Cutting Mangold and Revis is painful but had to be done by the Jets

The NFL is a business and well, making salary cap cuts to popular players is painful but in the case of the New York Jets, had to be done.

Over the course of the past week, the New York Jets have announced the release of center Nick Mangold and cornerback Darrelle Revis among a few other notable names. Center Nick Mangold and Revis are both legendary figures in the history of the organization, but these moves had to be made in order for the team to move forward.

It goes without saying that the Jets had an abysmal season based on their original expectations for 2016. With that being taken into consideration, it became clear that the Jets would have to make some sweeping changes during the upcoming offseason.

Despite this expectation and desire for change, though, it is always tough to have to say goodbye to beloved players in the name of good business decisions. This is why the Jets recent releases of Revis and Mangold have sent huge shockwaves throughout the team’s fanbase and the rest of the sports world.

Mangold and Revis have both played their way towards achieving legendary status in the Jets’ community. Both players will almost certainly have a place in both the Jets’ Ring of Honor and the Pro Football Hall of Fame in due time. Despite all of these accolades, though, the NFL is a business and New York had to make moves in the best interest of the organization’s future.

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In Mangold’s case, he is thirty-three years old now and undoubtedly on the backend of his storied career. His salary cap hit was going to be north of nine million dollars for the 2017 season, and his injury issues, including a recently sprained ankle, have continued to pile up over the course of the past few seasons.

Despite Mangold still looking the part of a Pro Bowl caliber center this past season, the Jets’ offensive line did not seem to drop off very much in his absence. Mangold’s twenty-five-year-old backup, Wesley Johnson, did an admirable job in his place.

Johnson is set to hit the free agent market next week. If the Jets wisely choose to re-sign him, he will give the team a young and talented center with the potential to be a main-stay at a much cheaper price.

For Revis, the decision should have been even easier for Gang Green. After many years of Pro Bowl caliber play, Revis dropped off to the level of a below average cornerback during the 2016 season. He will be thirty-two-years-old by the start of next season and his 2017 salary cap hit was set to be north of a whopping fifteen million dollars.

On top of all of those factors, there’s also the issue of Revis’ recent arrest due to an altercation in his home city of Pittsburgh. This situation is something that the Jets were wisely not willing to deal with, and it definitely should have made the decision that had to be made even more clear.

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All of these factors make it clear that the Jets had no choice but to release Mangold and Revis. Both players will be immortalized in Jets history, but the organization had to let them go in order to get the team’s rebuild off to a good start.