Joe Douglas is going to have plenty of cap space this off-season and I think it is imperative that he makes moves that will help the team now and later. Many people who root for the Jets have a fixed mindset in only wanting to sign free agents that are 26 years of age and under. I think this is a misguided and simplistic approach. They should covet and pursue younger players, but that can’t be the only method used when building a team. The Jets need to add players that fit the scheme, make sense cap wise, and fill needs. Suggesting they can’t sign players on stop gap deals while they continue to build predominantly through the draft to me is misguided. Having said all of that to say: Who are your top 5 targets for the New York Jets this Free Agency? Hope you consider checking out the video and Go Jets!
Great first cut. I'm not savvy enough to figure out all the the budget constrains, who they will extend, like Moses and Fatukasi, for example. But I'm hoping we fill some holes, adding about 30M/year salary of new talent if it fits the budget That could very well relate to 3 players, such as OG Daniels, LB Oloukon and either a TE/WR or edge like Jones for a two year contract. TE is a great need but is Schultz the answer? I think going into the draft with a lot of flexibility is key. How aggressive JD will be in free agency will remain to be seen, and for sure he will not overpay to make them a Jet over a better team. Not sure what they will do with Mayes and if the want to pick a safety to pair with the youngsters.
The 5 FAs on my wish list are as follows: Dalton Schultz, TE Dallas (2nd choice David Njoku, TE Cleveland) James Daniels, OG Chicago (2nd choice Laken Tomlinson, OG SF) Marcus Williams, S Saints (2nd choice Jesse Bates III Cincinnati) Chandon Sullivan, CB GB (2nd choice Casey Hayward, CB LV or Rasul Douglas, CB GB) De'Vondre Campbell, LB GB (2nd choice Foyesade Oluokun, LB Atlanta)
If we get at least a couple out of your list I’ll be thrilled. Money as a constrain, I really like the OGs , TEs and LBs. Daniels is my favorite.
Yeah, we as Jets fans always overlook the "SOJ Factor" that comes into play. We're about the last team any good players want to sign with because they want a chance for a ring, or at least consistent playoff appearances. So we've always had to settle for second tier FA and overpay them a lot. Douglas has a done a good job in the not overpaying department, but he somehow has to work some magic to convince a couple of studs to come here.
Following is a very interesting article and good read on whom the Pro Football Network sees as the top 50 FAs this offseason. https://www.profootballnetwork.com/...=pGG4PYZnR+LxABFbHBCXnEzkASpiHornD/z2wZTd1jg= There are several safeties and CBs who could really help the Jets. I like the contracts it predicts for some players as well. They are on the lower side and inline with or cheaper than what Spotrac said in some cases. If we add a proven WR, I want DJ Chark. If we get him, I would be more than happy with Wilson instead of Burks, but having both Burks and Chark would be awesome.
With 2 1st round picks and 9 draft picks we have to allocate 15 million or so for draft picks plus fill out the roster. $48 million will not go very far especially if we resign Berrios and Fatukasi. I believe it leaves us enough money for one big name FA or two medium priced FAs. My guess is JD will want to have all his bases covered prior to the draft so he will not go into the draft needing to draft a particular position. My guess is Schultz does not hit FA and JD signs 1 lower priced TE. Maybe a Max Williams type. He may hold off on backup signings like Feeney, Moses, a backup RB type signings until after the draft. If Schultz is out who does JD target? My guess is either a big name cb or safety with an outside chance of a WR. JC Jackson at cb or Marcus Williams or Bates. From all I have read the FO love our LBs and will not be spending much on lb in FA. The other area JD will need to address in FA is DT and WR. Rumor is he is trying to workout a contract with Fatukasi and Berrios. Both of which will eat up a lot of cap space. Even if they resign Fatukasi I could see them in on D. Jones from SF which would likely mean cutting Rankins. Even if we resign Berrios we need a 4th WR to replace Cole plus whomever we draft. I am not sure we have the cash to sign a mid tier WR like Gallup or Chark and we might be back looking at bargain signing after the draft like Crowder. I don't see the money to sign many players. The positive is there are very few teams with much cap space. Which makes me wonder will we see a repeat of last year where FAs will have a hard time getting the money they expect and will we see a slower pace on signing as expectations adjust to the limited cap dollars available? Are we still recovering and are teams still playing catchup from being shorted in salary cap from Covid?
