There is no denying what Ryan Fitzpatrick did for the Jets last season, with 39 TDs and 3,900 yards, breaking Vinny Testaverde's franchise touchdown record. However, many fans last memories of Fitzy are his three interceptions in a win-and-in game against our former coach Rex Ryan. Now, Fitzpatrick is playing a game that he can't win.
Reports are that the Jets offered Fitzpatrick a front-loaded, incentive laden, 3-year $24 million contract, where he would earn $12 million the first year. Fitzpatrick countered, saying he would accept a 1-year $12 million deal. The biggest road block to that deal is that the Jets have the third-least remaining salary cap in the league, with just $2.95 million remaining, and none of their rookies signed yet. On Boomer and Carton this morning, Boomer Esiason who understands how the NFL's salary caps works a hell of a lot better than I can even pretend to, said that the numbers in a one-year deal are impossible to work out.
It is clear that both sides are at an impasse right now, and the mud-slinging between the two is guaranteed to ramp up as the season draws closer. Let's call a spade a spade here, Ryan Fitzpatrick is a journeyman quarterback, playing on six teams in eleven seasons in the league. Looking at this situation with 20-20 vision, the Jets could have avoided this situation by offering him a contract extension after trading with the Texans for him, but nobody expected him to be our starter, let alone a near Pro Bowler. The quarterback market blew up this offseason with crazy contracts being offered to the likes of Chase Daniel, but no other team has even talked to Fitzy.
The Jets quarterback situation without Ryan Fitzpatrick isn't all sunshine and daisies either. Geno Smith, entering his fourth season in the NFL, has always had the intangibles to be a good quarterback, but has never put it all together on the gridiron. While some of that may be due to lack of a supporting cast, which the Jets have now in Decker, Marshall, and Forte. After him are two guys who never played an NFL snap before, Bryce Petty and Christian Hackenberg. That's not to say that neither of these three guys are going to be bad, but they are all huge question marks.
Fitzy and the Jets are playing high stakes poker and bluffing with pocket deuces.
With a brutal 6 game stretch to start the season (Cin, @Buf, @KC, Sea, @Pit, @Ari), it might not matter who our quarterback is, the season is more than likely going to be over before Columbus Day.
The other albatross in all of this is Mo Wilkerson. The Jets offered Big Wilk the franchise tag, which would have him earn over $15 million this season. If there is any hope of signing the Pro Bowler long term, how much can we afford to pay Fitzpatrick? The spending spree Mike MacCagnan went on last season, that brought us to the brink of the playoffs, has hurt us this offseason. With "Snacks" Harrison wearing Big Blue this year, and Sheldon Richardson lucky not to be wearing Prison Orange, but likely to be suspended by Judge Goodell, Wilkerson knows he has leverage.
I believe that when all is said and done, barring an injury to another team's starting quarterback, Ryan Fitzpatrick will sign with us before training camp. However, will all the goodwill he made in his first season in New York be gone in the fanbase's eyes?
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