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The New York Jets threw around a lot of loose change this offseason during free agency.
One of the most stunning investments was the double dip at the tight end position.
First, the Jets signed veteran CJ Uzomah to a three-year deal for $24 million. Then they quickly followed that up with another sizable addition at tight end handing $21 million more to Tyler Conklin.
Both were expected to be critical parts of the offense, especially when considering the organization’s significant financial investments in them.
CJ Uzomah Has Proven to Be an Absolute Debbie Downer
Despite the money, Uzomah has proven to be a dud as a free agent signing.
The Jets have played four games so far in 2022 and Uzomah has only participated in three of those contests due to injury.
In those appearances, Uzomah has been targeted just a single time and he caught that pass for five yards. That is it.
To make matters worse the former Cincinnati Bengals standout has only played 35 percent of the offensive snaps so far. Heck, he is playing more on special teams right now (51 percent of those snaps).
That’s fine and dandy for a player to contribute in those ways, but not for someone who was just paid over $24 million.
Twitter user +x=/ said Uzomah “is the biggest waste of money”:
If they aren’t paying him to contribute on offense what are they paying him for? Twitter user StephonK. said “simply vibes and locker room management. Nothing else.” That’s a pretty penny to pay for those services.
I think Steve Bohen nailed it on social media saying, “I really thought CJ Uzomah would be a bigger piece of the offense tbh (to be honest).” He certainly speaks for all of us based on his prior history and how highly the Jets thought of him.
Tyler Conklin Has Been Worth Every Penny and Some
While Uzomah has been a dud, Conklin has been a stud for the Jets on offense.
The worst-kept secret among Jets fans this offseason was the bearded wonder from Minnesota was always the true TE1 on Gang Green.
Despite what the contract said and perhaps even at times the depth chart, Conklin has proven to be a diamond in the rough.
He has had at least three catches in every game this season thus far and has become one of the best tight ends in all of fantasy football.
On the season Conklin has 21 catches for 192 yards and one touchdown. Right now he is on pace to have not only a career year for himself, but Conklin could very well reset the franchise marks for the tight end position.
He is on pace to secure 89 catches for 816 yards and four touchdowns.
That would be the most catches by a Jets tight end in franchise history and the yardage output would rank fourth best at the position all-time.
Hopefully, Uzomah can turn it around with 13 games left to go in 2022. The good news is he can’t be much worse than he has been so far, so it should be only up from here.
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