When the Jets re-signed David Fales to a one-year deal in April, it looked like New York was content settling for him as Sam Darnold’s backup in 2020.
As it turns out, that is far from the case. In fact, Fales’ contract breakdown indicates the Jets have been thinking about adding a better quarterback to serve as Darnold’s backup all along.
Fales is due to make the veteran minimum of $910,000 next season. However, only $100,000 is guaranteed, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. This means that not only could the Jets afford to add another backup behind Fales and rookie James Morgan, but they can also part ways with Fales without having to deal with nearly any financial ramification.
Considering Fales’ lack of meaningful in-game experience, it’s not surprising that the Jets would have an interest in adding a more established veteran to the quarterback room. Fales has played in only three games since entering the NFL in 2014 and has not attempted a pass in a regular season game since 2017. He might be well-versed in Adam Gase’s offense, but the Jets need more than a quarterback whose only value is having a playbook down pat.
The financial flexibility Fales’ contract allows New York to work with enables it to target one of the higher-end backup quarterbacks remaining on the open market. Veterans such as Joe Flacco and Matt Moore are still available for the taking. So is Cam Newton if the Jets want to go down that road.
No matter how you slice it, the structure of Fales’ contract indicates that the writing could be on the wall regarding his future at One Jets Drive. If New York had confidence that he could provide some sort of substantial value, he would have received a lot more guaranteed money from Joe Douglas.
Don’t be shocked if the Jets add another veteran signal caller before the beginning of training camp in late July. If that happens, Fales might have to take his $100,000 and call it a day.