2024 has been a disappointing year for many Jets players, veteran linebacker C.J. Mosley among them.
Mosley recently landed on injured reserve, ending his season after just four games played. ESPN’s Rich Cimini reported that Mosley is indeed expected to be released this offseason.
Mosley, who was selected by the Ravens in the first round of the 2014 draft, earned Pro Bowl acclaim in four of his five seasons in Baltimore, setting himself up for a lucrative payday after he played out the fifth-year option of his rookie deal in 2018. He signed a five-year, $85M contract with the Jets in March 2019, which shattered the then-record for inside linebackers.
Authorizing Mosley’s contract was one of then-GM Mike Maccagnan’s final acts at the helm of the Jets’ front office, as he was fired in May 2019 and replaced by Joe Douglas a month later. Gang Green felt the financial burden of Mosley’s deal even more acutely when the Alabama product played in just two games of the 2019 season due to injury and exercised his COVID opt-out for 2020.
However, he settled in nicely over the following three seasons, averaging nearly 160 tackles per year and earning another Pro Bowl nod in 2022. Last season, the advanced metrics finally placed him among the ranks of the game’s elite middle linebackers, as Pro Football Focus assigned him an 82.9 overall grade that was good for the sixth-highest mark out of 82 qualified players.
This offseason, Mosley – who was originally slated to be a free agent after the current campaign – agreed to a brief extension that keeps him under club control through 2025. By signing that deal, Mosley agreed to a pay cut in exchange for additional guarantees, though just over half of his $8.25M salary for 2025 is guaranteed. In order to minimize Mosley’s cap hit in 2024, when the Jets were fully expecting to contend, the club tacked on three void years, which means that it will be taking on $16.4M in dead money if it follows through with a 2025 release.
Nonetheless, New York could still save money against the cap by designating Mosley a post-June 1 cut and spreading the dead money tab over two years. The team will also be led by a new GM, who will likely not be too worried about incurring dead money generated by the Douglas regime.
