The New York Post conducted an interview with free agent tight end Dustin Keller via e-mail.
Here is what Keller told the Post –
“I kind of view free agency like the draft, at this point I don’t know where anyone stands, including the Jets, but everything will take care of itself. I’m not stressing myself out about where I’m going to be, I’m just going to continue to work my butt off this offseason so I’m ready no matter where I’m going to be.
“Yeah, I’d like to return. I have a lot of great friends on the team, and I’ve always thought of myself as a key piece of the offense there, but if I’m not there that’s fine, too. There are no hard feelings. I understand it’s a business for the Jets, but at this point it’s a business decision for me as well.
“Did I want to sign a new deal before last season. Am I angry about it? No. Like I said, I understand the business side. I signed a five-year deal and I played through that whole contract, even though recent first-round picks have re-signed with a year left. So I think I deserve the right to see what else is out there.
“I have talked to Coach Mornhinweg and he made clear to me that he would like to have me back, but the guys upstairs may have different thoughts than the coaches.
“The thing I wants teams to realize is that I played my first four years in the NFL without missing a single practice, let alone a game. I’m not some injury-prone player that teams have to worry about. Both of my injuries were non-contact injuries, so they were just fluke incidents. I don’t think people realize that there is a 100-percent injury rate for players in the NFL, and my injuries were minor.”
