New York Jets making mistake by not giving Marcus Maye long-term extension
The New York Jets are likely to not sign safety Marcus Maye to a long-term extension, which would be a big mistake.
Stop me if you have heard this before: The New York Jets are unwilling to reach a long-term extension with one of their talented safeties. In this case, it happens to be their free safety, Marcus Maye.
The former Florida Gator has been a bright spot for the Jets defense since former teammate Jamal Adams was shipped off to Seattle and wound up leading the Seahawks to a division title.
Meanwhile, the Jets finished with the second-worst record in the league but drafted quarterback Zach Wilson out of BYU, hoping that he would be the franchise quarterback that Gang Green has been seeking since Joe Namath hung up his cleats.
So you can imagine that it would be wise to put as many pieces around him on both sides of the ball for success. As it turns out, it is likely that New York and Maye are not expected to agree on a long-term deal ahead of the July 15 deadline, as reported by NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport:
Despite the #Jets publicly stating their efforts to “relentlessly” re-sign team MVP Marcus Maye, the team has not responded to his last proposal and that offer has been pulled off the table, sources say. With 48 hours until the tag extension deadline, no deal is expected.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 13, 2021
Maybe they will sign him down the road to a better deal; however, it would be wise to do it earlier and not kick the can down the road further.
Marcus Maye is worthy of being given a long-term extension given his productivity for the New York Jets.
Let’s be clear. The New York Jets are in a mode of rebuilding for the nth time. Only this time, there seems to be a lot of optimism surrounding the new coaching staff and the young players they brought in via the draft and the free agents they added to their roster.
However, would it not be wise to sign your best players who actually made a difference a year ago? This is not to say that Maye should get money like he is the best safety in the league, but rather pay him for his play. He outperformed his contract, and so he must be paid. Granted, this is a salary cap league, but the best players deserve the money.
Moreover, as new head coach Robert Saleh is very good with the defensive line, would it not be in his best interest to have playmakers in the back end to capitalize on the pressure being applied upfront? The best defenses have talent and productivity on all three levels.
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It’s possible that some time down the road, or even before the deadline, Marcus Maye will put pen to paper and extend his career in New York. For now, though, the reports of Maye and the Jets potentially not coming to a deal by the July 15 deadline is a cause for concern.