Is the world much closer to seeing a happy ending to the Ryan Fitzpatrick-Jets contract saga?
In short, no.
The New York Daily News first reported Fitzpatrick's counteroffer.
As it stands, the Jets are hoping to sign Fitzpatrick to a three-year, $24 million contract that could rise to as much as $36 million with incentives. That offer, which would include $12 million in the first year, according to Rapoport, has been on the table since March.
But perhaps the biggest reason why the Jets aren't taking Fitzpatrick's offer seriously is they simply don't have the salary-cap room to pay him a guaranteed $12 million in 2016. New York only has a little more than $3 million in cap space, according to Spotrac.com. General manager Mike Maccagnan would have to engage in some heavy-duty contract restructuring to accommodate Fitz's number.
By proposing a one-year deal, Fitzpatrick would trade multi-year security for an opportunity to test the free-agent market again for a potentially lucrative payday -- provided he can replicate or approach the impressive numbers he posted in 2015.
Still, it appears the vast majority of leveraging power remains with the Jets -- at least for now. This late into the offseason, it would be surprising to see another team enter into the Fitz frenzy sweepstakes. Until that happens, any Fitzpatrick negotiation tactics likely will be dismissed by the top brass in Florham Park.
