The New York Jets might have gotten their coaching staff situated, but there are still very big lingering question marks surrounding the team heading into the offseason. The biggest might be the one over Geno Smith's head while Percy Harvin and Chris Johnson await to hear what their future holds. The Jets plan on being very active in free agency which could determine the contract statuses of several players.
Most of the coaching staff of the Jets had very little to say in regards to Smith's future with the Jets. With Michael Vick heading off into free agency, the chances the second-year quarterback is released are very slim despite the outcry of fans. However, that does not mean the Jets are not looking to find his replacement sooner rather than later as doubt rises in Smith's ability to lead the team.
"It's probably not even fair for me to comment, because I haven't studied him," offensive coordinator Chan Gailey said, via NJ.com. "You can watch the last Miami game, and say, 'Wow.' And then you can watch two others and say, 'Oooh, I don't know.' I think it's unfair for me to completely comment about where I think he is and where he needs to go, without studying the film."
The New York Post reports the Jets will attempt to trade up in the draft for either Marcus Mariota or Jameis Winston. The Jets currently make their first draft pick at No. 6 so trading up for either quarterback is a must and might not be that difficult, but there will be competition as the Philadelphia Eagles and Washington Redskins are also eyeing moves up the board. The result could be signing a free agent like Ryan Mallett or Brian Hoyer instead.
The next question mark comes with Percy Harvin and his incredibly high salary cap hit. After getting traded mid-season from the Seattle Seahawks, Harvin will be a $10 million hit in 2015 and a $9 million hit in 2016 and 2017 before ballooning back to an $11 million hit in 2018. That simply will not work for the Jets, but the Post reports the wide receiver has no interest in taking a pay cut. The Jets could simply release him which will cause them to eat dead money, but still relieve some cap space.
New York can target a number of big names including Julius Thomas, Jeremy Maclin, Michael Crabtree and running backs like CJ Spiller with Harvin out of the picture. Yes, Harvin can be a weapon for whoever takes over at quarterback, but he is an expensive weapon that could be expendable.