The New York Jets will have several difficult free agency decisions (whenever the NFL lockout ends and free agency starts) and among those tough decisions will be WR Braylon Edwards. The Jets have continually said they want to keep Edwards but A.) that may not be feasible with guys like WR Santonio Holmes and CB Antonio Cromartie looking for new contracts as well and B.) the Jets may not even try that hard to keep him.
Jets’ Free Agency Priorities May Not Include WR Braylon Edwards
Jason La Canfora of NFL Network writes that he doesn’t think re-signing Edwards to a big contract is the right move and that the Jets aren’t expected to try that hard to do so.
He is looking for the kind of big money that goes to top starting receivers. In what could be a very shallow market, chances are he will get it. The Jets won't fight that hard to keep him -- that tells you more than enough. New York is in the middle of a huge effort to re-sign and retain its core youngsters.
La Canfora cites Edwards’ inconsistency as a reason for the suggestion that the Jets won’t make a strong effort to keep him in New York.
Edwards can be petulant, is inconsistent and has made poor decisions off the field. He will wow you with one moment of splendor then fall back into a bone-headed funk. I’d expect his worst traits to be exacerbated once he has that big contract. I wouldn’t go there.
All that said, it’s possible the Jets have enough cash, even if they want to re-sign Holmes. If the new CBA includes the same restrictions on free agency that there were in the 2010 season -- six years needed for unrestricted free agency -- then Holmes can be retained at a cheaper price. That’s a scenario in which Edwards could then return to New York easier than re-signing both as unrestricted free agents.
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