Every off-season, fans of their respective team brace themselves for the potential scenario in which a player on their favorite team leaves for a division rival in NFL Free Agency. I know for a fact that many Miami Dolphins fans in particular assume every player that leaves the team in free agency to join the New England Patriots, or another AFC East team, is sure to be the next Wes Welker. To be fair, I don’t think all of these players are actually traitors, but I know this is the word most often thrown around when it comes to these exact scenarios.
In the wake of Mike Gesicki surprisingly signing with the division-rival New England Patriots, I think it’s time we take a look back at a few examples that were a big deal at the time and how they worked out.
3 NFL free agency traitors in recent AFC East history
Chad Pennington: NY Jets > Miami Dolphins
On August 7th, 2008, Quarterback Chad Pennington was released by the New York Jets on the heels of their trade for Green Bay Packers legend Brett Favre. Just one day later, he would sign a 2-year, $11.5M, deal with the Miami Dolphins to become their starting quarterback.
It’s important to remember that at the time the Miami Dolphins were coming off an abysmal 1-15 2007 season. The 2008 season would bring with it a brand new head coach in Tony Sparano and VP of football operations Bill Parcels, the very man who drafted Chad Pennington in the 2000 NFL Draft (yes, the Tom Brady draft).
Chad Pennington would go on to start all 16 games in the 2008 season, finishing with an 11-5 record and a playoff berth. This was a remarkable turnaround for the team, increasing their win total by ten games over the previous season – an unheard-of improvement. Furthermore, Pennington, known for his accuracy, finished the season completing 67.4% of his passes with 19 touchdowns, 7 interceptions, and 3,653 yards through the air. Oh, and he won AP Comeback Player of the Year. His biggest win, of course, came in week 17 against his former team, officially sealing their playoff berth.
Overall, this was a huge win for the Miami Dolphins, at least for a short period, and an overall loss for the Jets who would move on from Brett Favre after his “retirement” that next offseason.