New York Jets Free Agency Recap

Author: Patrick Sullivan

Editor: Mark Awadallah

As the NFL free agency hype is beginning to come to a halt, one team that has been pretty active has been the New York Jets. The Jets are coming off a horrendous 2-14 season, the offseason is typically something the Jets can get excited for as it gives them a chance to improve their team, which they have done over the past week to a certain extent. Adding Robert Salah as their head coach has also improved their coaching staff dramatically, but the Jets have holes all over the place and in order to accelerate the process to become a competent team they truly need to nail free agency and the draft.

Thus far in free agency, the Jets have made some moves that complement the team nicely. Firstly, they started off free agency signing former Detroit Lions LB Jarrad Davis to a 1-year deal for $7M, which is a nice addition to the Jets linebacking core but nothing really special. The two big signings of free agency for the Jets have come in the form of Carl Lawson and Corey Davis. Starting with Carl Lawson, he was one of the best pass rushers available on the market which is an area needing a lot of improvement for the Jets. The Jets truly haven’t had an efficient edge rusher in over a decade and this signing came at a steep price. Lawson signed a 3-year $45M deal, with $30M guaranteed, with the Jets which isn’t groundbreaking but is definitely large for an edge rusher contract. Next, the Jets added Corey Davis to their receiving core which gives them a good, run-blocking WR as well as a receiver that can make some explosive plays on the outside. He should be a great pairing with Denzel Mims which has the potential to be a great “one-two punch” for the Jets along with Jamison Crowder in the slot. Davis signed a 3-year $37.5M deal, with $27M guaranteed, which comes out to $12.5M per year. Along with Davis, the Jets signed Keelan Cole to a one year $5.5M deal to further improve the team’s WR core.

Besides those larger signings, the Jets have made a good number of other moves such as safety Lamarcus Joyner, special teams player Justin Hardee, backup OL Dan Feeney, TE Tyler Kroft, and last but not least DT Sheldon Rankins. All of these signings of course add depth to the team but it would be fair to say that none of these signings are crucial signings for the Jets, as the team has still so many needs to fill.

The main needs for the Jets include cornerback, offensive line, tight end, running back, and quarterback. The decision regarding the future of the quarterback positions remains unknown but all the other positions need to be addressed in the coming weeks as the final wave of free agents are signed or put in the draft, which is more likely due to Joe Douglas’s “build through the draft” approach to building a team. Overall, the Jets need to make some more moves to secure starters in positions of need while also acing the draft to hopefully get the team back in the right direction. This could be the year where the Jets make a turn around in performance and while it might take some more time to get to the top, the steps they’re taking now are integral for that eventual goal.