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ESPN’s Adam Schefter announced on Monday that the Jets traded a seventh-round pick to Miami for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.
This is my favorite time of year for personnel decisions, and I will tell you why.
There is a purity to them that you don’t often see other times of the year.
Like during the season, when some teams just keep rolling with players week after week, even though the film is awful.
Without games to worry about, the amount of film study that has been going on over the last couple of months is awesome.
I love it.
As scouts have said for years, “The film don’t lie.”
You are seeing so many moves around the league: after two solid months of film study, teams are making big decisions, releasing players, trading for players, reworking players’ contracts. So much is based on extensive film study.
This doesn’t mean that every decision we see now and in the coming weeks will work for other teams, but the amount of film study that went into these decisions is something I love.
Not a lot of seat of the your pants decisions in March.
Like when the Jets looked at Jermaine Johnson’s film, and decided not only are we not comfortable giving him a long-term deal (this would be a good time to do it, after four years), but they didn’t seem comfortable paying him $13.4 million on his fifth-year option.
The film was average and not worth a long-term deal right now, or $13.4 million this year?
The film don’t lie.
The film also pointed to their run defense being atrocious last year, and they needed to do something about it. So they traded Johnson for massive run-stopping nose tackle T’Vondre Sweat, who can plug up the middle of their defensive line.
The Jets’ safety play was substandard last year, especially against the pass (one reason they had no picks last year as a team). Forget the hype about certain safeties. The position wasn’t good last year. Look at the film.
So they traded for Fitzpatrick, who has 21 career interceptions. He’s a ballhawk who fits their scheme. He played under current Jets DC Brian Duker, the former secondary coach in Miami.
Now, while we’re on the film, clearly, the Dolphins’ new coach Jeff Hafley, after studying the film of Miami’s defense from last season, feels the player isn’t an ideal fit for his scheme, expecially with his current contract.
So this film stuff cuts both ways.
The Jets signed Demario Davis. While he’s 37, after the Jets’ brass watched a lot of his film, they feel he can still run well enough to help them. That was the only concern before the signing – does he still have the wheels, and they feel he does. We know he has the leadership and instincts.
Based on two months of film study, the Jets knew they needed to revamp their linebacker corps. Not only was last year’s corps out of position too much, but they also weren’t getting other guys lined up right to often. Davis will help in both these areas. He will be the green-dot coach of the field they desperately need.
Also based on two months of film study, the Jets clearly determined they need to turnover their defensive end room. So they traded Johnson, and signed Joseph Ossai (Bengals) and Kinsgley Enagbare (Packers). Neither is elite, but are very good rotational ends. Not only weren’t the starting ends great last year, but the rotation wasn’t very good. It’s no secret that the #2 pick in the draft will likely be an edge-rusher, so they are not done. The edge play last year, aside from a game or two, was not good. In both Pats games, Drake Maye could have baked a cake in the pocket.
Once again, not saying all these moves will work out, but film drives so many decisions this time of year. How did the player look on film, and how will he fit your scheme?
This time of year isn’t like the BS we often see during the season, where the film is ignored, and teams keep rolling with players who aren’t getting it done, either due to no better options on the street or confirmation bias.
That is why I love this time of year.
The evaluations are often as pure as the driven snow.
Two months of watching film, without game plans to worry about, allows you to be film junkies.
March 9, 2026
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