Things aren't going very well for Jets cornerback Darrelle Revis. At the age of 31 and dealing with the aftereffects of multiple knee injuries, he isn't playing very well.
Someone close to Revis recently told the New York Daily News the cornerback "doesn't want to play anymore," which seems a bit extreme given his salary. Revis is making $17 million this year and stands to make $15.3 million next year.
That's assuming he's around anyway. Jason Cole of Bleacher/Report reported on Thursday that Jets owner Woody Johnson is so miffed by Revis' play he might not even offer the corner a paycut.
A Jets source indicated the team may not offer cornerback Darrelle Revis a chance to take a paycut this offseason, even if he was willing to take one. Owner Woody Johnson pushed hard for the team to bring back Revis in 2015, but was warned by some people in the organization not to bring back Revis. Johnson has become upset by the way Revis has performed this season, feels betrayed by him and may not want Revis back at any cost.
The problem for the Jets in this situation is that they have a $6 million dead cap figure for Revis in 2017. That's not a totally untenable number, but certainly New York would prefer a situation where they restructure Revis' deal by convincing the cornerback to take a paycut and then keep him around for another year.
Johnson can be as mad as he wants, but the reality is he gave a 30-year old cornerback with an ACL injury in his past a five-year deal. What was he expecting? Probably not total decline out of a guy who might (will?) go into the Hall of Fame one day, but that's the risk of paying someone money after their prime.
Having said all that, it's also possible this is a bit of a bluff by the Jets -- lay it out there that Revis might get cut and then start trying to negotiate a paycut with the corner. The team could also wind up moving him to safety and seeing how he thrives as an older defensive back.
Whatever the case, you can fully expect Revis drama this offseason in New York.
