The Jets can sign Howard whenever. Cutler was a UFA this year before the Bears signed him to a new deal.
sounds about right. i figured he'd cost at least 4mil per, with a good chance at 5mil per. sounds reasonable. Get it done! this would be my top priority, followed by solidifying Guard. Asamoah would cost about the same, maybe just a little more.
I'm guessing they meant number 1? At least I'd hope Unless they're talking about 11th ranked out of FAs?
No, #11 in regards to the top offensive lineman in the league that are going to be free agents. They have him ranked at number 11
Rotoworlds ranking Offensive Tackles 1. Eugene Monroe 2. Jared Veldheer 3. Branden Albert 4. Jordan Gross 5. Anthony Collins 6. Rodger Saffold 7. Michael Oher 8. Breno Giacomini 9. Charles Brown 10. Zach Strief 11. Austin Howard 12. Bryant McKinnie 13. Ryan Harris 14. Eric Winston 15. Jason Fox
are Most Ot's Rated above Howard are playing the left tackle position so it makes sense that they're listed above him as lt is a more valuable position. Also, its crazy that a few teams have both ot's going into free agency. The Ravens and the Saints I believe. I can't believe their teams GM didn't stagger their contacts so that they didn't end on the same year. having to replace left and right tackle would be a real bitch.
This is kind of a nuts conversation at this point. Austin Howard is a decent RT but that's all he is. A contract between $4M and $5M a year would make him the 8th highest paid RT in the NFL at this point. He's not that kind of player. He's not a particularly good run blocker and he's not a great pass blocker either. He's an example of the kind of player that is above replacement value but not by enough to make him a priority re-sign. His play value is more middle of the league, $2.5M or so. I hope the Jets don't give him the kind of deal that makes him an impediment on the cap. He'd have to get a lot better to live up to that deal and 27 year old players don't usually make that kind of leap. The difference between $2.5M and $5M a year is easy to quantify, it's the difference between having another player of Austin Howard's ability on the Jets and not having that guy.
/darksider OMG! Why haven't they reached a deal yet? Something must drastically be wrong! I bet Howard's going to hold out and wants huge dollars! Idzik must be low balling him and he's angry about it. Oh noz!
this is a great thing. solid tackle who's arrow is still pointing up. helps with the continuity. i'd hate to see the whole right side get replaced going into next season.
disagree with you on all counts. Howard was our best Olineman this year. run blocking i thought was very good, and he only allowed 2 sacks. We need to bolster the line, not weaken it. That starts with signing Howard in my opinion. you will not find a player of his caliber on the FA market for 2.5mil. you just won't. allowing him to walk creates a big void at one of the most important positions on offense. unless we take a complete chance on a young unknown, we'd have to sign a guy which could end up being even more expensive (or we allow the line to slip, which would be a huge mistake). we are talking a Vollmer deal here, with 4.25mil per, only half guaranteed. that is a deal both the Jets and Howard should take.
Vollmer made 2nd team All-Pro in 2010 and 2012. Do any of you think that Austin Howard is worth the kind of contract he got? Seriously? What the hell are you going to tell Wilkerson when he comes to you with a "if Howard is worth $5M I'm worth $11M argument? Austin Howard is a decent 27 year old journeyman RT. Those guys make anywhere from $1M to $2.5M a year. That's what they get. The highest paid RT in the NFL right now makes $7M a year. Do you seriously want to pay Austin Howard more than half of what he makes? Really? Overthecap.com is a great resource. Go look at what RT's are paid.
