APRIL 23: The Jets have officially announced that they’ve exercised Coples’ option, according to a team release.
APRIL 11: The Jets have exercised their fifth-year option for outside linebacker Quinton Coples, according to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. The option will keep the 24-year-old under contract with the team through the 2016 season.
As part of the NFL’s CBA, teams are allowed to lock up their former first-round picks for an extra year. According to Mehta, the value of the contract is worth $7.8MM, or the average salary of the 25 highest-paid linebackers (excluding the two highest-paid at the position). Following Coples’ up-and-down start to his career, there was speculation that the Jets would allow the linebacker to play out his contract. However, the team decided to secure his services earlier, and as Mehta points out, the contract is only guaranteed for injury, meaning the organization basically took no financial risk.
The former 16th-overall pick tied or set career-highs in 2014 in games played (16), solo tackles (25) and sacks (6.5). However, Coples compiled 708 snaps this past season, a significant decrease from his 2013 total (834). Furthermore, he didn’t receive a positive ranking via Pro Football Focus (subscription required), ranking 40th among 46 3-4 outside linebacker candidates.