Jets Forced to Make $65.3 Million Move on Alijah Vera-Tucker
Now that the NFL cap has been set at 255.4 million, the fifth-year option amounts have been decided.
New York Jets offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker’s contractual option has been set at $65.3 million. The green and white have to decide by Tuesday, May 2 if they will accept or decline that option. Once exercised, that option is fully guaranteed.
If the team accepts it, AVT will be under team control for the next two years through 2025. However if the team declines it, AVT will become an unrestricted free agent next offseason.
The Pros and Cons of the Jets’ Decision on AVT
After the season Jets general manager Joe Douglas called AVT a “cornerstone player” on the offensive line that they want to build around.
That sure sounds like someone who is going to be here for the foreseeable future.
I asked Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic on “The Boy Green Show” if the Jets accepting AVT’s option is a slam dunk this offseason and he responded, “I think so. Just because when he plays he is very good.”
“When he plays” is exactly the reason this upcoming decision is even a debate. Vera-Tucker had season-ending surgeries end both of his campaigns over the last two years.
In the past, the fifth-year option was only guaranteed because of injury but a recent change to the rules makes it fully guaranteed as soon as you accept it. $15.3 million is a large chunk of change in any scenario let alone for a player who has struggled to stay on the field.
AVT didn’t have any injury issues when he was back in college at USC. Both of the injuries that have ended his seasons in the pros, a torn Achilles and a torn triceps, have been described to me as “freaky unfortunate injuries” by medical professionals.
