New York Jets: Would Adam Gase actually trade Le’Veon Bell?
As Adam Gase has taken control of the New York Jets, how realistic is it that the interim general manager and head coach would trade Le’Veon Bell?
The New York sports scene has seen better weeks. Not only did the New York Knicks essentially lose out on Zion Williamson in the 2019 NBA Draft Lottery by getting the third pick, but then the New York Jets joined the party, firing general manager Mike Maccagnan and promoting new head coach Adam Gase to interim GM.
In the wake of that front office move by the Jets, details about a long-reported riff between Gase and Maccagnan started to emerge. At the heart of that riff seemed to be the team signing running back Le’Veon Bell in free agency, per Manish Mehta of the NY Daily News. The Jets inked the former Steelers star, who sat out all of 2018 due to a contract dispute, to a four-year, $52.5 million deal with $27 million guaranteed.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport added to that report, stating that Gase liked Bell as a player, but did not agree with handing the running back such a rich contract (Rapoport also noted that the head coach felt similarly about the deal given to linebacker C.J. Mosley in free agency).
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As if the drama wasn’t done there, Friday brought another wrinkle into the fold. NFL Insider John Clayton said that he “could see” the Jets potentially trading Bell before the start of the 2019 season if an interested team and the right deal emerged. It would be a near-unprecedented move for a newly signed, high-priced free agent to be traded before ever playing a down with his new team — but this situation is far from normal.
Subsequently, we have to ask the question: Would the New York Jets actually trade Le’Veon Bell right now?
Starting to examine the possibility, the first thing to be noted is that other reports on Friday seem to indicate that Gase isn’t going to outright give up on Bell sight unseen. Rapoport reported that the two parties are going to feel one another out and that the hope is that Gase is wrong about the price that the Jets paid for the running back.
Even if he does ultimately wind up feeling that Bell is still not worth what they’re paying him, though, the mere financial repercussions of trading him make a deal highly unlikely. Per Spotrac, if the Jets traded Bell prior to June 1, they would take on $16.5 million in dead cap in 2019, losing nearly $8 million in cap “savings” in the process. Even in a post-June 1 trade, New York would still take the same amount of dead cap, only with $10.5 million in 2019 and $6 million in 2020.
There’s no question that the firing of Maccagnan and the current situation with Gase highlight dysfunction within the Jets organization. But even with that level of dysfunction, making that type of financial move appears incredibly far-fetched.
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Given what we’ve seen to this point, Bell’s career with the Jets is likely going to get off to a rocky start and, if you’re betting on it, things won’t likely end well. Having said that, the notion of trading Bell prior to the 2019 season is a bit absurd to even consider on the Jets’ part. Even in an organization swimming in absurdity as things stand, this would be a new level — a level you shouldn’t count on them reaching.