The Jets have been looking for a top runner for 15 years. Is it the year they finally land a … or two?
The free agency starts at noon on Monday when the negotiation window between teams and agents opens. Jets CEO Joe Douglas is expected to head to the top of the aisle, as the team sees an opportunity with $ 69 million in salary cap and a free agent market in a stronger position. the usual.
It has been a position of necessity since the Jets replaced John Abraham after the 2005 season. Since then, three other Jets GMs have not been able to fill the hole properly even with defensive coaches at the helm, such as Eric Mangini , Rex Ryan and Todd Bowles.
The Jets have a defensive head coach back to Robert Saleh, who needs quick help to succeed.
There have been buffs in the NFL draft at the Jets ’position, most notably Vernon Gholston, but they haven’t chased many free agency pass runners over the years. This is because usually the best pins do not reach the free market.
That’s what makes this year different and gives Douglas a chance to attack. Shaquil Barrett (Buccaneers), Yannick Ngakoue (Ravens), Matt Judon (Ravens), Trey Hendrickson (Saints) and Carl Lawson (Bengals) head the free agency and all would be franchised candidates most years. With the salary cap lowered this year, there are more good players coming out on the market. With so many good tips available, Douglas should be able to find value without paying more.
Former NFL safety analyst and current ESPN Matt Bowen pointed to Ngakoue as the best fit for the Jets. He turns 26 in two weeks and has never had less than eight sacks in his five-year career. He had a weird 2020 where he was traded twice, but he still got eight sacks. It may be a liability against the race, but the Jets could live with that. Saleh was the Jaguars ’defensive coach in 2016 when Jacksonville retired Ngakoue from Maryland.
“Yannick Ngakoue would be one of my top priorities,” Bowen said. “I think he has a natural curve and withdraws from the ball. I think it has disruptive features. Look at Robert Saleh’s defense and how his pins plan. They do a lot with their four forwards, more than people think. It’s not just, “Hey, let’s rush the quarterback and play in the zone.” They do it a lot on several fronts ”.
The wait inside the Jets is that they will add two top runners for Saleh. This could come to a free agency or they could sign a top broker and draft one. This year’s draft has no elite runners like Chase Young or the Bosa brothers. Prospects like Miami, Gregory Rousseau, Michigan, Kwity Paye, Georgia, Azeez Ojulari and Penn State, Jayson Oweh, could be potential targets with the Jets ’second-round pick (No. 23 overall), but they all come with questions. .
The new coaching staff is excited about what the Jets have on the inside defensive line with Quinnen Williams, John Franklin-Myers and Folorunso Fatukasi. The feeling is that if they get a strong rush off the edge, it will prevent Williams from becoming a double team and free him up to hurry more to the pin.
The last big runner the Jets signed to free agency was Calvin Pace in 2008, when he signed a six-year, $ 42 million contract. Pace had 46 sacks in eight years with the team, but was never dominant. He had double-digit sacks only once.
Over the past decade, the Jets have had to get their passes from inside liners like Muhammad Wilkerson and Leonard Williams or the cheeky defender Demario Davis or the stunning safety Jamal Adams.
Douglas has a chance to give Saleh something his predecessors didn’t have: an avant-garde runner. This could happen as soon as Monday.