts over the next two years, I still think we could be just fine (have a very good team) in 2023 and going forward. In addition to Watson, Douglas could add Thuney, Lawson or Hendrickson, Samuel, Sherman, a LB, and another player or two in FA. He could add an OG in the 2nd round, a TE and either Kenneth Gainwell or Michael Carter in the 3rd round, another DE in the 4th, and possibly someone like Demetric Felton or Javian Hawkins or depth/STs players with the the 2-5th round picks and the 6th round pick. When Sam is traded we'd also have the pick or picks we get for him to use. Next year (2022), he could add a DE in the 1st, a CB in the 2nd, a WR or RT in the 3rd, and again depth/STers in the 5h-7th rounds. Unless he missed on a bunch of those picks, the team should be a lot better if Saleh and his staff are any good. Then with another good draft in 2023, the team could be set, and that isn't even including possibly adding additional FAs in 2022 and 2023.
I think if Douglas can only trade #2 and #34 this year and spread the rest of the picks over the next 2 years, he will have enough picks and cap room to build a winning team around Watson pretty quickly. Remember, Watson won his division in 2/3 full seasons, with the only year he didn't win his division being last year when they fired their head coach week 4.
If you get Watson, you are not adding 4-5 premium free agents. His cap hit might be light this year but it isn't next year. Hendrickson and Thuney alone are going to command top dollar. He can. But the goal is to build long term success, not a quick winner. We've done the quick winner strategy twice in the past fifteen years and it resulted in a franchise that crumbles rather quickly. Teams that win in free agency rarely win otherwise. It'd be sick to get Watson. But it's not an elongated window. You have to starting winning in year two or he's going to be ready to start heading for free agency. And building a winner by year two gets that much harder when the big cap hit flows in. It also stems from the fact that I think Fields is going to be a winning NFL quarterback. Him + a bevy of picks could be killer. Or it could not be. But still.
I don't see how you can compare trading for Watson to anything the Jets have done in the last 15 years. He's a 25 year old top 3 QB. Over the last 12 years, the Jets have spent the following draft picks on bottom of the league QB production: #6 overall, #17 overall, SIX 2nd round picks, 2 4th round picks, and a 6th and 7th rounder. You don't build a long term winner without a franchise QB. The long term winners are the Saints, Packers, Steelers, Seahawks, and Patriots. If Douglas can keep the '21 cost to #2 and #34, he'll still have 5 of the top 100 draft picks this year and can address a lot of the team's holes in free agency and one of the best QB's in football.
If I am JD I offer this year's #2 overall and Seattle pick this year - and Darnold, as draft gets closer the deal gets worse - get DW at his price, if not, there's other options that I prefer...
I think it's more in terms of the Jets never building a good team through the draft which is definitely the ideal way to do it. Of those teams you listed all but one of them got their FQB via the draft, and the Saints didn't trade for Brees like we'd have to do for Watson. It's essentially impossible to build a long term successful franchise if you don't draft well. I'd like to see us do things the right way for once.
Yes, Hendrickson and Thuney will command top dollar, but that's only two premium FAs. At this point in his career, I don't think Sherman will command top dollar. If so, I don't want him. Samuel isn't a premium FA, either. Also, don't forget that the cap will jump back up next year, and it might even be a little higher this year than we've seen projected. Lately, I've seen higher estimates than before. In addition, looking at Over the Cap.com, the Jets' liabilities for the top 51 players (actually only 31 players under contract) for 2022 are $91,756,024. That includes Alex Lewis' $7,233,334 and Alex Van Roten's $3.5 million, but neither will probably be here. We could also save another $18,650,000 by cutting Fant and McGovern. We could even save $5 million on the cap by cutting Mosley, but would have to eat a $12.5 million dead money cap charge. If the cap is back in the $190 million range at a minimum, that gives us around $110 million in cap space before cutting Fant, McGovern or Mosley. Of course, Watson, Thuney and Hendrickson would eat up a big chunk of that (probably half). As of right now, the Jets have no dead money charges showing for 2022. Enunwa's, Bell's, and Trumaine Johnson's money must all be coming off the cap this year. Thus JD has the cap in fantastic shape and I think we could pay all next year fairly easily. For some reason, the OTC FA table for the Jets isn't coming up right now, but the cap shows that is 31 players under contract for 2022 presently. That doesn't include Maye, but I don't think he will break the bank. I don't think we have any important player becoming a FA in 2022 (but could be mistaken). If correct, then we should have plenty of cap space next year.
You're not managing the cap for one year and I don't think it'd be smart to sign all those top level free agents. Maybe one. We should retain Maye at $10ish million. Cutting McGovern and Fant creates two more holes as well. The cap is easier to navigate when you're re-signing your own guys. They're less reluctant to renegotiate their contracts and defer money because there's built up loyalty.
Again, all what top level FAs? Did you even read my post? You couldn't have. I said sign two top level FAs: Thuney and Hendrickson. You must have ignored the numbers too. I didn't advocate cutting McGovern and Fant, only that it was possible and would give additional cap space. Fant will probably be replaced within a year anyway. He's ok, but nothing special, and not a very good run blocker. The Jets could draft Creed Humphrey at #23 this year, and McGovern would move to OG anyway. I didn't say I was managing the cap for just one year. YOU were the one who said that we wouldn't be able to afford it next year. I just disproved it.
You're little declaration of victory at the end was cute. If you sign Thuney and Hendrickson on the low end you're at $28 million. Re-sign Maye - $38 million. Samuel at $7 million - $45 million. Sherman - $50 million. You said a linebacker and another FA or two. We'll add those up to be about $10 million. $60 out of $80 million. Another $10 million or so for draft picks and you're at $70 million. That's basically the whole enchilada and there is now very limited cap flexibility for 2022 when Watson's big 2022 number hits and may likely send your team over the cap. I'm also assuming this means we let Hewitt walk who was our best linebacker this past year. It's just not ideal. And when you factor in that we only have 31 players on the roster and we're cutting our starting center and swing tackle, it's not a good outlook considering we just traded likely four draft picks away that could be used to fill those holes. We now have a team of mercenaries. You're also cornering your team into absolutely needing to draft certain positions like a corner and right tackle.
