New coach, new general manager — same old New York Jets.
After the New England Patriots filed tampering charges against the Jets for comments made about Darrelle Revis, New York retaliated and reportedly filed their own charges. The game of cat and mouse catnip continues.
If this all seems a bit petty, it is. The Patriots’ tampering charges even seemed a little tattle tale-ish at the time, though they actually were legit.
Woody Johnson said in December he’d “love” (present tense) to have Revis back as the cornerback was set to enter free agency. Revis was under contract with the Patriots, and the Jets made it obvious they wanted him back — and then he came back.
The Patriots waited until the last minute to turn down Revis’ 2015 option because they wanted exclusive negotiating rights. The Jets violated that by admitting they wanted to sign him well before the offseason even began.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft explained the Patriots’ process behind losing Revis, including his own thoughts on the matter that head coach Bill Belichick ultimately decided. Kraft said he wanted (past tense) to keep Revis, but it didn’t work out. Revis now is signed to a five-year contract.
Here’s a section on the NFL rules against tampering:
Definition
The term tampering, as used within the National Football League, refers to any interference by a member club with the employer-employee relationship of another club or any attempt by a club to impermissibly induce a person to seek employment with that club or with the NFL.
Purpose
The purpose of the NFL Anti-Tampering Policy, as it applies to tampering with players, is to protect member clubs’ contract and negotiating rights, and, at the same time, to allow the intra-League competitive systems devised for the acquisition and retention of player talent (e.g., college draft, waiver system, free-agent rules under an operative collective bargaining agreement) to operate efficiently. As the Policy applies to tampering with non-players, its purpose is to strike a balance between protecting the rights and maintaining the organizational stability of employer clubs, and providing realistic advancement opportunities for employees if other clubs desire their services.
Public/Private Statements. Any public or private statement of interest, qualified or unqualified, in another club’s player to that player’s agent or representative, or to a member of the news media, is a violation of this Anti-Tampering Policy. (Example of a prohibited comment: “He’s an excellent player, and we’d very much like to have him if he were available, but another club holds his rights.”) All clubs should be aware that improper disclosure of confidential trade discussions with another club may be a violation of this section on prohibited public statements.
It’s unclear which of Kraft’s comments triggered the Jets’ charges, but these appear the closest to tampering:
“I speak as a fan of the New England Patriots, we wanted to keep him. We wanted him in our system, and we have certain disciplines. We had hoped it worked out. It didn’t. We just don’t think about short-term decisions.”
“The fan in me wishes he were still with us.”
If the NFL takes intent into account, then perhaps neither Johnson nor Kraft tampered, but the Jets certainly came closer. Johnson’s comments sound very similar to the example used in the NFL’s wording, which is in the present tense.
Kraft’s intent was to talk about a player who elected to join another team.
There’s also the issue of precedent. If the Patriots get penalized for “tampering” with Revis, then do the Dallas Cowboys? Owner Jerry Jones expressed similar sentiments about DeMarco Murray on Tuesday at the NFL Annual Meeting.
“He’s an outstanding football player,’’ Jones said. “Under the right circumstances it would have been good for everybody for him to be here.”
Or what about the New York Giants, whose owner John Mara discussed their interest in Patriots safety Devin McCourty.
“We tried but were unsuccessful with Devin McCourty,” Mara told the Boston Herald on Monday. “I think our money was pretty similar to what he ended up signing for, but it was understandable that he wanted to stay with his old team.”
If a team no longer is allowed to express that it wanted to keep a free agent who voluntarily elected to join another team, then that’s a giant grey area that has been violated every single offseason.
The Patriots don’t need an extra draft pick, but Johnson technically tampered, and Revis eventually joined the Jets. Have the two teams exchange low draft picks and let’s be done with this petty nonsense.
Thumbnail photo via Bill Kostroun/Associated Press
