A polarizing big-money New York Jets free agent acquisition wants to stay with the green and white.
“The reason why I came here was to ultimately retire a Jet,” Jets wideout Allen Lazard told ESPN’s Rich Cimini. “I wanted to be part of something historical here and be part of the change and break the [playoff] drought.”
Lazard has two years left on the $44 million contract he signed with the Jets during the 2023 offseason.
A Complicated Jets Tenure For Lazard
Lazard, 29, has had two uneven years with the Jets.
He signed a big-money contract and was supposed to be the Robin to Garrett Wilson’s Batman. However, Lazard didn’t live up to the hype.
Lazard lost his former Green Bay Packers teammate, Aaron Rodgers, four snaps into their first season together on the Jets.
That loss affected Lazard mentally and he struggled throughout the 2023 campaign. He had the worst season of his professional career recording just 23 receptions for 311 receiving yards and one touchdown.
Things went so poorly that the coaching staff made him a healthy scratch at the end of the season and questioned his lack of an “edge.”
Wow… #Jets HC Robert Saleh officially put WR Allen Lazard on notice following the #Dolphins game talking to @JosinaAnderson:
‘Obviously my decision [to make him a healthy scratch], he’s going to be here for the next year & a half’ 🧐 Lazard signed a 4-year deal for $44 million… pic.twitter.com/PzCXDdIWRl
— Paul Andrew Esden Jr (@BoyGreen25) November 24, 2023
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Lazard had a strong bounceback this past season. He finished with 37 catches for 530 receiving yards and scored six touchdowns.
For most of the season, Lazard led the Jets in touchdown receptions before Wilson ultimately surpassed him.
However, it wasn’t all good for Lazard.
He finished with the highest drop rate in the NFL (19%), per Ian Hartitz of Fantasy Life.
A Complete Reset of The WR Room is Likely in Order For The Jets
Lazard might want to stick with the Jets but the feeling might not be mutual.
The only chance Lazard has of staying is if Rodgers is back in 2025, which is far from a guarantee. Even if Rodgers is back, Lazard might still be thrown out the door.
The Jets have an out in Lazard’s contract this offseason. If they move on, the Jets will only have to eat $6.5 million in dead cap.
The deal on the surface was always a four-year deal for $44 million, but if you took a deeper dive the contract was actually a two-year deal for $22 million when you looked at the guarantees.
People outside of the building often talk about these outs that can exist in contracts. Typically teams and their employees don’t openly discuss those details.
However, then head coach Robert Saleh accidentally slipped up back in November of 2023 saying Lazard, “is going to be here for a long ti… for the next year and a half.”
That was a curious comment that picked up a lot of steam on social media. Saleh was saying the quiet part out loud that Lazard wasn’t long for New York despite what his contract might tell you.
Even though Saleh isn’t on the Jets anymore he might have been foreshadowing what is to come with Lazard.
