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This might have worked in the past, but it’s unlikely to work now . . .
Remember the Darrelle Revis contract battle in 2010? You all remember that drama from the Jets’ training camp in Cortland. It played out on national television on HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”
It was messy. It was ugly. And it was orchestrated by agent Neil Schwartz.
After Revis was drafted in 2007, he signed a six-year deal for $30 million, but wanted a new deal after three seasons.
Schwartz’s scorched-earth campaign, featuring myriad media leaks to make the Jets look bad, led to the team eventually giving in to his demands, with Revis receiving a new four-year deal for $46 million.
The Jets got trashed for months. Schwartz is very cooperative with the media, and not just with the national insiders like some mega-agents from big agencies, but is also very helpful to local writers.
After two years, Schwartz and Revis were looking for another new deal for the corner, another scorched-earth campaign started again, once again with the help of media surrogates, and Jets owner Woody Johnson had enough, instructed his GM at the time, John Idzik, to trade the player, and he was sent to Tampa Bay for a first-round pick.
Okay, now fast forward to now. The Jets are reportedly interested in cornerback Logan Ryan. There are media reports saying the Jets are close to giving him a deal, and then there were reports that the Miami Dolphins and Philadelphia Eagles are also interested.
Guess who represents Ryan? Yes, Neil Schwartz.
Manish Mehta wrote on May 12: “A few weeks after the Daily News reported that the Jets were having internal discussions about increasing their available cash pool to sign Ryan, there’s a strong belief inside the organization that they’re about to add the versatile defensive back.”
But then, later on May 12, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo announced about Ryan: “The Dolphins nosing around, too.”
But here is the deal, people – Joe Douglas isn’t going to fall for any of Schwartz’s machinations.
Douglas has proven that he isn’t going to be bullied by agents, make decisions based on media pressure, or overpay because other teams are reportedly interested.
Douglas is the kind of guy who decides on a value for a free agent, and sticks to it. There might be a little wiggle room to increase the offer a little, but Douglas has proven to be good at drawing a line in sand.
A case-in-point is the Jordan Jenkins’ contract. There were reports that Jenkins got a one-year deal for $5 million. Well it turns out, it’s not even that high. It was actually a one-year deal for $3.75 million.
On March 20, 2020, Jetswire wrote: “Jenkins wants to get paid like the other pass-rushers he’s seen earn upwards of $30 million and, according to multiple reports, he doesn’t like what the Jets are offering.”
Where was Jenkins getting $30 million? He’s a high-motor player with tremendous character, but lacks ideal athleticism, speed and quick-twitch, and the other teams saw that on film. Douglas stuck to his guns and got him back on an inexpensive one-year deal.
So the point here is simple: Douglas has a clear value in mind for Ryan, that is what he’s going to offer, and he’s not going to worry about stuff Schwartz is planting in the media.
There is a new sheriff in town.
May 13, 2020
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