Coming off a year that showed tons of promise thanks to a great rookie class, the New York Jets were ready to make some moves in NFL free agency. Gifted with a ton of cap space and a motivated front office, Gang Green went out and did what they needed to: Sign capable veterans in order to compete in the AFC.
New York Jets Free Agency Grade: A-
The Positives
The reason the Jets earned such a positive grade is that the positives severely outweigh the negatives from these past few weeks. Though the Jets might have overpaid a bit for some players, that’s the nature of free agency.
The Offense
Josh McCown’s contract falls under the positives. Again, there might be a few dollars in his deal that he might not deserve, but the signing was necessary. He’s a fantastic mentor and locker room guy and can bring one or two things on the field. The signing was important and the duration of the contract is perfect. He doesn’t need to be with the team for more than another year.
Next up were the skill position players. With that in mind, the Jets signed Isaiah Crowell and Terrelle Pryor. Both of these players should significantly help an underrated group of players that the Jets currently have.
The addition of these playmakers should increase the progression and help whichever young quarterback the Jets decide to draft in a month. These signings were very important.
The last player that the Jets needed to sign was kicker Cairo Santos. Santos entered the league in 2014 with the Kansas City Chiefs and should immediately come in and be an upgrade in the Big Apple.
The Defense
Last year it was the safety position that the Jets addressed. This year, it’s the cornerback position. The re-signing of Morris Claiborne and the signing of former Los Angeles Rams corner Trumaine Johnson will give the Jets a secondary that should give opposing quarterbacks some worry.
It’s not one of the best groups in the NFL, but its good enough to compete at a high level. Both Claiborne and Johnson should work well with Jamal Adams and Marcus Maye to contain Tom Brady and any other quarterback that tests them.
The Jets have made other signings but the ones above are the big names one and why they deserve an A-. These moves prove that they’re trying to right now and it should be encouraging to the fan base.
The Negatives
Teddy Bridgewater. Bridgewater’s contract is the only negative from the Jets off-season. Now, before they signed Bridgewater they probably didn’t think they were going to be able to trade up to the third overall spot and take a quarterback.
However, now that they do sit at three and will take the quarterback of the future, they don’t need Bridgewater and all of the money that they are paying him. He could still be a starter in the NFL, but he doesn’t really have a place on the Jets.
Overall
Overall, this Jets team is a lot better than it was just a month ago and in the process, they gained veteran leadership and took a step towards being a contender in the AFC.
