After a quiet first day of free agency, the Jets had a first active night.
The Jets signed contracts with former Titans receiver Corey Davis and former Bengals rusher Carl Lawson on Monday night, according to sources. Joe Douglas’ moves can fill two big gaps in the Jets list. Douglas saw positions as areas of strength in the free agency and moved forward hours after the negotiation window opened for teams and players’ agents.
The Jets also agreed to an agreement with the middle linebacker, Jarrad Davis, according to a source.
This is the beginning of the Douglas / Robert Saleh review on the list of a team that went from 2 to 14 in 2020. Lawson is a potential pass rusher and will not be 26 before June. He has only 20 sacks in four seasons with Bengals, but he is seen as having a huge advantage. The Jets are betting on this positive side with a three-year contract, $ 45 million, which includes a guaranteed $ 30 million.
Davis gives the Jets another weapon on the wide receiver to accompany Denzel Mims and Jamison Crowder as the team tries to rebuild an attack that was the worst in football last season. Davis and the Jets agreed to a three-year contract, $ 37.5 million, with a guaranteed $ 27 million.
The changes came on Monday night, after a first few hours of free action that made Jets fans nervous. Davis was the first splash signature for Douglas, who was targeting the wide receiver entering the free agency. Davis is 26 and is coming out of his best season as a professional, playing alongside AJ Brown. He had 65 receptions for 984 yards and five touchdowns, all career highlights, in 2020 for Tennessee. The Titans wrote Davis No. 5 overall in 2017, after a highly productive career in Western Michigan. He never lived up to that recruitment status and the Titans refused to choose his fifth year option for 2021.
The Jets had the worst attack in the NFL last season and the wide receiver was part of the problem after the team let Robby Anderson join the free agency a year ago. Crowder led the team with 59 receptions for 699 yards and six touchdowns. Whether Sam Darnold is in the center or the Jets recruit a new quarterback, they will need better targets. Jets haven’t had a 1,000-yard receiver since 2015, when Brandon Marshall and Eric Decker hit the mark.
The 6-foot-3, 209-pound Davis had 207 receptions for 2,851 yards and 11 touchdowns in four seasons with the Titans. Davis is known as a strong blocker and is good at action and play, two key attributes for a receiver in the new offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur’s system.
Lawson is a potential solution to the Jets’ pass-rushing problem. The team has not had a competitive advantage since John Abraham, who was traded 15 years ago. Lawson’s production is not surprising, but he has a lot to like. PFF ranked him 14th out of 109 edge rushers in 2020. He was fourth in pressure (64) and second in QB hits (24) among edge rushers, according to PFF. ESPN reported that it has the third fastest exit rate (0.73), behind TJ Watt and Bud Dupree, according to Next Gen Stats.
The Jets entered the free agency focused on improving the speed of passes. Saleh’s defense in San Francisco has always had good edge defenders. The Jets also feel a strong momentum that will open up Quinnen Williams from the inside, preventing him from teaming up. It would not be surprising if the Jets added another pass rusher in the free agency or in the draft. They also showed interest in Saints’ free agent Trey Hendrickson on Monday.
The 6 foot-2, 265 pound Lawson was a pick for the fourth round of the Bengals in 2017 from Auburn. He had 8 ½ sacks as a newbie before tearing up an ACL in 2018. He had 5 ½ sacks last year.
The only other deal the Jets made on Monday was a one-year deal worth up to $ 7 million with former Lions linebacker Jarrad Davis, according to a source.
Bringing Davis presents questions about CJ Mosley’s future with the team. Both would play the middle linebacker in the Saleh scheme, unless the Jets moved Davis out. The NFL Network reported that the Jets made commercial calls in Mosley and a source confirmed that the Jets are open to negotiating it. It can be difficult to move Mosley, however, with $ 14 million of guaranteed money remaining in his contract for the next two seasons.
The Jets missed one of their targets on Monday. Former Patriots guard Joe Thuney signed a monstrous five-year, $ 80 million contract with the Chiefs. The Jets need an upgrade in the middle of their offensive line.