It might be a while before Robby Anderson figures out which team he will be playing for next season.
The wide receiver’s market has yet to materialize, leaving him out to dry on the open market in the opening days of free agency. After Amari Cooper re-signed with the Cowboys on a five-year, $100 million deal, it looked like there was a chance wide receivers would start flying off the board with Anderson being the first to go. Instead, the market has gone stagnant.
This can be attributed to a couple of factors. The 2020 NFL draft class is loaded with with wide receivers such as Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb, Alabama’s Jerry Jeudy and Clemson’s Tee Higgins. With such a deep crop of receivers looming in the draft pool, there is not much of a reason for any team to risk overpaying for a wideout it is not completely sold on.
There is also a chance that the NFL’s lower than expected salary cap has caused teams to approach free agents differently than they previously expected to. The lower salary cap has caused teams to cut back on their spending, keeping them out of the running for a player like Anderson, who is in line to get a contract worth more than $10 million per year.
The stagnant wide receiver market helps the Jets, as they have remained in the hunt to re-sign Sam Darnold’s top target. It has also allowed Joe Douglas and company to stay out of a bidding war that could have pushed Anderson away from a return to the Big Apple.
The longer this goes on, the better it is for New York’s chances of bringing back its top unsigned player. With that being said, it’s only a matter of time before things start to pick up for a receiver as talented as Anderson.
It just might take a little longer than he and everyone else originally expected.