Jets rescinded contract offer after Ndamukong Suh went public with negotiations

Veteran defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh still hasn’t signed with a team after being released by the Dolphins two weeks ago, but the list of suitors trying to add him to their roster has shortened by one.

Christopher Johnson, the acting owner of the New York Jets, told reporters at the current NFL meetings in Orlando that the Jets had rescinded their offer to Suh. Via Connor Hughes of The Athletic, the move came after the 31-year-old went public with contract talks he’d had with the team.

As Suh made his rounds visiting teams, he never visited the Jets’ facility, despite the team being ready to offer him a contract; he told Yahoo Sports’ Jordan Schultz on Friday that New York had emerged as a serious contender and that it had made the biggest contract offer.

Though Johnson wouldn’t say it outright, it appears the Jets saw that as a ploy by Suh to get other teams – the Rams, Titans and Saints are his strongest suitors – to up their offers.

What Johnson did say about the situation was, “On reflection and in concert with [general manager] Mike [Maccagnan], we’ve rescinded the offer to Suh. It just didn’t seem to be in keeping with our long-term plan.”

Suh is on the other side of 30 now, but he is still playing at a high level relative to other defensive tackles in the league, and could be an asset to the Jets’ defense. But the Jets have also taken measures to move away from having more difficult personalities in their locker room, and Suh certainly falls into that category.

Johnson didn’t say much after confirming that the Jets had decided not to go further with Suh, just that upon reflection, while head coach Todd Bowles could easily fit him into the defensive scheme with Leonard Williams, the entire package – Suh the player and person – may not have been the best fit.

“I had a lot of discussion with Mike about this,” Johnson said. “I think our thinking just changed a bit … In discussion with Mike, looking at what our plan is, it became apparent to the two of us this just didn’t work.”

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