Jets May Consider Trading CB Antonio Cromartie Instead of Darrelle Revis

According to an ESPN New York source, there is a “small segment of the organization” that would prefer to trade Antonio Cromartie over Darrelle Revis.

The idea is somewhat realistic when you consider that trading Revis isn’t going to solve their cap problems. Instead, they would be left with $12 million in dead money or the $9 million he’s owed for the upcoming season. Trading Cromartie, on the other hand, would actually create $8.2 million in cap space.

Revis represents their best trade chip by far, but exchanging him in return for draft picks really boils down to maximizing their compensation for him, rather than clear cap room. There’s almost no chance that Revis re-signs with the Jets if he doesn’t have a long-term contract in place by the start of the 2013 season, mainly because his contract prevents the Jets or any team from franchising him after the season.

According to the report, if they were to trade him now, the Jets could net a first-round pick and probably an addition high selection in 2014. This would at the very least allow them to begin the process of rebuilding. If they keep him and ends up signing elsewhere in 2014, then they would only receive a third round compensatory pick for him.

If they decide that trading Cromartie is the better move to make, then they’ll have to get things worked out in near future. They would have to first sign Revis to a long-term deal because otherwise he would be left will all of the leverage given that they would have just parted ways with Cromartie. Even so, you could argue that Revis already has plenty of leverage and there’s not a great reason to hang around given that they’re clearly considering a full rebuild at this point in time.

I know that the Jets could really use the cap space right now, but you can’t allow a guy who could bring back a first and possibly second-round pick to leave for a third-round comp pick. If they’re going to start the rebuilding process, than they should probably go all in and ensure that they have means to build a solid young foundation for the future.