As the Jets and quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick continue to be at impasse regarding his next contract, it appears that the Jets are holding back cash in the event someone else offers Fitzpatrick more than what the Jets currently are offering. They possibly are misreading the situation.
Peter King of TheMMQB.com suggests that the Jets eventually will increase their offer from something in the range of $7 million per year to something in the range of $12 million per year, if a team like the Broncos, 49ers, or Browns show interest. But this assumes that Fitzpatrick would even give the Jets an opportunity to match whatever someone else may offer.
The strong sense as of Thursday was that Fitzpatrick was ready to move on, insulted by the lowball offer from the Jets. The primary impediment is that no one else has yet to show the kind of interest that would get Fitzpatrick to sign a contract.
Even at $12 million, Fitzpatrick would be the lowest paid second-contract starter other than Rams quarterback Case Keenum or Bills quarterback Tyrod Taylor (Fitzpatrick also would match Colin Kaepernick). Even at $12 million, it’s less than eight percent of the total cap space for 2016.
Of course, that still doesn’t mean someone will offer that much. But the point is that if the Jets are willing to do it, they may not get the chance if someone else does before that.