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What do you make of this story?
“There was a time not so long ago when it appeared that Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye would rule the Jets secondary forever,” wrote Manish Mehta for the New York Daily News on May 4. “Times have certainly changed.
“The Daily News has learned that the Jets have had trade discussions involving Maye, prompting questions about how Gang Green will proceed on the back end given Adams’ tenuous contract situation and the team’s recent third-round investment in safety Ashtyn Davis.
“Adam Gase wanted to trade Maye upon getting hired last year before level-headed voices convinced him that it would be a mistake (because he’s a very good player), team sources said.
“General manager Joe Douglas has fielded trade inquiries and engaged in discussions about Maye in the past year, but chose to keep the free safety (because he’s a very good player).”
A lot to unpack there.
First of all, teams talk about players all the time. It’s part of the business. In the last few years, this stuff has become big news. Why? I have no idea. When Joe Douglas is on the phone with other general managers, what do you think he’s doing, playing “Dungeons and Dragons?”
Secondly, the fact that the writer kept reminding us that “he’s a very good player” you would have to think this scoop came from an agent. In the information trade, you’ve got to do this. Remember, when NFL Network’s Peter Schrager called Brian Heimerdinger a “genius” in the middle of 2017 season, which wasn’t a good one for Gang Green?
Is Maye “a very good player.” That might be a little strong. He had that sensational game-saving PD against Pittsburgh, that you see above, but so far, he’s been solid, but perhaps leaving you wanting more. “Very good” might be a little strong. He’s got some work to do, and he’s probably be the first to admit it.
One part of the story that didn’t make sense was Gase wanting to trade Maye last off-season. Maybe he did, but who would trade for a player who was rehabbing a serious shoulder injury? And that was what Maye was doing this time last year.
The writer said “level-headed voices” talked Gase out of it. The writer said “team sources” told him that. Perhaps the “level-headed voices” are the “team sources” who told him that.
If somebody isn’t working with a team now, but was when this went on, does that qualify as “team sources?” Perhaps. But the point here is it’s highly unlikely that anybody currently employed was the source of that information.
Look, Maye is in the last year of his contract. Since the team is eventually going to have to pay big money to Jamal Adams (unless they trade him), it’s unlikely they’re going to pay Maye and Adams. So with Maye set to leave after 2020 unless he’s tagged, Douglas might have talked to another team about the safety, but like I said, those conversation go on all the time between general managers.
But the Jets, who are at war with this writer, fought back regarding this story. Late in the day that Mehta broke this story, somebody, likely from the Jets’ organization, told Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio – “Fake news.”
May 6, 2019
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