Darrelle Revis got his ring. Now he's got his money.
The star cornerback has agreed to terms to return to the New York Jets, his agents announced Tuesday.
Revis' deal with the Jets is a whopper. NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reports it's a five-year, $70 million deal with $39 million fully guaranteed, per a source involved. Revis will get $16 million-per-season in the first three years of the deal, which was exactly the number he was looking for back in 2013 when the Jets traded him away.
Jets owner Woody Johnson wouldn't let Revis get away again. Johnson made it clear last year that he wanted Revis back with the team, and he got his wish. The move caps a busy week for general manager Mike Maccagnan, who traded for Brandon Marshall, while re-signing linebacker David Harris, and then agreed to deals with cornerback Buster Skrine and guard James Carpenter when free agency opened Tuesday.
It's a massive loss for a Patriots defense that finally put together a championship secondary. The team didn't pick up the option on Brandon Browner's contract Tuesday, but that was addition by subtraction. Revis, on the other hand, was a game changer. He proved that he's still one of the top cornerbacks in the league and allowed Bill Belichick to get far more creative with his pressure packages. There simply aren't many difference-making man coverage cornerbacks in the league, and Revis helps make everyone around him better.
The ironic thing about Revis' deal: Vilified former Jets general manager John Idzik helped make this possible. Idzik didn't add enough talent during his brief tenure, but he did get the Jets out of salary cap trouble and built a surplus of space to spend this offseason. And they made sure to spend it on the greatest Jets player since Joe Namath.
This reminds us of the early Rex Ryan-era Jets, when Gang Green and the Patriots went back-and-forth on and off the field. The Jets owned the back page in New York then, and Revis' return guarantees they will own it Wednesday morning and for plenty of the 2015 season. This is a talented Jets squad on both sides of the ball that just needs some help at quarterback to compete for a playoff spot again.
It's rare that a transaction can so directly cause pain for two division rivals, but this move also will be tough for Rex Ryan to swallow. Revis' first official visit was scheduled to be with Buffalo, but the Jets just couldn't bear to see him play for another rival.
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