New York Jets Calvin Pace and Jason Babin Retained, Chris Johnson to be a Free Agent

Mike Maccagnan has begun the process of putting his 2015 Jets roster together with some announcements today.

The Jets have announced that they have exercised contract options for linebackers Calvin Pace and Jason Babin.

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Pace will turn 35 during the 2015 season, but he has been productive for the Jets, even as of late.  He posted five sacks last season, and 15 over the last two years.  For his Jets career, Pace has posted 43 sacks.  He may not start next year for the Jets, depending upon how the off-season works out, but keeping him around as a veteran influence on younger players is not a bad idea.  However, does this tell us that David Harris is not returning to the Jets?  We’ll see.

Jason Babin is coming back as well.  In spot duty last season, Jason Babin posted two sacks and two TFL’s.

In no surprise, Chris Johnson will not be brought back, becoming a free agent when the period opens on March 10th.  He did contribute over 600 rushing yards for the Jets in 2014, but he clearly lost a step, not showing the burst that he has shown in previous years.  The Jets can definitely move elsewhere in the running back department.

Clearly, Maccagnan and Bowles are hard at working deciding which current Jets are going to fit in going forward.