I agree that the spending spree won't be as big as some people expect or as some almost demand, but I think he may be able to gain some additional cap space by manipulating contracts, converting salary to bonus, etc. I think he will try to address as many positions as possible, but don't know that he'll be able to address all of them, especially when practically the whole TE group and one-half of the S group needs to be replaced. I hope that he will re-sign Moses as that will alleviate some concern regarding the OT position. I totally agree that JD will want to have all his bases covered prior to the draft so he won't have to draft any position particular position. I don't expect him to sign JC Jackson as he could be one of the most expensive FAs. I think he will try to sign a S like Xavier Woods, Marcus Williams, or maybe Jordan Whitehead. D. Jones would be awesome, but if the bidding gets too steep, there could be quite a few DTs available in FA. I'd love Gallup or Chark. I don't think Crowder will be an option, however, after he had to take a pay cut last year. I think he will look to sign elsewhere. I wonder if he will just try to re-sign LDT or will make a run at Laken Tomlinson. I think the TE position is where JD will drop a chunk of money. In addition to Schultz and Njoku, Tyler Conklin, OJ Howard, Evan Engram, Robert Tonyan, Mo Alie-Cox, and several other TEs who appeared in 16-17 games and who are younger than 27 could be available. I've heard that the Jets love their LBs too, but it will be interesting to see if that was just a smokescreen. De'Vondre Campbell will probably be available, and possibly could be had in the $6-$9 million range. Oluokan is another LB that would be great to add.
I'm not saying they can just signing everyone and anyone, but it's worth noting that last year's FA signings were pretty front-loaded, even compared to some JD's 2020 signings. Just to demonstrate, let's compare the Lawson/Davis signings to McGovern/Fant the year before and the Giants' Galloday/Adoree Jackson signings last year. Galloday's isn't a perfect comp due to length, but the rest were all 3-year contracts. Lawson: 3 years for $45 million, $30 million fully guaranteed. Year 1 Cap: $14.333 million (95.5% of AAV) Davis: 3 years for $37.5 million, $27 million fully guaranteed. Year 1 Cap: $12.667 million (101.3% of AAV) McGovern: 3 years for $27 million, $18 million fully guaranteed. Year 1 Cap: $7.33 million (81.4% of AAV) Fant: 3 years for $27.3 million, $9.25 million fully guaranteed (13.3 million total guarantees). Year 1 Cap: $7.25 million (79.7% of AAV) Jackson: 3 years for $39 million, $24 million fully guaranteed. Year 1 Cap: $6.765 million (52.0% of AAV) Galloday: 4 years (voidable 5th) for $72 million, $28 million fully guaranteed (40 million total guarantees). Year 1 Cap: $4.474 million (24.9% of AAV) Obviously what Gettleman did was extreme and not something I'd want Douglas to do. But it does show that if the Jets chose to be more aggressive (and I think they will since there is some more pressure on Douglas), they can definitely do more than what last off-season would suggest.
Well March 16 is a date I have highlighted on my Calendar..so kudos to all the above posters who have done such an amazing job ...truly hope your choices and reasoning pair up with our GM The part that Contrails alluded to is actually crucial ..you get guys to come to the Jets ( bottom of the NFL barrel) purely for big $ or because they see a a bright (improving) future??? If FA s come here to deposit checks and tank out on the field ...what I've been accustomed to seeing we will continue to suck I hope our GM takes Motivation to help Team over the losing hump over Money Hungry users ...or at least something of a combination of the 2 at least
Thank you for the analysis and breakdown of contracts. JD hordes cap space and is in this for the long term not the short term. I don't see him ever backloading contracts and while he may choose to be aggressive I think he will also choose to be conservative and frugal with our limited cap space. JD is under no pressure going into year 2 of the rebuild and he has said before that he will not let public or fan pressure effect their long term plan. The thing to note about JD and RS this is a long term plan being built to stay competitive long term which means he will likely be a less aggressive than people want and that he will not just be thinking about 2022 but 2023 and 2024. Which essentially means find ing a balance between giving ZW the tools he needs to develop in 2022, upgrading weak spots and looking to push assets into future years,
I agree for the mostpart. I don't see any way he does anything close to what Gettleman did last year. The point was the show how even a 2020-like structuring can make a difference, especially when you don't have $10+ million to Maye on the tag as well in the offseason equation. While I'm not expecting a JC Jackson or Adams type signing, I do think something like Marcus Williams, Schultz/Njoku at TE and a Tomlenson/Daniels at guard is possible without being reckless.
I agree he has enough cap space where he can get one premium FA and then use the rest for draft picks and filling out the roster. I think people might be a little disappointed or underwhelmed as I do not expect the FO to be aggressive or reckless.
I think JD will be more aggressive than last season, but not as aggressive as some here and on the net would think. I think there's a middle ground that he'll try to land within.
The jets love their LBs??? Not doubting that is probably true, but how can they? Could be the weakest position on one of the NFL's worst defenses. I see it as one of their biggest areas of need.
Some of it is probably a smoke screen. Between the priority on speed at the position and Mosley's contract becoming cuttable after 2022, I think LB is a lot more likely to be addressed in the draft.
PFF has a Top 200 Free Agent Rankings list that also includes a little blurb/analysis for each player. Nice guide: https://www.pff.com/news/nfl-2022-free-agent-rankings-free-agency
