It really wasn’t that stunning . . .

New York Post headline – “Jordan Jenkins’ stunning free-agency letdown will benefit Jets.”

Not sure who writes the headlines at the New York Post. It’s usually not the writer, but this really wasn’t a “stunning free agency letdown.”

Some people felt that Jenkins was going to break the bank in free agency this past off-season. That probably wasn’t realistic.

But the narrative was mostly media-driven.

Now, it would have been awesome for Jenkins, who is a great person with excellent character, to get a huge payday.

But it didn’t happen.

The Jets gave Jenkins a one-year deal for $3.25 million with a base salary of $1.5 million.

Why was there so little interest in the open market, and why did the Jets get him back a reasonably low price?

First of all, because Jets GM Joe Douglas doesn’t govern by public opinion polls. He looks at the film, sets a value and sticks to it.

All the noise about Jenkins deserving a huge contract came from some fans and reporters looking at his eight sacks last year, and his seven the season before.

Another factor with the media is that he’s a wonderful guy who is one of the most cooperative players with the press in the locker room. He is very accommodating and helpful to the press, and that can sometimes enhance a players talent in the written word. Reporters are human. Most players can’t stand us. So when somebody treats us well, it can impact how they are represented.

The reason Douglas didn’t break the bank, and the free agency market wasn’t great, is while the players has a tremendous motor, and gives you everything he’s got, he lacks ideal athleticism, speed, quickness and twitch for an NFL DE/OLB.

This is not his fault. He works his tail off, trains hard, studies hard and so forth, but he doesn’t run particularly well and this sometimes leads to an issues against the run.

One of the most important jobs of DE/OLB is to set the edge. In other words, to not allow runners to get outside of them and turn the corner. Bill Belichick is obsessed with setting the edge. In fact, he will sacrifice pass rush in games to make sure that his ends don’t shoot too far up field past the QB, opening up lanes for QB to run and clear better sightlines to see down field. He also doesn’t want runners getting outside. He wants the edge-setters to funnel everything back inside to where interior players can make the tackles.

Jenkins too often got outflanked too the outside last year. He’s also on the ground too much, which isn’t ideal for a defensive lineman.

And while he does get many clean-up sacks do his tremendous motor, he rarely beats top-shelf tackles with speed, quickness, bend and a quick first step around the edge.

But Douglas wanted him back because he’s an fantastic locker room guy, the kind of guy you want on your team, and he plays with a lot toughness, and his beloved by his teammates and everyone in the building.

There is a role for him on the Jets.

But it’s not a shock he didn’t get more money.

It’s due to his limited athleticism, which isn’t his fault.

July 10, 2020

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