The New York Jets have shown interest in trading cornerback Darrelle Revis this offseason despite publicly saying they want to keep him and the saga took another strange turn over the weekend, as the team snubbed Revis and his team at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis.
According to Manish Mehta at the NY Daily News, the Jets higher ups, including owner Woody Johnson, coach Rex Ryan and new GM John Idzik, all avoided meeting with Darrelle Revis and his representatives at the scouting combine, fueling rumors that the team has no interest in re-signing the cornerback. The report says that none of the top members of the Jets contacted or met with Revis' reps at the combine.
The move comes just a month after reports started circulating that the team was interested in looking at any and all options for trading Revis, rather than resigning him to a new contract after he is an unrestricted free agent after this season. Revis has stated that he wants to be one of the highest paid players in the NFL, but the Jets have been weary to do that as they head into a rebuilding phase.
Revis is an All-Pro cornerback and is considered the best cover man in the league, but he is coming off of major knee surgery and the team has been weary of giving him as much money as he is asking for. A team spokesman contacted by the Daily News did not comment about the situation.
The report says that Revis' agent Neil Schwartz confirmed that he was in Indianapolis for five days before leaving on Monday and it also says that the team met with agents for Santonio Holmes, Dustin Keller, Jeff Cumberland, Austin Howard, Shonn Greene and LaRon Landry, but not Revis.
Mehta also writes that the Jets were staying at the downtown Marriott, while Revis's agents were staying at the Westin, which is only a six-minute walk away. Sources said to the paper that Johnson is not interested in making Revis one of the highest paid players in the league, which is why the team avoided him and his reps at the combine.
The report says that a phone call from Idzik to Revis last month about the possible trade rumors only lasted a few minutes and was just an obvious move to help with damage control and not a real attempt to keep him.
The Jets had a rough season after Revis was hurt and Antonio Cromartie did a solid job keeping the pass defense ranked high, which is one reason why the team may want to avoid paying Revis. The Jets have issues with the salary cap since they have Mark Sanchez and Tim Tebow on the roster, which leaves them with less flexibility to sign Revis.
Revis injured his ACL in October against the Dolphins and is expected to make a full recovery by training camp. He currently is still signed with the team, although the Jets have been weary to make him one of the highest paid defensive players in the NFL.
The team would still have issues if he is dealt based on his contract, as the Jets would still take a large cap hit if he is dealt. Revis is set to make a $1 million roster bonus on the first day of the new league year so the team will likely try to make a move soon.