You can't compare guys like that. The fact is, we need guys on the OL that are talented and Howard is just that. Yes he's 27, but that does not mean at all that he has reached his ceiling. You say it is highly unlikely, but yet it still is possible. He may not be all pro right now, but he could get to that point and he has been a far better than average lineman. You pay a guy like him enough to secure him for a while in order to build a solid line. He is an integral piece of this line. You can't let a guy like that walk because you didn't want to pay him a certain amount. And at the rate Wilkerson is going, he might be worth that $11 million
You have to compare guys like that. You have to compare guys like that. You have to compare guys like that. The salary cap is what it is. It puts a strict limit on the amount of money you can pay your roster. If you pay an average player as though he was a good player that leaves less space under the cap to pay players who are actually good as if they were good players. That means you have fewer good players on your roster because those guys have no problem finding somebody else who will pay them like they are a good player. The Jets have at least 3 very good defensive linemen at this point. Depending on how you view Coples they may have 4 of those guys. None of those guys is going to play for $2.5M a year when they come due just because the Jets signed Austin Howard to a $4M+ a year deal and the cap doesn't support paying 3 defensive linemen well in that situation. The choice you make in signing Austin Howard above his level is that you may well not be able to re-sign Mo Wilkerson at an affordable deal in the next year. That in turn could lead to not being able to re-sign Sheldon Richardson to a reasonable deal at the point he comes due. Both of those events could lead to Damon Harrison going out the door at 27 because you just don't have the cap room to sign him and he's not interested in a $2.5M a year deal just because you screwed up and paid Austin Howard like he was a much better player than he is. It's all related. Players watch and see what other players get and they make their calculations off of that. Nobody is going to take it on the chin to save the Jets cap and keep them competitive when that player comes due. Paying Austin Howard $2M a year more than he should get drives up costs everywhere. It deprives the Jets of needed cap space year after year and it's easy for them to get caught in the switches in that situation. The Seahawks RT this year was Breno Giacomini. He's a 28 year old journeyman RT taken in the 5th round in 2008. He's bounced around a bit but he stuck with the Seahawks in 2011, at the age of 25. They saw enough of him in 2012 when he started 16 games to offer him a 2 year $6.5M contract. That's what he was worth to them. I'd argue that Howard's value is somewhere below Giacomini's but in the vicinity. He's not at the level that Vollmer is, and for that to be his asking point should be the queue for the Jets to let him hit the market and see what he's worth. If they sign him as though he was a top 8 RT they're just bidding against themselves. That's what kills the cap.
I'm afraid we're caught between a rock & a hard place on this one as a result of the Tanny years' inability to develop the deeper parts of the roster. Think about it, - for about 2yrs, Wayne Fucking Hunter was our starting RT and we didnt even leave ourselves a viable backup option or a reasonable "what if" plan B. So now we have Austin Howard, -- and I agree with you 100% about this guy -- "he's an example of the kind of player that is above replacement value" But the thing is, - I believe its ends there. Because of our lack of talent, -- its enough to make him a little bit of a priority re-sign. We have so many holes to fill in the upcoming draft, that signing Howard would prevent us from adding to the long list of positions to fill. At least the guy is improving and can continue to improve. For whatever reason, - Eric Winston is on that list and keeps signing 1yr deals. Is this what you had in mind?
Saw Austin Howard in Cortland 2 yrs ago before anyone knew who he was. The man is HUGE. When he was standing around with the rest of the o-line he looked a foot taller and 100 pounds heavier than Mangold and Brick combined. Can't coach 'huge', and hopefully it will be worth something down the road in the run/pass game. Sign the beast!
Howard represents stability at the right tackle position for the Jets, he's a fine run blocker and an able pass blocker over a decent period of time. with him in our reach theres no reason to draft a prospect or try out another journeymen to see if they can do the job as well as Howard has already proven he can. theres no need to fear the ramifications of signing Howard for a few years, in reality its just locking up what by all accounts is a solid addition to the offensive line for a couple years while adding flexible contractual options for any time after that, insuring a talented player is aboard for as long as he's needed. With that in mind I somehow doubt paying Austin Howard an extra 2 million a year is going to prevent the jets from renegotiating with the sons of anarchy. I don't think it sets up a precedent for those guys to get overpaid, thats seems like a pretty hyperbolic assertion to me. if anything what will influence those guys is what OTHER big name defensemen (Watt) make including one another, not the Right Tackle earning just above average amount annually. I also don't think an easily renegotiable contract will keep them cap strapped so... I don't see the down side. unless one thinks he's just not worth anymore than he's received over the past two years (about 2 million) since he's still nothing but a journeyman player, which doesn't appear to be true for the jets purposes. He's earned a higher paycheck, we shouldn't get cheap with a guy thats proven effective and is out of his short term show me contract, or else we'll lose him and be stuck hoping aboushi can do the job I guess. As for what Howard might receive, if Vollmer's deal is any indication it won't be a lot for the next couple of years and any increases in value shouldn't break the jets bank if guaranteed money is spread right. he might make closer to 3 million in 2014, maybe closer to 4 give or take for the next few, but that shouldn't be an issue as once again they can renegotiate or even cut him if he's not worth it. the latter should be easy to do as I don't expect his total owed amount to be more than 7 million, which should be mostly payed out by then. the risks are null, the benefits clear, re-up this guy, pay him 15-17 million over 4 years, don't look back.
