Getty New Orleans Saints safety Malcolm Jenkins celebrating with his teammates after a big play.
Putting together an NFL roster is a complicated beast.
You want to add as much talent as possible but you also have to balance the salary cap. With that being said you have to build a complete roster with a good mix of superstars, young talent, and true veteran leadership.
This offseason the New York Jets will have an opportunity to add to every layer of their team with their bevy of assets.
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An Opportunity to Add Some Proven Chutzpah
The New Orleans Saints are a team in transition and have two really young players they like at the safety spot. That has made veteran Malcolm Jenkins expendable heading into the offseason.
Nick Shook of NFL dot com said a team in “need of veteran leadership” could be a good landing spot via trade for the two-time Super Bowl champion.
The 34-year-old has no more guaranteed salary remaining on his contract. Jenkins has two years remaining on his deal for a total of $24 million.
Although if the Saints choose to move on they’ll have to eat $7.9 million in dead cap. They would likely have to eat a large portion of those guarantees to be able to trade him.
The Jets were listed as a “potential buyer” by Shook for the veteran safety and it makes sense on a lot of levels. They have a massive void on the backend of their defense and need more proven veterans that have been around the block.
A Varied Attack Will Be Key
The Jets are going to likely need two brand new starters at safety in 2022. While they will have a lot of different avenues to find those players, it will require a varied approach.
It seems unlikely that the Jets would sign a top-flight safety in free agency for a lot of money AND select a player like Kyle Hamilton out of Notre Dame with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NFL draft.
They may snag one or the other, but they’ll have to get creative adding the other starter.
Trading for Jenkins would be a low-risk kind of move that would cost them minimally both cap and asset-wise. Although it could have a major impact on the team.
The three-time Pro Bowler is a proven veteran and former team captain that has forgotten more football than most of us will ever know.
Jenkins has been in the NFL for over 13 years with two NFL franchises (Saints and the Philadelphia Eagles). Since 2009 he has played in 199 games and has started in 191 of those.
With a lot of new pieces likely to be added on the defensive side of the ball, Jenkins could help alleviate some of the communication issues and bring a stabilizing presence to the team.
The Jets could likely land the veteran for a late-round pick and the Saints would pay part of his salary to make the trade happen. What is not to like?
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