Getty A pair of Los Angeles Rams offensive linemen walking off of the field after an NFL game.
Not only is it Super Bowl week but we are also mere days away from Valentine’s Day.
Unfortunately, the New York Jets have experienced several occasions of heartbreak over the years from an epic playoff drought to soul-crushing losses.
This week theother y were reminded of a prior heartbreak that fans are hearing about for the very first time.
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Thanks, but No Thanks
Back in 2017 veteran offensive lineman, Andrew Whitworth knew it was the end of his 11-year run with the Cincinnati Bengals. To stay on the team he would’ve had to take a pay cut and Whitworth knew he had other options in free agency.
As he was exploring his choices one of the teams that reached out to him was the Jets.
After the 2015 season, longtime stalwart D’Brickashaw Ferguson surprisingly retired leaving the green and white scrambling for answers. They ended up trading for Ryan Clady from the Denver Broncos to fill the hole in 2016 but he couldn’t stay on the field and was one-and-done with the team.
They were hoping to lure the talented big man to the big apple, but Whitworth shot them down he recently told the New York Post:
“I actually had reached out and wanted to be a Giant just because I knew Eli Manning really well,” Whitworth told The Post. “But they kinda said no because they thought they were gonna continue with Ereck Flowers at left tackle, and that obviously didn’t end up working the next year. Once we got into it and realized that wasn’t an option, the Jets showed some interest but it wasn’t really something that I was that interested in doing.”
As if getting rejected isn’t bad enough, Whitworth actually wanted to play in New York, just not for the Jets. Then the Giants rejected him and Whitworth ended up signing a three-year deal for $36 million to join the Los Angeles Rams.
Now he is getting ready to play in his second Super Bowl in four years. On Sunday, as Field Yates of ESPN tweeted out, Whitworth will become the first offensive lineman in NFL history to ever play in a Super Bowl in his 40s.
On Sunday, Rams LT Andrew Whitworth will become the first offensive lineman in his 40’s to ever play in the Super Bowl.
He will also join just Tom Brady and Jerry Rice amongst non-specialists to do so.
A truly remarkable feat to be still be playing at a high-level at that age.
It looks like he made the right decision but for the Jets more heartbreak on what could’ve been.
The Plan B
After swinging and missing on Whitworth in free agency the Jets pivoted to veteran Kelvin Beachum. In his three seasons with the green and white Beachum played in 45 of 48 possible games.
He was able to hold down the fort for a few years, but it has been an annoying game of musical chairs ever since Brick decided to hang up his cleats.
Current Jets fans are hoping the answer to their prayers is Mekhi Becton, the No. 11 overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft out of Louisville.
At the Senior Bowl head coach Robert Saleh challenged him to “reassert himself into the starting lineup” this upcoming offseason by showing up in shape and taking a job.
With all of the different offensive tackles that have attempted to fill the void left by Ferguson, it has created an interesting situation among the fanbase. Throughout his decade-long run, a lot of people took Brick’s reliability for granted.
Now that he is gone, fans are now even more so looking back at his amazing success and wishing they could turn back the clock.
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