The New York Jets are painstakingly DESPERATE to acquire a face-of-the franchise quarterback. They haven't had a franchise passer since Joe Namath, who recorded the first 4,000-yard passing season in NFL history back in 1967. They haven't had a quarterback throw for that many passing yards since. Following the Sacramento Kings clinching a spot in the NBA playoffs on Wednesday night, it's Gang Green that now has the longest active playoff drought in North American professional sports — MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL — at 12 seasons. The Jets haven't reached the postseason since the 2010 season when their head coach was Rex Ryan, their quarterback was Mark Sanchez, and their top-10 defense was led by Hall of Fame cornerback Darrelle Revis.
Naturally, New York has gone all out to acquire an experienced Pro Bowl passer this offseason since team owner Woody Johnson indicated in January that he was "absolutely" willing to pay up for a veteran quarterback to pair up with the Jets top-five scoring defense (18.6 points per game allowed, fourth-best in the NFL).
"We've got a cap of how much you can spend, but yeah," Johnson said in January. "That's [a veteran quarterback] kind of the missing piece. Defense was an unbelievable story, you saw, from last place to close to the top. If you can do the same thing on offense, it looks pretty good."
That pursuit of an established quarterback has manifested itself in bending over backwards for four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers. The Jets have hired former Packers offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett, signed former Green Bay wide receiver Allen Lazard to a four-year, $44 million contract, and it worked. After Rodgers met with the team at his home in California, he announced his intention to play for the Jets. However, the trade deal with the Packers is reportedly being held up because there are concerns on the Jets' side about how much longer the 39-year-old Rodgers wants to play ball.
Given that concern, why don't the Jets just pivot to another NFL MVP quarterback who is 13 years younger in 26-year-old Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson? He's on the non-exclusive franchise tag, meaning New York can send him an offer sheet at any time now. If Jackson signs an offer sheet, Baltimore will have five days to match it or receive two first-round picks as compensation. The Ravens and Jets could also work out a trade, once Jackson is signed. Here's what Jets general manager Joe Douglas said about a Jackson pursuit on Tuesday.
"First of all, Lamar Jackson is a fantastic player, but where we stand is, it would be disingenuous and negotiating in bad faith if we went down that path," Douglas said. "We have our plan, we have our process and we're sticking to that … We're never going to operate in bad faith."
Douglas is the general manger of an NFL team, specifically an NFL team that needs to make the playoffs this year as his job and head coach Robert Saleh's job may be on the line if they don't. His boss, team owner Woody Johnson, said as much Tuesday.
"I'm not the patient sort," Johnson said. "We're in the win business. We have to win now."
Yet, Douglas is operating as if he's the GM of a fantasy football team with an overly-sensitive group of college buddies. In most fantasy football leagues, other teams would be understanding of a team shifting to a different trade if it's the better deal.
Should Douglas tire of going back and forth with Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst over Rodgers, which is unlikely to happen but just in case, here are a few reasons why getting into the Lamar Jackson business makes sense for the Jets both now and down the road.