The New York Jets’ safety room is up in the air, to say the least.
Malachi Moore is poised for a significant role as he enters his second season in the National Football League, but the position is a big question mark outside of him. There’s no guarantee that either Tony Adams or Andre Cisco will be back. Arguably, the Jets could use an upgrade anyway. Jets insider Rich Cimini of ESPN threw out a “name to watch” that would fit this description perfectly: Minkah Fitzpatrick.
“No. 3. Get the checkbook ready: With approximately $90 million in cap room (they gained $11.8 million in the Johnson-for-Sweat swap), the Jets figure to be aggressive in free agency on the defensive side of the ball,” Cimini wrote. “Among the players they’re considering are safeties Bryan Cook (Kansas City Chiefs) and Nick Cross (Indianapolis Colts), linebacker Alex Anzalone (Lions) and defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad (Lions), among others, according to people familiar with their thinking.
The Jets should call Miami
“One name to watch is Miami Dolphins safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who reportedly is available for trade. New Jets defensive coordinator Brian Duker was the Dolphins’ passing-game coordinator, so he’s familiar with Fitzpatrick.”
Wouldn’t that be something? An AFC East swap centered around a talent like Fitzpatrick? It would surely make headlines, and make the Jets better if it were to become a reality.
Fitzpatrick is a five-time Pro Bowler and would be the best safety New York has had in years if the Jets could actually get a deal done with the Miami Dolphins. On top of being a five-time Pro Bowler, Fitzpatrick has been a First-Team All-Pro three times and has 21 interceptions under his belt in eight seasons. Now, of course, there’s more to the game than just interceptions. Quarterbacks have completed just 62.3 percent of their passes against Fitzpatrick throughout his eight-year NFL career to this point. That’s high-level. He has just one more season left on his four-year, $73.6 million deal, but he is worth a look.
The Dolphins have been clearing house. If they’re willing to let Fitzpatrick walk to a team in the division, it should be New York. Adding him would immediately solve the safety question and allow New York to quickly put focus elsewhere on the defense.
