Tag: C.J. Mosley opts out

C.J.Mosley’s opt-out increases Avery Williamson’s value to Jets

C.J. Mosley opting out of the 2020 season presents an unlikely opportunity for Avery Williamson.

Despite the unfortunate circumstances surrounding C.J. Mosley’s decision to voluntarily opt-out of the 2020 season, an opportunity has been created for Avery Williamson.

While Williamson was already going to get a chance to make the Jets in training camp, Mosley’s absence all but assures he will.

If Williamson can return to his pre-ACL injury form, he will be the Jets’ best middle linebacker. He is also someone who can call New York’s defensive signals, something he did during his first season with the Jets before Mosley arrived last year.

“I definitely want to go in being a leader on the defense and just knowing that I’m going to make plays,” Williamson told the team website. “That’s what I did my first year with the Jets and I’m ready to continue that. Once we get back as a group, just going out in camp and proving myself again and showing them that I still have that same fire and the same ability to make those big plays.”

The Jets have a motivated Williamson on their hands, someone who has extra incentive to prove that he can return to the player he was in 2018. During his first season in green and white, Williamson compiled a career-high 120 combined tackles, three sacks, one interception, six pass breakups and two forced fumbles.

Since entering the NFL in 2014, Williamson has tallied 154 run stops, which ranks sixth-most among linebackers in that span, according to Pro Football Focus. During the 2018 season, Williamson had PFF’s fourth-highest run defense grade for linebackers and finished with the second-highest tackling grade among linebackers. That’s a lot more than New York can ask from backups like Neville Hewitt and James Burgess.

With Gang Green already having considerable depth in the middle of the field, Williamson appeared to be a likely cap casualty, saving the Jets $6.5 million in cap space. Now, he may be the one to fill Mosley’s shoes.

Former general manager Mike Maccagnan’s plan to have a 1-2 punch of Mosley and Williamson in the field never came to fruition. Williamson’s 2019 season was over before it started after he injured his ACL on a fluke play in a preseason game. Mosley, meanwhile, played just three-quarters of healthy football for Gang Green in 2019 before succumbing to a severe groin injury that required offseason surgery. Now, New York won’t see Mosley until 2021 and Williamson is in a contract year.

The major question will be how healthy Williamson is. He’s been rehabbing from for the past 11 months and was recently placed on the team’s Physically Unable to Perform list. If all things go well, he should be ready to go later this month.

Once he takes the field, there will be a little less pressure on him to perform with Mosley gone.

Updated look at Jets’ middle linebacker depth chart after C.J. Mosley opts out

Here’s what the Jets’ linebacker depth chart will look like after the opt-out of C.J. Mosley.

The Jets took a hit at middle linebacker on Saturday after C.J. Mosley opted out of the 2020 NFL season.

Mosley is opting out for family health concerns, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. So with no Mosley out for another season after he missed all but two games in 2019, the Jets’ depth at inside linebacker will be tested.

Fortunately for New York, it has depth up the middle. Mosley’s absence likely means Avery Williamson can reclaim a starting spot after suffering a torn ACL last preseason. There was a chance the Jets were going to move on from Williamson this summer — doing so would have saved them $6.5 million — but Mosley’s opt-out should change that.

Patrick Onwuasor is the other most likely option to start. Mosley’s former running mate in Baltimore, he came over from the Ravens this offseason after a disappointing 2019 campaign. However, Onwuasor played well in 2018 when he recorded 5.5 sacks.

As for the rest of the depth chart, the Jets have a solid mix of experience and youth. Neville Hewitt played well in place of Williamson last season. He had 73 total tackles, three sacks, five pass defenses and two interceptions in 12 starts. The Jets also have James Burgess and Blake Cashman, who both started at times in 2019 in place of injured teammates. Burgess had 78 total tackles, one safety, five pass defenses and one interception in just 10 games while Cashman had 38 total tackles and one pass defense in seven games before tearing his labrum and fracturing his shoulder.

There is also B.J. Bello is projected as the third-string middle linebacker. An emergency option, he recorded five tackles in seven games last season.

Despite Mosley’s absence in 2020, this unit still has the potential to be impactful. Gregg Williams’ system allows players to play to their strengths rather than requiring a certain skill set, which also allows for flexibility. That siad, no one here will replicate what Mosley is capable of, something the Jets got a taste of in Mosley’s brief appearances in 2019.

How does C.J. Mosley’s opt-out impact his contract & Jets’ salary cap?

C.J. Mosley’s opt-out means that his contract is pushed back a year and the Jets save money on his cap hit.

C.J. Mosley’s decision to opt-out of the 2020 season has a number of implications on his contract and the Jets’ salary cap.

Mosley voluntarily opted out of the 2020 season due to family health concerns, according to ESPN’s Rich Cimini. Since Mosley voluntarily opted out, he’ll either receive a $350,000 stipend if he’s considered medically higher-risk or a $150,000 salary advance.

As for Mosley’s contract, he still has four years left on the five-year, $85 million contract he signed in 2019. That means the Jets will have control of him through the 2024 season.

According to Over The Cap, Mosley was supposed to have a 2020 cap hit of $17.5 million, but it will now be $10 million, which was his roster bonus. In 2021, Mosley’s cap hit will either be $7.5 million or $7.35 million depending on if he receives the aforementioned $350,000 or $150,000. So the Jets will have more cap space in 2021 because of that, though it remains to be seen what the NFL salary cap will be next season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2022, Mosley’s cap hit will be $17.5 million, $8 million of which is fully guaranteed. His cap charge will be $18.5 million for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. None of these numbers have yet to be finalized, though.

Mosley’s opt-out is obviously a huge blow for the Jets defense. After the Jets traded Jamal Adams to the Seahawks, Mosley was supposed to be the centerpiece of the defense. The Jets have a ton of middle linebacker depth — this news bodes well for Avery Williamson — but Gang Green was anticipating Mosley’s return this year after he missed the majority of the 2019 season.

Now Mosley won’t put a Jets uniform on again until 2021. After playing in parts of just two games in his first season with the Jets, he has already made $29 million off his monster deal.

Jets LB C.J. Mosley opts out of 2020 season

Jets ILB C.J. Mosley will be opting out of 2020 season amidst COVID-19 concerns.

Jets starting linebacker C.J. Mosley is the latest NFL star to opt-out of the 2020 season. Mosley will opt out due to family health concerns, ESPN’s Rich Cimini first reported.

Mosley becomes the second Jets player to opt out of the 2020 season, joining reserve offensive lineman Leo Koloamatangi.

The loss of Mosley is a huge blow to the Jets defense. New York was looking forward to getting back its anchor in the middle after he missed 14 games in 2019 due to a severe groin injury.

By the time the 2021 season rolls around, Mosley will have played just two games for Gang Green. He signed a five-year, $85 million deal with an average annual salary of $17 million just an offseason ago.

Fortunately for the Jets, they have an abundance of depth at the inside linebacker position. Avery Williamson, who was once viewed as a potential cap casualty, certainly has increased chances of making the team now. In addition, New York added Patrick Onwuasor this offseason, re-signed Neville Hewitt and James Burgess and will be returning a healthy Blake Cashman.

Now, New York will be scrambling to configure a formidable defense. Gregg Williams’ unit will now be without both Mosley and Jamal Adams for the 2020 season.