Rich Cimini of ESPN reports that Jets franchise DE Muhammad Wilkerson will not sign his franchise tender anytime soon, and may not report in time for the start of training camp in late July.
Even though minicamp is considered mandatory, by not signing his franchise tender, Wilkerson cannot be fined for missing the practices.
Of course, Wilkerson is still rehabbing his surgically repaired broken leg, so even if he were to attend camp, there’s no guarantee he would be able to take part in practice.
According to Cimini, Wilkerson believes he’s worth at least the $103 million Fletcher Cox just got from the Eagles. However, it’s unlikely that he’ll get this kind of money from the Jets.
For what it’s worth, New York still has until July 15 to negotiate a long-term deal with Wilkerson, but the expectation is that he’ll play out the year under the franchise tag.
Wilkerson, 26, is a former first-round pick of the Jets back in 2011. He played out his rookie contract with the team and was in line to be an unrestricted free agent this offseason before the Jets used their franchise tag on him.
The franchise tag will run the Jets $15.701 million fully guaranteed for the 2016 season.
In 2015, Wilkerson recorded 59 tackles, 12 sacks, two forced fumbles and six pass defenses over the course of 15 games. Pro Football Focus has him rated as the No. 5 defensive end in a 3-4 system out of 57 qualifying players.
We’ll have more regarding Wilkerson and his future with the Jets as the news is available.
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