Jets, Fitzpatrick Saga Continues On. Sides Remain At Odds

The saga continues. The latest reports say that the New York Jets are not interested in giving free agent quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick a one-year, $12 million contract.

This staring contest between the Jets and Fitzpatrick have gone on too long. Original reports claimed that Fitzpatrick was willing to sign with a team other than the Jets for less money based on principal.

But within the past couple days, reports said that Fitzpatrick was open to accepting a one-year, $12 million deal rather than the three-year, $24 million offer that has been on the table for months now.

But apparently, the Jets are no longer interested in the one-year, $12 million contract. So now, the four-month long staring contest continues.

The two sides should have come to terms a long time ago. Ryan Fitzpatrick needs a place to play, and the Jets need a quarterback to be competitive next year. Some of the players on the Jets have publicly expressed their interest and hope that Fitzpatrick will resign.

The Jets are holding out because they do not want to overpay, and I cannot blame them for this logic.

Although he had a career year, Fitzpatrick is a mediocre quarterback and he is on the wrong side of 30. Fitzpatrick has never had that much success in his career, except for when he played under Chan Gailey. Considering no other teams are offering him a contract, Fitzpatrick needs to accept any contract that comes his way. And on top of that, being with the Jets is his best opportunity to make the playoffs.

This is a problem that should be resolved sooner rather than later because it would be terrible if all of this off-field drama carried over to Fitzpatrick’s play on the field. Both sides need to come to terms because they both need each other.

Both sides have tried winning this war in the media. Both sides have tried winning this war by waiting. But clearly, neither is working. It is only making the situation uglier. Both sides need to compromise and settle on a contract because a four month long staring contest is just too long.