With Tuesday’s news out of Florham Park that the Jets have released five players—including starting linebackers Calvin Pace and Bart Scott—the official rebuilding process has begun. The Jets will likely promote rookie linebacker Demario Davis to a starting position and look to add another in the draft—possibly with their first-round pick.
Along with the releases of safety Eric Smith, tackle Jason Smith, and tight end Josh Baker, the moves free up more than $30 million in cap space to get the Jets more than $5 million below the cap.
Still, the small cap window will more than likely force the Jets to fill their holes through the draft—which goes against the thinking that brought in Pace and Scott in the first place.
Both players were brought to New York via free agency—Pace signed a six-year deal for $42 million in 2008, while Scott inked a six-year $48 million contract the following offseason.
Both were good players when the deals were made, but both had seen their production drop in 2012. Pace’s three sacks and 35 solo tackles were his lowest amount since 2006 when he was a Cardinal. Meanwhile, Scott’s 36 solo stops were his fewest since 2004 when he was a Raven.
As disappointing as it may seem to Jets fans to see the team starting over again, there is some good news.
