The New York Jets have spent much of this offseason purging their roster of highly paid veterans. First, they gave pink slips to cornerback Darrelle Revis and long-time starting center Nick Mangold. Then, they cut ties with wide receiver Brandon Marshall. Last week they traded 2014 first-round pick Calvin Pryor. Earlier this week, they cut long-time starting linebacker David Harris. And soon, they plan to either trade or release wide receiver Eric Decker.
Nevertheless, the Jets apparently reached out to retired wide receiver Steve Smith this week, according to Kim Jones of the NFL Network.
"Earlier today in the green room, Steve Smith Sr. was saying 'Hey, the Jets reached out to me,'" Jones said on Inside Mimicamp Live, according to Pro Football Talk. "Yes, the Jets reached out to Steve Smith, asked if he was still interested in playing. He indicated he wasn't."
Even for the Jets, this is weird. As mentioned, the Jets have spent basically the entire offseason jettisoning pretty much anyone over 30 from their roster. They were also already one of the worst teams in the NFL last season, and they've cut ties with some of the better players on the roster, which means they figure to be even worse in 2017. They should be firmly in the mix for the No. 1 pick next year. So, it's not like they're an attractive destination that would convince Smith to reverse course on retirement just a few months into his media gig.
It's also not clear why they would want Smith, given that he would clearly not be part of their long-term future and would just be a place-holder taking valuable snaps away from young wideouts like Quincy Enunwa, Robby Anderson, ArDarius Stewart, Chad Hansen and more. (If they just wanted him to be a veteran mentor for the young receivers, well, they already have a guy that can do that in Decker, and they're preparing to let him go.) It's apparently not going to happen anyway, because Smith isn't interested, but it's strange nonetheless.
