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Joe Douglas has a vision for his New York Jets . . .
And clearly Robby Anderson doesn’t fit that vision.
Today, Anderson signed a two-year deal with the Carolina Panthers. The announcement was made by Manish Mehta.
Some people, who clearly have an axe to grind with Mehta, credited Adam Schefter with breaking this story, but based on the Twitter time stamp, Mehta had it first.
But a lot of people had this story wrong over the last few months. There was so much talk about how Anderson was going to break the bank, and get a monster deal for perhaps $14 million-a-year He did not. It sounds like a one-year deal for $12 million based on how it’s structured.
So many people said Joe Douglas needed to re-sign Anderson? Who said? Clearly Douglas wasn’t in agreement.
The robust market some claimed Anderson would have, didn’t come to pass. Sometimes people listen a little too much to the agent’s propaganda.
The player was arrested twice during his time with the Jets and has a reputation of being hard to deal with.
If you don’t think that impacted his free agent market, you aren’t dealing with reality.
And who knows what Adam Gase thought of him. Did the player always run the right routes? Who knows.
But as we know, Joe Douglas is obsessed with building a strong football culture, and he clearly didn’t think Anderson was an ideal fit for that.
Somebody who would say to a police officer, “I’m going to ‘f’ your wife, and ‘n’ in her eye,” isn’t for everybody. According to the police report, that’s what Anderson said when pulled over for erratic driving on January 19, 2018 in Florida. That was his second arrest in less than a year.
You never got the sense he was a Douglas kind of guy, and now he’s gone.
Look for them to sign a wide receiver in free agency and also add one in the draft.
As for a deep threat, keep an eye on Boston College-product Jeff Smith, who flashed on the Jets’ practice squad last year, before being promoted to the regular roster late in the year. He can fly.
So the Jets need to add a receiver or two, and also still need a big-time pass rusher.
Some people, who like Jordan Jenkins a great deal personally, believe the team re-signing him will help with that.
“A big move for the NYJ to bring back their sack leader from last year,” tweeted one beat writer.
Not really “a big move.” He has a great motor, plays hurt and has top-shelf character, but doesn’t have the speed, quick twitch, bendability and closing burst to be an elite pass rusher. None of that is his fault. It’s what he’s been given, but it’s the reality of the situation. Jets still need to add an elite pass rusher.
Mehta announced that New England also wanted Jenkins. Maybe, but they weren’t going to pay him much, so what does that really mean?
But you know what, the Jets bringing back Jenkins, and not Anderson, is a cultural statement. Jenkins is a good culture guy – does everything the right way – beloved by teammates – squeaky clean off-the-field.
March 24, 2020
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