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It’s well-documented that the Jets
spent a lot of money in free agency this off-season. They entered free agency with over $70 million cap space, and cleared even more room since then with trades and reworked contracts.
And they spent somewhere in the $80-100 million area in free agency. The exact figure is subjective because it depends on whether you consider the entire value of the contract, or just the guaranteed money.
But you get the idea, they were big spenders this off-sesaon.
However, not reckless spenders.
When it comes to free agent spending, Joe Douglas gives out generous contracts, but not profligate contracts.
In other words, solid deals for the players, but also team-friendly, and deals the team can cleanly get out of in some cases after two years, and other cases after one.
In other words, he’s not giving out deals like the prior regime gave to CB Trumaine Johnson and C.J. Mosley. This isn’t to say that Mosley can’t help the Jets this year, but $51 million guranteed to an inside linebacker is a bit much, and I bet if you gave him a shot of sodium penthonal, he would probably admit it was a little bit of a crazy deal, and that is why he couldn’t turn it down, and left this beloved Baltimore Ravens.
One of the things that makes Douglas a good negotiator is patience. He will make what he feels is a fair offer, and then have the patience to wait out the player and his agent, and not panic and keep upping the offer. He’s a cool customer.
“The good thing about Joe D, he never panics in any situation,” said Jets Director of Player Personnel Chad Alexander. “He kind of lets free agency and the board, fall where it’s going to fall. We don’t panic and make frivolous decisions in free agency.”
Before the Jets make an offer, Douglas and his staff do meticulous research on the player, the marketplace, and attach a value to the player.
“You really have a number in mind,” said Douglas.
This isn’t to say he won’t sweeten the pot a little in some cases, but he’s not going to do what the Jets did with Johnson and Mosley, which was overpay to convince them to come to a downtrodden team at the time. In other words, overpay for their love.
Douglas won’t do that.
The Morgan Moses contract is a perfect example of Douglas patience as a negotiator. I have to be honest, I thought Moses, an established NFL starting right tackle, would get more than the 1-year deal for $3.6 million he got from the Jets.
But if you recall, the Moses-to-the-Jets rumors started shortly after his release from the Washington Football Team on May 20.
And then he didn’t agree to his deal with the Jets until June 25.
Clearly, Moses was waiting to see if if he could get more money, either from the Jets or elsewhere. It didn’t happen. Teams don’t have cap space now, and Douglas knows that. The Jets were one of the few teams with wiggle room.
So Douglas waited Moses and his agent out, and when the Moses camp saw he wasn’t going to get more money anywhere else, he signed with the Jets.
And he gives the Jets a heck of an insurance policy at right tackle. Consider that both of their tackles, Mekhi Becton and George Fant, missed time last year. And then Becton missed time in the spring with a foot injury. Remember, Fant also had a serious knee injury while with Seattle.
Maybe Moses beats out Fant, maybe he doesn’t, but at the very least, he give the Jets great depth at offensive tackle. And if something heppens to Becton, Fant could move to left tackle, his natural position, and Moses could move in at right tackle.
The Moses deal, like so many Douglas contracts, aside from Ryan Kalil, are tight, pragmatic deals that are team-friendly.
June 29, 2021
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