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If the Jets make a run at outside linebacker Jarret Johnson, they should have one other significant challenger for his services.
While the Baltimore Ravens do want him back, they aren’t going to spend a fortune on him.
“They’d like to have him back – but they’re just not going to give him a 4-year deal in the 20-30 million range,” said a source close to the Ravens.
Clearly the Jets are interested in Johnson, one of Rex’s all-time favorite players, even though he turns 31 in August.
So if the Ravens drop out of the bidding, what team will the Jets be competing with for Johnson?
“Rex and Chuck Pagano are willing to pay, so it just looks like a done deal (that he’s leaving Baltimore),” the source said.
Pagano is the new coach of the Indianapolis Colts. Last year he was Baltimore’s defensive coordinator. From 2008-2010, he was the Ravens’ secondary coach.
He runs an almost identical system to Ryan. Remember, when Ryan took over the Jets, he brought in Bart Scott, Marques Douglas and Jim Leonhard, players who could help teach players what he wanted, and set a tone.
Johnson could help do the same in Indianapolis. Expect Pagano to target a few Ravens defenders, including Johnson, just like Ryan did in 2008.
But you have to wonder if Johnson would want to go to a rebuilding team, and if the Colts release Manning, and start rookie Andrew Luck, they will clearly be in a rebuilding mode.
While the Jets finished last season poorly, and have a lot of work to do this off-season to turn around their fortunes, they aren’t rebuilding.
And Rex is probably closer to Johnson than Pagano. I can’t tell you how many times Ryan has brought up the name Jarret Johnson in press conferences over the last three years. He loves the guy.
Johnson is one of those guys doesn’t put up gaudy stats, and doesn’t make a ton of big plays (though he did return a fumble for a touchdown against the Jets in 2011), but does a lot of intangibles, and it takes a coach’s keen eye to realize his value.
“It’s hard to describe his value without watching film,” said the source. “It’s why only the guys who coached him before will make him serious offers.”
We mentioned the other day that Johnson doesn’t have the kind of speed to help the Jets a great deal with their linebacker coverage issues, but the source said he’s underrated in coverage.
“He moves well (enough) to cover in space,” said the source. “When one of your inside guys gets beat, he can cycle back to make the play-even if he’s in the backfield. He’s way better in coverage than anyone realizes.”
While he’s not going to wow you as an athlete, the best way to describe him is as “a football player with good instincts and a great motor.”
And he’s got good leadership ability, and we all know the Jets need more leaders.
He is the only two-time captain in the history of the University of Alabama football.
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