Aaron Rodgers‘ surprise — to most — no-show for Jets minicamp has generated more attention this week, but Haason Reddick‘s situation qualifies as the more newsworthy story. Unlike Rodgers, Reddick did not show for the entirety of New York’s offseason program.
Seeking a new contract since the end of his Eagles run, Reddick stayed away from OTAs and this week’s minicamp. The sides do not appear on the same page regarding the team’s plan, which may well be to let the trade acquisition play out his contract and reassess after the season. Given Reddick’s age (30 in September), it is not too surprising he is attempting to force the issue in a contract year.
The Jets indeed look to prefer waiting on a Reddick extension, per ESPN.com’s Rich Cimini, but the veteran reporter adds the team has not ruled out the prospect of a new deal for the recently acquired edge rusher. Although the Jets remain confident Reddick will resurface and enjoy a productive season, this is certainly not a good start to the relationship.
Teams who trade for impact players disgruntled with their contracts often have new deals ready. That makes this Jets situation tricky, especially as the Eagles signed four-year Jet contributor Bryce Huff to replace Reddick weeks before the trade was finalized. The Eagles also reached a resolution with Josh Sweat, effectively ensuring Reddick would be traded. New York sent Philadelphia a third-round pick for Reddick in late March, but he and Robert Saleh had not spoken until this past weekend. Saleh confirmed (via Cimini) he reached out to the eighth-year vet.
Upon agreeing to take on Reddick’s three-year, $45MM contract, GM Joe Douglas deemed John Franklin-Myers as too expensive to retain. The Jets sent the dependable D-lineman to the Broncos, who then reworked his deal. (Franklin-Myers turned down a Jets pay-cut proposal, one that did not approach the numbers he is now tied to in Denver.)
Reddick has shown a much higher ceiling by comparison, stringing together four straight double-digit sack seasons — with three different teams — after being miscast as an off-ball linebacker early in his career. Reddick proved his legitimacy in Philly, spearheading a dominant 2022 pass rush en route to Super Bowl LVII, but has seen his $15MM-AAV deal become an upper-middle-class (at best) edge rusher accord. After the Huff, Danielle Hunter, Jonathan Greenard, Brian Burns and Josh Allen accords were finalized this offseason, Reddick’s deal has fallen into a tie for 19th among edge defenders.
Reddick’s 50.5 sacks since 2020 rank fourth in the NFL. The former first-round pick agreed to the Eagles deal ahead of his sixth season, however, as it took him some time to prove his 2020 Cardinals contract year was not fluky. This timeline may be costing the Temple alum here, with Cimini adding Douglas generally prefers not to extend players 29 and older or those acquired via trade. Reddick checks both boxes, adding another complication to this offseason saga.
After deploying Huff as a pass-rushing specialist, the Jets are expecting Reddick to play an every-down role. Unless Reddick wants to rack up $50K-per-day fines in training camp, he will report for his new team’s workouts next month. It will be interesting, then, to see if the trade pickup opts for the increasingly popular hold-in strategy — even though it is unclear if the team is planning any contract talks — come July.
Congrats, thanks for the 3rd, no givebacks….