Even if quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick would accept the Jets’ current offer of high-end backup money, the Jets wouldn’t be able to sign him without creating significant salary-cap space. They’ve reportedly commenced the process of doing so by putting the squeeze on their franchise left tackle. Manish Mehta of the New York Daily Newsreports that the Jets have asked D’Brickashaw Ferguson to take a significant pay cut. With a cap number of $14.1 million, Ferguson is due to earn $10.375 million in salary and bonus payments this year. Per Mehta, the Jets have communicated the request as a device for creating the cap space necessary to bring back Fitzpatrick, an unrestricted free agent who has been available to anyone for four weeks but who continues to be unsigned. The goal would be to create $4 million to $5 million in cap space, and the thinking is that Ferguson will be “amenable” (as Mehta explains it) to playing for less money. Ferguson could also force a release by digging in his heels, or retire. Ferguson has played every single snap of his 10-year career, and he’s still only 32. But the Jets need to do something if they hope to re-sign Fitzpatrick; based on NFLPA records, the Jets currently have less than $565,000 in cap space, which isn’t even enough to sign Fitzpatrick to a one-year minimum deal. Another way to clear plenty of cap space would be to trade defensive linemanMuhammad Wilkerson and his $15.7 million franchise tender. To do so, however, would require finding a team that is willing to give the Jets what they want for Wilkerson and to give Wilkerson what he wants on a long-term contract. http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/04/06/jets-ask-dbrickashaw-ferguson-to-take-pay-cut/
Welp we knew it was coming. Now the question is if we are going to need to add tackle to the draft shopping list.
Brick's money isn't guaranteed, so it isn't out of bounds to ask him to take a pay cut. Hopefully he agrees but you never know.
smart by mac, waiting till most of the other teams blew their wads. they can give brick an offer of 4 or the door, doubt he can find an other team willing to pay him more now
Wonder what he would get on the open market on the decline ? 4/5/6 mil ? he is scheduled to make 10.3 mil so I guess at the end of the day he has to factor his options... stay on the only team he knows... or switch teams, move etc...
Finally get something done ,the draft is in a few weeks.We should put Geno in a dunk tank to create some extra millions,10$ a throw 1 million people and we will have our Fitz money
Like flajet says I think wise move to wait Market gets more limited over time so more likely he takes a cut At least that's my opinion Mac is the man.
Ferguson playing days ending like Fitz One should help out the other and buy another year in the NFL Most people never get pay cuts like that and still make million for playing a game
This is the inevitable endgame of the Tanny credit card approach. D'Brick restructured several times, basically taking bonus money instead of salary to help the Jets out in the years in question. That pushed a large cap charge down the road alongside salaries that were rising in the back end of the deal anyway. This year and next are the years that were never likely to happen in the overall scheme of things. I don't think D'Brick actually got screwed out of any money along the way. I could be wrong but I don't recall any salaries actually being raised at the back end of the deal in return for lower salaries at the front. I think it was just bonus for salary and temporary cap relief that would build up to an unwieldy hit at the back end in years the Jets were unlikely to keep D'Brick anyway.
It's also indicative of how poorly we've drafted in the majority of the 10 years since we drafted Brick that the chickens have come to roost. We should have already had his replacement ready to step in so that this year and the next not to happen. Sadly, despite the decline in his play, Brick is still the best and probably only LT we have that won't get whoever our QB is killed and it's not even close.
Possibly, but LT is the 2nd hardest, 2nd costliest, and 2nd most important position to fill. No team has a LT replacement just waiting his turn. Just like no team has a franchise QB just waiting his turn. So yes, having young guys in the pipeline is very important, there's a few positions just have to wait for the right moment. QB and LT are two of those positions. It'll be fun to see what Macc comes up with over the next season or two.
Maybe, but there was not as much leverage on March 1st as there is now. Ask him to take a pay cut right before f.a. and brick may choose to get released and be on the open market. I don't see how he refuses now.
