The Jets may have the world’s least patient fans, it’s no wonder there were so few I could get along with, back at ESPN. The team has only so much money to spend, therefore anyone that didn’t see this coming, was just simply blind, or thinking we still had the old regime in charge.
History of impatience
An aging Leon Hess was so tired of losing and not being relevant, that he, the media shy one, announced that the Jets were going to open their pocket book and buy every player available. This just before the CAP was instituted. Hess hired Bill Parcels, because Bill was tired of having to cook dinners with mediocre ingredients, purchased by someone else.
Parcells went out and signed Curtis Martin, and the Jets began a climb to respectability. The CAP arrived, Bill had no clue what that meant, not many did. He hires a young financial wiz to help him figure it out. Parcels admitted that Tannenbaum was hired as the CAP Guru; and a financial expert he does become.
When Tannenbaum somehow rose from counting change and keeping spread sheets, to NFL GM, the fun began. Tannenabum always had money to spend on free agency, always. Jets fans got so used to the March spending sprees that we are still a little influenced today.
Tannenbaum had money because he believed in restructuring like no other GM ever did, and he invented the NFL-Credit-Card-Approach Contracts were extended, years added, guaranteed money pushed back. A mess that resulted in useless old talent, and a new GM that only had one real job, clean the house. Idzik did clean, and he cleaned at all cost. The Jets went from free spending to no spending. The result was no depth, no talent, and the league coming down hard and threatening sanctions, unless the new small market Jets started to spend.
The new Regime
A year ago, new GM, Maccagnan had to spend, and he had to do so at a rate we had not seen before, or he would be facing God only knows what restrictions from the NFL.
The Jets only really gave up one large contract that can linger on, to prodigal son, Revis. The rest, Maccagnan structured so that they would not hurt. What has hurt is still the leftovers from previous regimes. D’Brikshaw Ferguson is set to make over 14M, way too much for an aging LT.
Maccagnan doesn’t believe in Tannenbaum’s credit card approach to running a franchise. But, I think in Brick’s case he will have to be creative, because for at least another year, a new LT will not grow on trees.
He would also have to be creative with Mo Wilkerson, his CAP number is sick, and I just don’t see it staying as is. Mo can be signed to a long term deal, and the hit would be much easier to absorb, but I don’t think that is the case. Jets have just added a Snacks replacement, but also Jarvis Jenkins. Jenkins is no Mo, but he can be a good back up to Williams and Richardson. I think that, if the Jets can trade Richardson by the draft, they will, then sign Mo. However, I think that Mo will be sacrificed in the right deal.
Jets need an outside pass rusher more than they need Wilkerson. He applies pressure, but not at the level they need, and this si why the reluctancy to sign him.
Fitzpatrick is playing chicken with Maccagnan, but if I was the Jets GM, I would give him a date by which a deal needs to be signed (no more than 8-10M per), or we move on. At this point, with the schedule our teams are facing, the Jets can afford to play Geno and allow Petty another year to learn. As of today, none of the four teams have done enough to improve on their record of 2015, Why waste money on a QB that will not be there when the fun begins.
Things that make me laugh
- Speaking of Mo Wilkerson, if Maccagnan traded him for a bust at LT to replace Brick and what amounts to a third round pick, second to last in round 2 is basically a third. I wonder if Jets fans would be celebrating like Patriots fans are?
- I really like Martellus Bennett, a lot. I wanted the Jets to find CAP space to get him. I’m not sure he’s a good fit in New England, here is why: He was not happy in Chicago because he wanted to be in the spotlight. He knows that he has this next season to earn his biggest contract he will ever get. He now goes from a team where he was third choice (often second with Jeffery and Forte injured), to a team where not only he is not a top target, he is not even the top TE target. Bennet may become a locker room disruption. I wanted him on the Jets because of the presence he brings in the red zone, in NE that presence is occupied by Gronk. BTW, I read how this becomes the Hernandez/Gronk duo again. Hernandez and Bennet are very different players, not even kind of the same situation as it was years ago.
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