With Jones and Greene playing great, and Washington just suffering a horrible injury, how much is he worth to us? It seems like return game and running game is as strong as ever, and Leon's injury was so bad, it is debatable if he ever gets to the level he was at before. The CAP room needs to be used wisely, and is he a wise investment right now, especially if he keeps demanding lucrative contract?
A lot of things can't be answered yet, but IF he gets back to 100%, I'd keep Leon all day long. There are so few true playmakers like him in the NFL. Neither of the other 2 RB's are.
He won't get near the amount of money that he could have gotten this year. I suspect that he will be given a short-term deal as a sort of a trial period to see what kind of level he is at post-injury.
We need him especially on the return game. Imagine Brad and Leon returning kick-offs/punts. I would like to see a wildcat with Brad Smith & Leon Washingtonhmy:
Leon is not Shonn or TJ, he is a very unique player. Shonn or TJ can't be put in motion and then actually play the WR position. Like a poster above mentioned with Brad running the Tiger, throwing Leon back there will make it damn near impossible to stop. Leon can throw it too-
Having Jones and Greene playing great doesn't really diminish Washington's value, because it means that they don't have to run him between the tackles much (and that's clearly not his strong suit.) Catching the ball out of the backfield, running the Seminole, and especially making plays on special teams are big reasons why Leon will be a huge part of the Jets going forward. Plus, as much as he's been defying age so far it's only a matter of time before Thomas Jones declines or is cut loose. We'll certainly want Leon around when that time comes in the not too distant future.
This year Leon will get restricted earning about 2 mill... next year if he proves he can still be effective he'll get around 4 mill a year. That's what I would do... I'd actually go up to him and offer him a 3/3.5 mill a season contract... if he accpets fine, otherwise do what I said above. There is no doubt he is needed but only at the right price.
I agree with you 100%, Leon will have to prove he is back to his old self before he can start talking the sort of money he wanted before the injury. All players react differently to injuries and just because one player recovers ok it doesn't mean all players will.
People keep asking do we need Leon or Kris? due to the Jets making the playoffs. Instead of that, why don't you imagine what this team would be like if they did not get hurt? That is depressing if you think about it.
Too many running backs, especially of the caliber we are going to have next year is a great problem to have
leon is a gamebreaker....nobody is a game breaker on the jets current offensive unit...brad smith though has been game breaker status the last few weeks
We've won 5 of our last 6, but this passing offense is really awful, and the screen passes to Leon are sorely missed. Wildcat with Brad Smith and Leon would be lethal too. He's a quick, fiesty, gamebreaker. It would kill me to see Leon on another team. He was team MVP for two consecutive years, and he is arguably our biggest offensive threat, and by far our most reliable kickoff returner.
Didn't he also lead the NFL in all purpose yards last season? He's one of the big time weapons in the NFL..
Sign him to a short term deal to prove whether or not he's healthy and can play at the same level. If he's good to go for a year, then make the decision if you want to replace Jones with him, or trade him for someone we need more; O-Line or Pass Rusher etc.
Yes he did- We need him back and healthy, he'll make Sanchez look better instantly. Losing Leon definitely hurt the growth of Mark, we don't have any other player like him and we need him back. We are not trading Leon, we won't get anything in return close to what he brings. For what he does he'll be making a small amount of money for the return we get.
This, we need him for the passing game. Hopefully Leon will be 100%, him and Greene will be a great duo.
