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New Jersey – There is no way around it. They have no choice. The Jets have got to land a game-changing pass rusher, and 2013 there is a bumper crop in free aency and the draft.
If the Jets do trade Darrelle Revis, it could give them the cap room to add a pass rusher in free agency, and there are quite a few good ones, including Anthony Spencer (Dallas), Paul Kruger (Baltimore), Michael Johnson (Cincinnati) and Cliff Avril (Detroit), to name a few.
I’d be a little wary of Spencer. While he did have 11 sacks this past season, you have to keep in mind who was on the other side in Dallas – DeMarcus Ware, one of the best pass rushers in the NFL. With all the blocking attention Ware was getting, this benefitted Spencer on the opposite side. If Spencer comes into a new situation where he’s “the man,” you have to wonder how he will fair without Ware around. Also, he’s already 29.
On the other hand, Kruger is only 26, and you know how Rex feels about player out of Baltimore. Kruger had 13.5 sacks last year. If the Jets clear the cap space, you know Rex will bring this name up a lot in free agency. Though, like Spencer, you have to consider who was rushing from the other side – Terrell Suggs. Also Haloti Ngata helped drawing double teams on the inside.
Avril is an interesting player – while he played 4-3 end in Detroit, he’s a very good fit for 3-4 outside linebacker, a position he’d be asked to play in New York. His size (6-3, 260) is ideal 3-4 OLB size. But Purdue-product might be too expensive for the Jets. He turned down a three-year, $30 million offer from the Lions last year.
If I were running the show, Johnson would be the target. The guy is a stud – 6-7, 266 pounder with 4.7 speed. He’s a great athlete. This guy would be perfect for the Jets.
But like I said, the only way any of these guys is a possibility is if Revis is traded, which I wouldn’t do. I personally think the Jets should keep the best part of their team intact – a pair of shutdown corners who can keep them in games. I’d keep him around, and if he’s back to his old self, I’d work on getting a deal done, quietly, in the middle-late part of the season.
If the Jets don’t land a pass rusher in free agency, the draft is loaded with them, and the Jets should be able to land a good one in the first round.
When they are on the clock at nine (if they stay put), they could have their choice of a number of good prospects – like Oregon’s Dion Jordan, Georgia’s Jarvis Jones, LSU’s Barkevious Mingo and Florida State’s Bjoern Werner.
The Jets haven’t had a dominant pass rusher since the John Abraham trade in 2006.
But whether it’s in free agency, or the draft, there is a good chance their pass rusher drought will end in 2013.
And honestly, with guys like Jordan, Jones, Mingo and Werner in this draft class, it might not even be necessary to break the bank on a free agent pass rusher.
Last year, John Idzik was part of a Seattle brass that picked West Virginia pass rusher Bruce Irvin in the first round.
There is a good chance he goes down that road again, in 2013, in Florham Park.
February 15, 2013
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